Legislature 2009: Top issues

The 2009 session of the Georgia General Assembly begins today. Lawmakers will deal with pressing statewide issues, such as transportation and taxes. The Legislature also will tackle local issues that could include Gwinnett County’s push for Sunday alcohol sales at its new stadium, and teacher retention and recruitment across the metro area.

Local officials are compiling their legislative wish lists. Here are some of the top issues they hope will be addressed in the session:

ATLANTA

Casino gambling

> Who’s interested: Business owners, hotels, city council members, county leaders

> What do they want: Casino gambling in Atlanta. Supporters say it will bring millions of dollars to the region. Tax proceeds can be used to pay for infrastructure projects and trauma care. Critics argue a casino will bring more crime, lead to gambling addictions and prostitution.

For years, Republican lawmakers have blocked any such legislation, fearing the political consequences from social conservatives. Supporters hope the current recession will encourage those lawmakers to reconsider their past opposition.

School funding

> Who’s interested: School officials.

> What they want: Money. School board members say school funding must be a combination of state and local money and must be enough to mitigate any possible revenue shortfalls because of the recession. School districts had a midyear budget cut this year from the state, and they anticipate more cuts for next school year.

School choice

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: This issue is more what they don’t want —- no more voucher programs, which use taxpayer money to send students to private schools. Legislators approved a voucher program for students with disabilities in 2007. Last year they approved giving private citizens and corporations income tax credits for donating money to nonprofit scholarship organizations, which would award money to parents who want to send their kids to private schools. Another voucher bill is expected from Senate President Pro Tem Eric Johnson (R-Savannah) to make more students eligible for vouchers, but the details are still being worked out.

Teacher recruitment and retention

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: The best and brightest teachers to work in their schools. Board members said they support legislation and funding to attract top teachers to Georgia. They said the state should develop incentives to keep outstanding teachers in the classroom. It’s too soon to say if there will be any legislation, but there has been discussion about recruiting teachers in critical areas like math and science by paying them more than other teachers.

—- Compiled by Laura Diamond and Eric Stirgus

CHEROKEE COUNTY

SPLOST

> Who’s interested: County officials, business and community leaders

> What they want: Legislation might be introduced to create a special purpose local option sales tax for transportation. Might have some support, given the state Transportation Department’s funding problems.

Property tax relief

> Who’s interested: County and school officials

> What they want: Let local governments receive the money to cover the cost of the state property tax relief. Cherokee County government is due $2.5 million. Money may come this year, but end after that.

School spending and class size

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: Give school systems more flexibility on class size, with district averages, and on spending priorities. Could spark a debate on the short- and long-term consequences of larger classes, given the financial conditions.

Property tax assessments

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: Legislation is likely to be considered that would limit increases in property assessments until a house is sold. School officials are concerned about the potential for a significant loss in operating funds. In an election year, this might be popular and be the subject of lengthy debate.

Foreclosed property value

> Who’s interested: School and government officials

> What they want: There’s talk of a foreclosed property value reset bill that would cause the assessed value to be reset from current market value to the amount paid for the foreclosed property. Local government officials question how this would affect their bottom line. Pressure may be on legislators to be sympathetic to local budget constraints.

—- Compiled by Nancy Badertscher

COBB COUNTY

PILOTs and TADs

> Who’s interested: County officials

> What they want: To limit PILOT —- payment in lieu of taxes —- bonds. The economic-development tool is used to spur development. Other jurisdictions that share revenues generated by a PILOT project, such as school boards and county commissions, do not have to be notified that future tax dollars can be given to developers. Cobb leaders want state law amended to require governments to get the consent of others affected before PILOT bonds can be issued. State Rep. Earl Ehrhart (R-Powder Springs) said “we must have all taxing jurisdictions sign off” on PILOTs.

Police training

> Who’s interested: County officials

> What they want: An additional $250,000 for the regional North Central Georgia Law Enforcement Academy in Austell, which provides basic police training and techniques to departments in the region. Gov. Sonny Perdue last year vetoed additional money for the academy. Ehrhart agreed that the regional training academy should be funded.

