Shortly after being sworn in to office Thursday, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones released the list of committee chairs, filling some vacancies and making some switches.
Notably, two of Jones’ allies were appointed to key committee chairmanships — state Sen. Matt Brass, R-Newnan, will serve as chair of the powerful Senate Rules Committee and state Sen. Brandon Beach, R-Alpharetta, will be chair of the Senate Economic Development and Tourism Committee. Both committee’s chairs were vacant.
Brass is replacing state Sen. Jeff Mullis as chair of the Rules Committee, which is tasked with determining which pieces of legislation receive a vote on the chamber’s floor. Mullis did not seek reelection. Beach will replace Bruce Thompson, who is the state’s new labor commissioner.
Beach was stripped of his chairmanship of the Transportation Committee by then-Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan in 2021 for being among the state senators who aggressively promoted Donald Trump’s false claims of widespread election fraud in 2020, when the Republican lost the presidential race to Joe Biden, a Democrat. Jones, too, was stripped of his chairmanship of the Insurance and Labor Committee that year for his vocal support of Trump’s claims.
Jones appointed state Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, R-Marietta, to serve as chair of the newly formed Children and Families Committee.
“This critical committee will be tasked with taking the lead on mental health, child protection, foster care, and adoption initiatives,” Jones said in a press release. “This committee will give a bigger platform to these critically important issues and develop policies that benefit children and families across our state.”
Sixteen of the Senate’s 26 committees will have new leadership this year. Seven of the spots were open due to the chairs either running for higher office or choosing not to run for reelection. Nine committee chairs were switched to lead different panels from last year.
Chairs are highly sought-after positions because the person in that role determines which legislation will get hearings and possibly move forward. They also are often magnets for campaign contributions from lobbyists and special interests.
Senate committees are selected by the lieutenant governor’s office and the chamber’s leadership.
Senate committees with new chairs this year
Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee — Sen. Russ Goodman, R-Homerville
Banking and Financial Institutions Committee — Sen. Carden Summers, R-Cordele
Children and Families Committee — Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick, R-Marietta*
Economic Development and Tourism Committee — Sen. Brandon Beach, R-Alpharetta
Education and Youth Committee — Sen. Clint Dixon, R-Buford
Higher Education Committee — Sen. Billy Hickman, R-Statesboro
Insurance and Labor — Sen. Larry Walker, R-Perry
Interstate Cooperation Committee — Sen. Colton Moore, R-Trenton
Natural Resources and the Environment Committee — Sen. Lee Anderson, R-Grovetown
Reapportionment and Redistricting Committee — Sen. Shelly Echols, R-Alto
Retirement Committee — Sen. Rick Williams, R-Milledgeville
Rules Committee — Sen. Matt Brass, R-Newnan
Science and Technology Committee — Sen. Chuck Payne, R-Dalton
State and Local Governmental Operations Committee — Sen. Frank Ginn, R-Danielsville
Transportation Committee — Sen. Greg Dolezal, R-Cumming
Urban Affairs Committee — Sen. Donzella James, D-Atlanta
Veterans, Military, and Homeland Security Committee — Sen. Mike Dugan, R-Carrollton
*Newly created
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