A group of Democratic legislators are upset over a user agreement form included in a Legislative Portal Access pilot program with the Department of Labor. Thursday, they voiced opposition to the form and said they believed Labor Commissioner Mark Butler was trying to place the blame for the unemployment crisis on them.
House Minority Leader James Beverly (D-Macon), State Representatives Sandra Scott (D-Rex), Kim Schofield (D-Atlanta), Rhonda Burnough (D-Riverdale) and Viola Davis (D-Stone Mountain) asked Butler to pause the roll out of the program which is designed to allow legislators to monitor complaints and requests from their constituents. They are also asking the Commissioner to reconsider the terms of use for legislators participating in the program.
The lawmakers expressed concerns that confidentiality requirements included in this agreement would limit their ability to assist with complaints, such as utilizing data to develop legislation and referencing the portal data during legislative hearings.
“The labor commissioner and his department are placing the unemployment crisis on legislators,” said Rep. Beverly. “By signing the Legislator Portal Access agreement form, legislators will be forced into this unfortunate catastrophe. Instead of dealing with this crisis, the commissioner continues to avoid the necessary steps to support Georgians facing financial hardships. GDOL’s Legislator Portal Access agreement limits what data legislators may disclose to the public and puts Georgians at greater risk with unemployment insurance.”
Rep. Scott is one of the lawmakers asked to take part in the pilot program. She says she submitted a letter to Butler expressing her concerns about the user agreement requirements for the program.
The lawmakers voiced concern that the confidentiality requirements would limit their ability to assist with complaints, such as utilizing data to develop legislation and referencing the portal data during legislative hearings. They went on to say they are concerned that this agreement would prevent them from providing another government agency with information that may help resolve a constituent’s case and could create a criminal and civil liability for state legislators and their staff.