Education funding

> Who’s interested: Cobb County school district

> What they want: More than half of the district’s $948 million budget is now being funded by local taxpayers, with 46 percent coming from state monies. The district wants more money to educate students —- and transport them. “Funding is the number one need, and there’s not a second,” said Mike Campbell, who oversees government relations for the school system. Schools have been warned that cuts in state funding are a certainty. Keeping those cuts to a minimum is a priority.

Sales tax collection

> Who’s interested: County officials

> What they want: More accurate collection of sales tax revenue by the state. State Rep. Terry Johnson (D-Marietta) said county officials have expressed concerns about the loss of sales tax revenue at the point of collection.

—- Compiled by Kent A. Miles, Dan Chapman, Alexis Stevens

GWINNETT COUNTY

Transportation funding

> Who’s interested: County, chamber, municipalities and school officials

> What they want: The list for highway funding is long and includes programs to relieve traffic congestion in metro Atlanta through a number of measures. The county has pitched for legislation to allow voters to impose a regional sales tax devoted to transportation. County officials say the tax would create no tax burden for the state at large and would provide that all funds raised be spent in the region they were collected. Other governmental entities want the Legislature to explore light-rail transportation, public-private partnerships to create toll roads and increased funding for highway improvements and maintenance.

Property taxes

> Who’s interested: Municipalities and Chamber of Commerce

> What they want: Cities want to restore funding for the Homestead Tax Relief Grants, which provide rebates to property owners. Gov. Sonny Perdue in August declared a freeze on the $400 million-plus state reimbursement. Cities also oppose a measure prefiled in November that would cap annual property tax assessments at 3 percent. Sponsors argue the legislation would protect property owners from wild fluctuations in property taxes. Municipalities are trying to get the measure modified to keep more local control over assessments and taxes.

Education

> Who’s interested: School district officials and Chamber of Commerce

> What they want: Gwinnett school officials are seeking to have the state fully fund its Quality Based Education program. For the past six years, the state has instituted “austerity cuts” to its formula for determining how local districts receive state funding. School officials estimate these cuts have cost the district more than $125 million since 2003. They want the formula reworked. The Chamber has also requested the state preserve funding to its Quick Start program which provides work-force training at technical colleges and satellite campuses.

Water

> Who’s interested: Gwinnett County, municipalities, Chamber of Commerce.

> What they want: Officials want the state to develop and implement water control plans for the Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint basin. Lake Lanier, a primary water source for Gwinnett, is the uppermost reservoir in this system. Recent history and the current drought has demonstrated that the Army Corps of Engineers needs to have a better method of operating the system to ensure metro Atlanta has a secure source of water, officials say. Additionally, county officials have highlighted the fact that the 2008 Legislature provided $40 million to the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority to make grants to local governments for new water supplies. The governor has since taken the money to assist in the state’s revenue shortfall. The county wants the money restored.

Sunday alcohol sales

> Who’s interested: Gwinnett County

> What they want: Officials want the state to bring counties in line with municipalities when it comes to allowing Sunday sales of alcoholic beverages at public stadiums, coliseums and auditoriums. County officials say legislation for alcohol sales was hijacked by proponents of Sunday packages sales for alcohol.

—- Compiled by Patrick Fox

FORSYTH COUNTY

Tax relief reimbursement

> Who’s interested: School and county officials and taxpayers

What they want: Locals say it’s critical they be reimbursed for the annual tax relief the state offers to property owners. Statewide, that amounts to $428 million. For Forsyth County schools alone, $3.8 million is at stake. With the state facing major money problems, the Legislature may come up with the money this year, but then say no more.

Spending flexibility

> Who’s interested: Educators, supporters of public schools

What they want: Schools are seeking broader flexibility on spending. May depend on how sympathetic lawmakers are to the economic challenges of schools.

Charter change

> Who’s interested: Community activists and businesspeople

> What they want: A change in the county charter could be proposed to provide that county commissioners and school board members are elected by the voters in their respective districts. They currently run countywide. The change had overwhelming support when it was put to voters in a straw poll last July. Lawmakers are still researching the pros and cons. Unless there’s a consensus among the area’s legislators, there’s likely to be no action.

