The push to privatize parts of Georgia's foster care system seemed on the ropes last week when Gov. Nathan Deal assembled a task force to vet the issue and called for a slower approach.
Not so anymore. Our colleague Kyle Wingfield reported that House and Senate lawmakers reached a compromise on Wednesday, settling on a more limited program to privatize the functions in just a handful of counties for a three-year program.
Deal told us Thursday that the legislation is "still fluid" but that he doesn't see the commission he announced last week as a stumbling block for this sort of pilot study to earn his signature. Said Deal:
"I think it's appropriate that we have a commission of that sort. No matter what direction we take, the ongoing input from people on a commission could be important."
Minutes after he spoke, the Senate passed a version of the privatization compromise by a 43-10 vote that calls for a three-year pilot in several counties before a statewide phase-in. It also sets up a separate commission to oversee the pilot program with members appointed by the governor, the lieutenant governor and the House's leader.
But Deal was right about the legislation being in flux. The bill's sponsor, state Sen. Renee Unterman, said she's hoping her legislation reaches a conference committee before midnight with lawmakers in the House, who haven't yet approved it. A point of contention involves combining the two different task forces. Said Unterman:
"I do all the children's issues in the Senate. I feel confident that his task force and the commission can be incorporated into the same thing. That's one of the things we work out in the conference committee. That's one of the things we come to an agreement on."
Unterman added that she's hopeful that either she or state Sen. Fran Millar, R-Dunwoody, wind up on the panel.
State Rep. Wendell Willard, who is shepherding the bill in the House, said its fate remains uncertain - partly because Deal's team has raised concerns.
"I don’t want two different groups doing a review and oversight. I think one is enough, and I think we need to get buy-in from the governor’s office," said Willard. "I don’t think it’s too late, but it could go either way. In the last few hours, strange things can happen."
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