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AJC.com > Legislature > Georgia Beat > Archives > 2005 > February > 10
Thursday, February 10, 2005
Faith-based initiative falls short in Senate
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Gov. Sonny Perdue’s initiative to amend Georgia’s Constitution to allow religious organizations to receive taxpayer dollars failed its first test by three votes in the state Senate Thursday.
After a lengthy debate, the measure received 35 “yes” votes and 20 “no” votes —- three votes shy of the required two-thirds majority required for a constitutional amendment. The bill likely will return to the floor for a vote to reconsider Monday.
The bill’s supporters argued that religious organizations often do a better job of providing services for children, the elderly and homeless than the government.
“The real mission is to let the churches do what they’re called to do, and do it better than the government has in the past,” Senate President Pro Tempore Eric Johnson (R-Savannah) said.
But several senators expressed concern that the proposed amendment is a thinly-veiled attempt to allow vouchers in the state.
“If we pass this resolution … the way it is worded now, you’ve just enabled school vouchers in this state,” said Sen. Doug Stoner (D-Smyrna), who proposed several amendments to the original resolution.
The amendments included language that prohibit state dollars from going to fund tuition at private and parochial schools and that would ensure that public dollars would not be spent on religious instruction and proselytizing.
Johnson expressed incredulity that some lawmakers were concerned about vouchers.
He said that Georgia law already allows vouchers for private schools in the state. And he argued that Georgia is already providing vouchers through the state’s lottery-funded pre-K program.
Each of the Democrat-sponsored amendments to the resolution failed, almost all on party lines.
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House passes bill limiting jury awards
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The House of Representatives today overwhelmingly passed legislation that caps jury awards for a malpractice victim’s pain and suffering at $350,000. Earlier today, the House shot down a $750,000 cap on jury awards by a single vote.
The tort reform bill now moves immediately to the Senate, which passed a similar version last month and could adopt the House bill later today.
The House debated the contentious issue for three hours before deciding the issue of capping damage awards in medical malpractice lawsuits. The House initially voted 88-83 against an amendment to cap awards at $750,000, with exceptions for wrongful death and catastrophic injury cases.
The House then voted 85-82 to reconsider the amendment and, voting on it for the final time, defeated it by a 86-85 vote.
Rep. Barry Fleming (R-Harlem), chair of the Special Committee on Civil Justice Reform, spoke out against the $750,000 cap saying it had loopholes big enough “to drive a truck through.” But a number of Republicans, such as the amendment’s sponsor, Rep. Wendell Willard (R-Atlanta), said such a cap is more fair to victims of malpractice.
Ultimately, the House approved by a 136-34 vote an amendment by Speaker Glenn Richardson (R-Hiram) to set a cap on pain and suffering awards at $350,000, or up to $1.05 million in multi-defendant cases. Another amendment by Richardson to make it less difficult for malpractice victims to prevail in lawsuits in emergency room cases also passed easily.
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Senate bill would slash teen minimum wage
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Senate approved a bill this morning that would allow employers to hire workers under age 20 at a “training wage” of $4.25 per hour — less than the federal minimum wage of $5.15 per hour.
Employers could pay the lower wage for a maximum of 90 days. Seth Harp (R-Midland), the bill’s sponsor, said the bill simply aligns the state’s policies on minimum wage with federal wage requirements.
“The idea is to encourage employers to hire young people by giving them this break,” Harp said. “All my bill does is bring the Georgia statute in line with the federal statute.”
Sen. Regina Thomas (D-Savannah) urged her colleagues to vote against the measure. “This is not a good bill,” Thomas said. “I urge you, for the working families in the state of Georgia, not to allow this to happen.”
The measure passed by a vote of 49-5.
After passing a few more bills, the Senate adjourned until 1:30 p.m., when lawmakers return to debate Gov. Sonny Perdue’s faith-based initiative. Senate Resolution 49 would allow public funding of religious organizations that provide social service programs.
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House debates cap on jury awards
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The debate over tort reform is entering its third hour at 1 p.m. today.
State Rep. David Ralston, of Blue Ridge, was one of the first Republicans to speak out against the reform legislation. Ralston, a lawyer, said the debate is being wrongly characterized as lawyer vs. doctor.
“What few people want to admit is this is really about insurance,” he said. “It troubles me to see we’re now meddling into and intruding into our judicial system. And here we’re being asked to put a value on human life. Look past all the chatter, the pressure, and do the right thing.”
Some House members applauded Rep. Rich Golick (R-Smyrna), a corporate lawyer with a large insurance company as his client, when he rose to question whether lawmakers should be passing this bill as he displayed parts of the U.S. and state Constitution on overhead projectors.
“I’ve got a real problem with his bill as a conservative,” Golick said. “I don’t believe the government should put itself in the place of a jury of 12 of our peers.”
Golick called it an “Am-I-going-to-sleep” at night vote.” He urged passage of an amendment with a $750,000 cap and exceptions for catastrophic illnesses.”
State Rep. Phyllis Miller (R-Snellville) argued that caps will hurt women, the elderly, the retired, children and the physically and mentally handicapped.
“Help me stop this train before it becomes a train wreck,” Miller said.
The debate over sweeping changes to the state’s civil justice laws opened at 11 a.m. this morning with remarks from Majority Leader Jerry Keen (R-St. Simons Island). “I believe we have more white coats and silk suits here than we do on the [fashion show] runways in New York,” Keen said as the debate opened inside the House chamber, the third floor halls jammed with lobbyists. “Let’s make this state a healthier, safer and more economic place to do business in.”
The House Rules Committee earlier today continued to use its new powers to try to control the debate over the reforms.
On a motion by Chairman Earl Ehrhart (R-Powder Springs), the Rules Committee voted to limit the bill’s floor debate to three hours. The House is set to begin debate over the bill that, among other things, would impose a cap on medical malpractice jury awards.
The Rules Committee voted Wednesday to send to the floor four proposed amendments to the bill and rejected nine others. One amendment would limit jury awards for a victim’s pain and suffering to $350,000 and another would allow up to $750,000.
On the opening day of the session, the new GOP leadership in the House pushed through rule changes that give the Rules Committee the authority to put a time limit on floor debates and to prohibit House members from submitting amendments on the floor on certain bills.
A similar version of the bill sailed through the Senate last month. Senate Bill 3 would cap “noneconomic” damage awards — those beyond compensation for lost wages and medical bills — at $250,000, or up to $750,000 if multiple defendants are found liable.
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