Transportation

> Who’s interested: Chamber leaders, business community, residents

If transportation is underfunded, local jurisdictions could see cuts in transportation services and projects.

> What they want: Transportation funding has become a critical issue, particularly as officials fear that traffic congestion threatens the quality of life and economic development.

Water supply

> Who’s interested: Government officials, environmentalists, residents

> What they want: Adequate water supply continues to be an issue, with the emphasis on county and regional reservoirs. Forsyth County has consultants looking at its options. Some bills on the issue are likely to surface, but how much airing they receive may depend on how time-consuming the state’s budget issues are.

—- Compiled by Nancy Badertscher

DEKALB COUNTY

Line-item taxing

> Who’s interested: County officials

> What they want: A change to the property tax law that allows the county to raise more money for police. Currently, police operations come from a portion of the county’s general property tax. Commissioners say they’d like a special line item on the tax bill for police. The fire department already has its own line. It means commissioners can raise taxes for the particular service, rather than the overall tax rate, which might be more politically palatable among voters. Some commissioners expressed similar interest in a line-item property tax for library operations, because several new libraries are under construction. One key DeKalb legislator questions the idea. “It does not make sense to me,” said state Sen. Emanuel Jones (D-Ellenwood). “If, in fact, they need a tax increase, they should come forward and explain [how it affects] the overall county budget.”

Annexation

> Who’s interested: Local city officials

> What they want: Three cities —- Decatur, Avondale Estates and Chamblee —- are expected to ask the state Legislature in the upcoming session to OK referendums on expanding their borders. Reasons to do it include adding more commercial property to local tax rolls, controlling growth and gaining specialized local service. Jones said he thinks the cities should tread carefully on this highly localized issue. “If anything, we may need to look at consolidating governments,” he said.

Vouchers and tuition tax credits

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: In this case, it’s what they don’t want. Georgia for years hasn’t followed its own public school funding mandate, yet lawmakers have been willing to pay for some of their peers’ favored projects —- such as the state’s 2007 private school voucher program for students with disabilities. Given the sour economy and the state funding cuts for schools, local officials say enough is enough. Vouchers are popular with some lawmakers, including influential Senate President Pro Tem Eric Johnson (R-Savannah). Expect a lot of noise on this issue, although economic concerns may cancel it out.

Local property tax / Assessments

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: Assessment increases in hopes of holding down property taxes. They’ve flirted with the idea of funding schools not through property taxes but, rather, with a sales tax. Don’t do it, school officials say: A sales tax is unstable as a funding source, and a statewide cap takes away local control. This is a popular, politically palatable issue —- although some lawmakers, including Jones, question whether it should be a local issue rather than a statewide mandate.

School funding

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: Mercy, especially given the state’s lack of full funding. DeKalb experienced a midyear budget cut this year and has been told to expect at least another 1 percent cut for next school year, if not more. It will be hard for this issue to get any traction in a bad economy, although Jones said he feels the schools’ pain. “For us to continue cutting, we’re not just cutting the meat now, we’re cutting the bone,” he said.

—- Compiled by Kristina Torres, Ty Tagami and April Hunt

CLAYTON COUNTY

Hiring a fifth judge for Clayton Superior Court

> Who’s interested: Clayton County judges, the district attorney’s office

> What they want: A fifth judge to assist with high caseloads. The state judicial council has already approved the request, but it still needs legislative approval. “The numbers are astonishing for caseloads and the number of judges available to hear those cases,” said Rep. Mike Glanton (D-Ellenwood). Glanton said he anticipates the request will be approved.

School funding

> Who’s interested: School officials

> What they want: The Clayton County school system is slated to lose $23 million in state funds because 3,300 students have fled the troubled district. The students left after the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools revoked the district’s accreditation in August. State education funds are distributed based on enrollment numbers. Glanton said the school district will not get the money. “The formula is what it is. There really is no way to circumvent that formula,” he said. “There is absolutely nothing we can do in relation to the loss of revenue because of the loss of students.”

—- Compiled by Megan Matteucci