There’s a federal shutdown, markets are being wonky, and the big election – for a while at least – is over. A new governor will take over in Georgia who may want to make his mark felt and legislators can rest a little easy – at least in the campaigning sense – before the inevitable firestorm that will be the 2020 campaign season. All of these make for a potential 2019 legislative session that could be productive.
New Governor Brian Kemp ran as a conservative Republican intent on pushing through conservative legislation. However, Democrats picked up several seats in November and have the most members in the General Assembly since the Roy Barnes era. Republicans will likely hold together pretty solidly but on possibly divisive issues like RFRA or Medicaid expansion, that many more Democrats could mean a difference between passage and stagnation.
As per usual, legislators are likely holding back some of the big gun legislation until later in the session, for now however, there are some interesting bills that have already been prefiled and await the start of session on January 14:
· HB 2, the Georgia Constitutional Carry Act of 2019, sponsored by one Rep. Matt Gurtler (R-8 Tiger). Gurtler is notorious for being a consistent ‘No’ vote in the legislature and hasn’t exactly endeared himself to many of his colleagues. This bill would expand gun rights in parks, historic sites and recreational areas. Kemp did do an ad where he brandished a weapon and insinuated trouble for a suitor to one of his daughters if she was not treated right. The bill has possibilities.
· HB 6, a bill to eliminate certain elector list maintenance activities. Sponsored by House Minority Leader Bob Trammell (D-132 Luthersville), the bill is the first among likely many that will address elections and concerns Democrats and some Republicans have regarding their integrity. The previous law was that voters who failed to vote and with whom there has been no contact in three years would be notified of their absence and this was part of the potential purge process. Trammell’s bill would eliminate these activities and severely curtail part of the “purge.”
· SB 1, “C.J.’s Law” would provide a penalty for hit and run accidents that result in serious injury and clarifies rules relating to suspensions of licenses. The bill has some powerful bipartisan backers with Sen. Elena Parent (D-42 Atlanta), Jennifer Jordan (D-6 Atlanta), Jesse Stone (R-23 Waynesboro) and Greg Kirk (R-13 Americus) all signed on as co-sponsors.
· SB 2, sponsored by Sen. Steve Gooch (R-51 Dahlonega) would allow electric membership corporations and affiliates to provide broadband services. This one will undoubtedly receive much attention. The Georgia Municipal Association, the Association of County Commissioners of Georgia, the telecommunications companies – all heavy hitters in the General Assembly – will be watching closely and weighing in. Right of way issues and home rule will be part of the discussion and the vaunted “back room” may see a lot of visits with this one.
Just a sampling of what to watch…
