LISTEN: The Georgia Senate’s top leaders join us on Sine Die
Big bills remain on the table as the Georgia General Assembly meets for Sine Die, the last day of the session.
They include the state’s $36 billion budget, immigration enforcement measures and a sports betting proposal.
Another big bill making headlines is House Bill 1104, authored by freshman state Rep. Omari Crawford, a Democrat from Decatur. The legislation was initially a suicide prevention bill, but the Senate added unrelated culture war amendments to the measure.
One of them would prohibit sex education in Georgia schools before the sixth grade.
“Overall, I don’t think many parents in Georgia believe we should be teaching sex education from kindergarten to fifth grade,” Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch says on the podcast.
The stakes for this Sine Die are even higher because this is the second year of the Legislature’s biennial cycle.
The General Assembly operates on a two-year session, so bills from last year and this year must pass by today as the session ends. If bills fail, they will have to be reintroduced at the start of the next two-year session.
“We’re still working on some bills from a year and year and a half ago,” Gooch says.
The Dahlonega Republican also comments on the fate of a bill that would pause the permitting of some new mines near the Okefenokee Swamp.
“I don’t know if this bill gets to the floor today or not, but I will tell you this: We have to let our regulatory agencies do their jobs,” Gooch says.
Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler, a Democrat from Stone Mountain, also joined the podcast to express disappointment that a late push to fully expand Medicaid failed.
“We know there are so many people in this state that (do) not have coverage that need it so badly,” she says.
Butler announced earlier in the session that she would retire after serving 26 years under the Gold Dome.
She had one last wish before the session ends.
“It would be so much better if we had that honest dialogue about issues,” she says.
Friday on ”Politically Georgia”: Atlanta Journal-Constitution Publisher Andrew Morse joins the show.
Wrapping up: 2024 Georgia Legislature
Check on the status of top bills and resolutions we are watching on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution’s Bill Tracker
At a glance: What passed, what didn’t on Day 40
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About the Author
Natalie Mendenhall is an award-winning producer for the "Politically Georgia" podcast. She also steps in front of the mic, creating compelling segments for the show. Before joining the AJC, the Chicago native worked as a senior producer at Georgia Public Broadcasting.
