More jobs, less state government and no sales tax increase on groceries or cigarettes were issues that topped Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle's priority list Tuesday, just days from lawmakers' return to work in Atlanta.
With the legislative session set to start Monday, Cagle said in an interview with The Atlanta Journal-Constitution that he expected to assert himself this year. That may be especially true with a behind-the-scenes rift with fellow Republicans in the state Senate, who have tried to curb Cagle's power in that chamber.
Cagle served 12 years in the Senate before being elected lieutenant governor in 2006. Now in his second term, he said he appreciated the tradition of his job as much as the challenges. Cagle outlined his top priorities this year, and he talked about other issues that may face lawmakers. Here are some excerpts:
On the state budget, which has included billions of dollars in cuts in recent years: "This session, we've got the luxury of having a little uptick in our revenue stream. That's been a positive sign. The bad part is that although revenues have been up, that has to be weighted against the unexpected lows. We've had expenditure increases particularly in Medicaid, state health benefits along with growth in k-12 [education]."
On how the state can save more money: "In this new economy, we're going to have to challenge ourselves to do things differently. One example might be, with the downsizing of state government and the number of employees we have, have we looked at ... consolidating agencies into a single building where we had multiple buildings before? Looking for outsourcing opportunities as well."
On tax reform: "I've said putting the sales tax back on groceries is a non-starter for me. I've been pretty consistent in my career of saying 'no new taxes,' not only on groceries but also on tobacco."
On the economy and creating jobs: "The good thing for us is we got great assets, like the port in Savannah, the airport, the University System. Our focus is: How do we continue to be a low-tax state, how do we reduce regulations and allow businesses to thrive here within our state? The focus is: How do we make Georgia the most economically viable state in the nation to do business in?"
On proposed changes to criminal sentencing: "It's a conversation that I think needs to happen. We are in a position to where we can, with technological advancements, have home arrest, we can have ankle bracelets. There are a lot of tools that are available to us today that save money but also help the individual as well."
On the effect of the new immigration law on Georgia's agriculture community: "Agriculture is still our largest industry, and we want to continue to be very committed to agriculture in Georgia. With that being said, I believe very strongly in the rule of law. There's a right way to come to this country, then there's a wrong way to come to this country. The federal government needs to act and needs to come up with a meaningful guest worker program."
On recent tension between him and Senate leadership: "For 60-plus years, Georgia has had the tradition of the Senate, with the presiding officer -- the president of the Senate -- being the lieutenant governor. There are those who want to change that model. Therein lies the conflict. The Senate has always been the deliberative body. One of the reasons was the makeup: The leader of the Senate is a statewide elected official, [who represents] not simply one geographic area; and the Senate has always also been more bipartisan in its efforts, very respectful of people on both sides of the aisle. ... I'm going to continue to fight for that. Because last year, quite candidly, was by most perceived to be a failure."
On efforts to move the date of this year's transportation sales tax votes: "My view, quite candidly, is if the date change is going to occur and the Legislature wants to do it, then it needs to be done very, very early in the session -- meaning no later than January. Because those individuals who are running the campaigns need to know what the date's going to be. I'm open to the idea and having this discussion, but it's one that needs to occur early."
On whether he'd back a bill, if one is submitted, that would ask voters to consider a constitutional amendment in support of "personhood," effectively criminalizing abortion: "It's too early to tell at this point, but traditionally I've always been very supportive of pro-life issues. Traditionally, I've always had a stance that allowing the people to vote on a constitutional amendment whether I'm for or against it makes good policy. [But] you obviously need to be very sensitive ... that it doesn't have unintended consequences."
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