Legal use of stun guns on Georgia’s college campuses, unlimited daily bingo prizes and state licenses for “lactation consultants” — all are among scores of new state laws going into effect Friday, the beginning of the state’s new fiscal year.
Here is a look at some of the more important new laws, as well as some of the odder ones:
House Bill 34 — The Georgia Right to Try Act
The law makes Georgia one of 30 states in the past two years to allow terminally ill patients the use of experimental drugs that are undergoing clinical trials but have not yet won full approval from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. Patients are responsible for paying for the drugs (although drug manufacturers may offer discounts and charitable foundations may also help defer costs). The movement is being led by the libertarian-leaning Goldwater Institute in Arizona. Advocates say the FDA drug approval process — which can take more than a decade — is too long a wait for more than 1 million people who die annually from terminal illness.
House Bill 555 — Mandates additional reporting about abortions in Georgia
The law sets a new mandate that supporters say will help the state track abortions by juveniles in Georgia. It requires the Juvenile Court and Administrative Office of the Courts to compile and deliver statistics on girls 17 and younger who seek an abortion without notifying their parents. State health officials already keep track of those numbers; it's the first time these numbers must be confirmed via the courts. The report must be completed annually by March 15.
House Bill 649 — The Georgia Lactation Consultant Practice Act
Advocates say passage of this law made Georgia the second state, after Rhode Island, to license lactation consultants to help mothers who have problems breastfeeding their babies. The effort, supported by the state Department of Public Health, comes as the Healthy Mothers, Healthy Babies Coalition of Georgia reports that nearly 75 percent of new moms in Georgia leave the hospital breastfeeding their babies but only 19 percent of them are still doing it at six months (something recommended by the American Academy of Pediatrics). The idea, they say, is to help more women get the services and advice of breastfeeding experts. Another plus? Women may also now get help paying for it, since insurance companies often help pay for licensed heath care professionals.
House Bill 775 — Restrictions on sale and dispensing of spectacles
You can buy anything online, right? Just not eye exams in the Peach State, at least as of Friday. Georgia is among a number of states taking sides on the issue in the eye care industry, which has gotten a jolt from a Chicago-based startup called Opternative. The company, which officially launched last year, offers online eye exams and then, for $40, has a doctor review the online results and email a prescription for glasses or contacts. It’s drawn the ire of the American Optometric Association, which in April filed a complaint with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration over the company’s lack of federal approval and what it said was misleading claims over the online test’s accuracy.
House Bill 792 — Use of electroshock weapons by people who are students or who are employed at a public institution
Students at least 18 years old will now be legally able to carry Tasers and stun guns on Georgia's public college and university campuses. Some dubbed the effort "campus carry lite" — after a bill vetoed by Gov. Nathan Deal that would have allowed some students to carry guns on Georgia campuses. The author of the law — state Rep. Buzz Brockway, R-Lawrenceville — said he intended to provide an alternative to students wanting to protect themselves on campus but not use a lethal weapon. The law states that what are formally called electroshock weapons must only be used for self-defense, getting to concerns by some lawmakers that somebody could use the device to zap somebody else just for fun.
House Bill 941 — Review of incidents involving a peace officer’s use of deadly force that results in death or serious bodily injury
No other state had allowed as much leeway as Georgia, but now this law aims to limit police officers' ability to influence the outcome of grand jury proceedings when they face possible charges. Previously, officers were allowed to sit in on the entire grand jury hearing, listen to all the evidence against them and make a statement at the end that could not be questioned or challenged by prosecutors. Now, police officers may offer a statement to grand jurors but will not be allowed to stay in the grand jury room. They also will face cross-examination.
House Bill 951 — Sales and use tax; admissions to major sporting events; create exemption
The National Football League in May awarded Atlanta the 2019 Super Bowl, in no small part because Georgia lawmakers — with the backing of Gov. Nathan Deal — passed what amounts to an estimated $10 million tax break on ticket sales for the big event. The measure additionally extends a tax break for all-star games, college championships and any other game deemed to qualify as a "major sporting event." And it will renew a sales tax break for back-to-school shoppers for a weekend in late July and restores an incentive to buy energy-efficient products in late September.
House Bill 965 — The Honorable Jimmy Carter Cancer Treatment Access Act
Yes, you read that right. Carter is a constituent of the law's author, state Rep. Mike Cheokas, R-Americus, who says the former president's recent cancer battle inspired him to try to help others get access to the same drugs. Carter, 91, announced in August that doctors found four small melanoma lesions on his brain, and that he would undergo treatment at Winship Cancer Institute of Emory University using the drug pembrolizumab as well as radiation therapy. In early December, Carter announced that tests showed no sign of the cancer in his body. Now, any insurance company that offers a health care plan in Georgia cannot force patients with advanced cancer to first fail to respond to other treatments before trying more aggressive treatment programs such as helped Carter.
Senate Bill 309 — High schools that receive state funding cannot participate in an athletic association that prohibits religious expression on student athletes’ clothing
There were many battles fought at the state Capitol this year over so-called "religious liberty" bills. This is the only one that made into the law books — and with little backlash or bickering. Inspired by a high school runner disqualified from an association event last year while wearing a headband with a Bible verse written on it, the law expressly prohibits discrimination against religious expression on student athletic uniforms and pressures the powerful Georgia High School Association to allow its member schools to compete against nonmember schools. The association says it is changing its policy to allow interassociation competition. It has also said the runner's disqualification had nothing to do with what was written on his headband.
Senate Bill 316 — Bingo; remove the daily permissible prize limitation
Bingo! One of the few legalized forms of gambling in Georgia, the games draw thousands of players daily to bingo halls and auditoriums across the state hoping to get a chance at cash prizes. Yet, while the state retains what the Georgia Bureau of Investigation considers one of the most restrictive bingo laws in the country, lawmakers agreed this year to loosen the rules just a bit. They’ve removed what had been a daily winnings cap of $1,500 — although a $3,000 weekly limit remains in place.
Senate Bill 364 — Revise annual teacher, principal and assistant principal evaluations
Increased emphasis on testing in schools has been bemoaned by teachers and parents alike for years, making this rollback all the more significant. The law officially reduces the number of state-mandated tests taken by students in Georgia's public school classrooms and lessens how testing results influence teacher evaluations — something supporters say will allow for more spontaneity and less rote "teaching to the test." Among the changes, the improvement by a student in test scores over time will drop from counting as at least half of a teacher's evaluation to 30 percent.
Senate Bill 367 — Changes to the criminal justice system
One of Gov. Nathan Deal's signature efforts in office has seen a number of changes to Georgia's criminal justice system, from getting more nonviolent offenders into nonjail alternative programs to giving judges more discretion in sentencing. This latest law expands that work on a number of fronts. Among its provisions, this creates new charter schools in prisons, offers a new chance at parole for some serving decades-long sentences and blocks state licensing boards from requiring most people with criminal histories to disclose that information on a job form. The effort has already won praise from President Barack Obama, who has applauded it "for demonstrating that making our criminal justice system more fair is a bipartisan idea."
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