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AJC.com > Legislature > Blog > Archives > 2009 > February > 10
Tuesday, February 10, 2009
Plea for F-22 Raptor in the Legislature
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
A resolution asking Pres. Barack Obama to preserve funding for Lockheed Martin’s F-22 Raptor was making the rounds of the Senate chamber Tuesday.
Sen. Doug Stoner (D-Smyrna) sponsored the bill. Lockheed Martin, in Cobb County, is in his district.
The resolution calls for “uninterrupted production of the F-22,” Stoner said. The plane is the Air Force’s newest fighter aircraft.
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Klesko honored by House
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Former Braves slugger Ryan Klesko brought some unusual star power to an otherwise routine day in the Georgia House on Tuesday, when he was recognized after retiring from baseball.
Klesko, who belted more than 270 home runs in his 15-year career with the Braves, San Francisco Giants and San Diego Padres, told lawmakers he was honored by the attention from “my adopted home state.”
Klesko hit 3 home runs and battled .313 with an .875 slugging percentage in the 1995 World Series, which the Braves won over the Cleveland Indians for the team’s first and only championship in Atlanta.
Retired since April 2008, Klesko said he plans to raise his new son in Georgia and will work for wildlife conservation and carbon abatement through improved forestry in the state.
Former Braves first baseman/outfielder Ryan Klesko posed for pictures with lawmakers and House staff after being honored in the chamber on Tuesday. Here, poses with House committee aide Jessica Zarter. Photo credit: Aaron Gould Sheinin/asheinin@ajc.com.
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Senate votes to end homeowner grants
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Senate gave final approval Tuesday to legislation that will probably mean homeowners won’t receive a taxpayer relief grant this fall.
The House passed the measure a few weeks ago, and the Senate narrowly approved it Friday. However, an opponent of the bill, Sen. Steve Thompson (R-Marietta), used a parliamentary maneuver to bring it up for a final vote again Tuesday. His move to have the bill reconsider failed 23-32.
The bill guarantees the state will fund the grants, which save homeowners about $200 to $300 on their property taxes, this fiscal year, which ends June 30. Homeowners received the grants on their tax bills last fall, but counties haven’t been reimbursed for those awards.
The bill essentially promises to pay the counties the $428 million to fund the awards from last fall. Without that money, counties would likely send out supplemental tax bills to homeowners later this year.
While the state may fund the grants in the future if the revenue outlook improves, they won’t be awarded this fall.
Gov. Sonny Perdue has not said if he’ll sign the legislation, or approve the $428 million needed to pay back the counties.
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House continues tax break for jet fuel
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The House just voted 132-31 to continue for two more years tax exemptions for airlines to purchase jet fuel.
The overwhelming vote on HB 212 to continue until 2011 the tax break came despite impassioned objections from two House members, who said the state can hardly afford the price tag in an era of massive budget cuts.
Rep. David Lucas (D-Macon) said he understands the idea behind the bill, which was sponsored by Speaker Pro Tem Mark Burkhalter (R-Johns Creek), but said it’s a bad idea. The state is considering eliminating funding for school nurses but wants to give Delta and other airlines tax credits.
Rep. Roberta Abdul-Salaam (D-Riverdale) said even after the tax cut was first implemented in 2008, Delta still laid off hundreds of workers and that it and other airlines have done very little to improve the communities around the airport. Abdul-Salaam’s district includes much of Clayton County where, she said, unemployment and foreclosures have sky-rocketed.
The bill is estimated to cost the state $24.4 million a year and local governments $13.5 million per year in lost sales taxes.
The bill now goes to the Senate.
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One senator wants permanent property tax grants
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Sen. Mitch Seabaugh (R-Sharpsburg) has introduced a bill that would give voters the chance to change the state constitution to make property tax grants permanent.
While the Legislature has passed bills that would pay for the grants this year, the future of the grants are in doubt. Without the grants, property taxes would likely increase $200 to $300 per year for the average homeowner.
Senate Resolution 179 would ask voters whether they would like to make the property tax grants permanent.
“There seems to be a sentiment around here to allow the taxpayers to decide,” Seabaugh said, “so I dropped a bill giving them the opportunity to do so.”
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House Dems see $1 billion in untapped sales tax
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
House Democratic leaders on Tuesday unveiled legislation that they claim would help the state rake in an estimated $1 billion in unpaid sales taxes.
The bill would streamline the way businesses report sales tax receipts to the Department of Revenue and how the agency sends that money back to local governments.
Rep. Virgil Fludd (D-Tyrone) is the lead sponsor of HB 356. It transfers control for collecting sales taxes from DOR to local governments. Democrats said that Alabama has instituted a similar system and that it saw a $1 billion increase in revenue.
Fludd, House Minority Leader DuBose Porter (D-Dublin) and House Democratic Caucus chairman Calvin Smyre (D-Columbus) were joined by several other colleagues at a news conference to announce the plan Tuesday morning.
Fludd plans to speak from the well of the House today to urge bipartisan support — but whether that is on its way is unclear. The lawmakers said they would welcome Republican support, which is typically necessary for a bill to make it through the GOP-dominated General Assembly.
Under the plan, more businesses would report sales tax collections electronically. Businesses that report more than $5,000 a month in sales tax revenue already do that, but the legislation would lower that threshold to $1,000.
Porter and Fludd said businesses would have no upfront costs to participate. Fludd said the Department of Revenue has estimated that the state is losing $1.6 billion in uncollected sales and income taxes.
Caption: From left, Rep. DuBose Porter (D-Dublin), Rep. Calvin Smyre (D-Columbus), Rep. Nikki Randall (D-Macon) and Rep. Virgil Fludd (D-Tyrone).Photo credit: Aaron Gould Sheinin/asheinin@ajc.com
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Teilhet calls for tougher rules for ‘refund anticipation loans’
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Rep. Rob Teilhet (D-Smyrna) will introduce legislation this week targeting high-interest loans granted against expected income tax refunds.
Teilhet, a frequent critic of industries he considers to be predatory lenders, said the bill requires firms that offer the loans to fully disclose the terms and make borrowers aware that they are entitled to receive their tax refunds free of charge from the IRS in eight to 15 days by direct deposit without getting a loan. Interest on these loans can reach triple digits on an annual basis.
“For too long, Georgia and other states have allowed predatory lenders to deceive taxpayers into loans soaked with extravagant fees and triple digit interest rates,” Teilhet said. “By passing this bill, Georgia will say “yes” to full disclosure and “no” to deceptive sales pitches. It is time that Georgia stood up to the predatory lenders that have done so much damage to our nation’s economy.”
If you REALLY want to know more, Teilhet has his own YouTube channel where he discusses the bill.
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