The hallways in the Georgia Capitol were eerily quiet and empty Tuesday. Lawmakers and a few lobbyists could be seen walking and chatting in a somewhat relaxed and friendly atmosphere. It was the calm before the storm. This morning, the halls will be packed with hundreds of lobbyist and advocates, talking with senators, representatives and staff as the final day of the 2023 session of the Georgia General Assembly gets underway. It’s Sine Die – a day when anything can – and will – happen.
Georgia’s lawmakers will work well into the night – probably up to the midnight mark or longer – to get bills across the finish line. While both Chambers have already passed a lot of major bills this session, several of the state’s most-watched bills are still waiting to have their fate decided. This includes a plan for school vouchers, sports betting, pay raises for police officers and even the state’s FY24 budget.
To the dismay of many, and to the pleasure of others, Senate Bill 233 is still waiting for a hearing. “The Georgia Promise Scholarship Act,” by Sen. Greg Dolezal, R-Cumming, seems to be having a hard time getting heard by the House, and remains tabled in the House. Gov. Brian Kemp is pushing legislators to approve the bill that would provide $6,500 per year in vouchers to spend on private education or home-schooling and give families greater options to leave public schools.
Public school advocate groups are fighting the proposal which they say “unfairly labels Georgia schools in the bottom quartile of student achievement as failing and redirects public funding to private schools concentrated in metro areas.”
Many will be watching a last-ditch effort to get sports betting approved in Georgia. Under House Bill 237, sports betting would be allowed through the Georgia Lottery without amending the state constitution, and the proceeds would be used to increase funding for the lottery-funded HOPE scholarship. Sports betting legislation appeared dead after bills failed to get approval on Crossover Day, but proponents were able to get the proposal added to another bill late this session.
Another bill sure to be under watchful eye today is House Bill 520 – this year’s mental health bill. Critics argue that it would grow government and bureaucracy to take care of every basic need of those with persistent mental health issues at the expense of the taxpayer. Proponents say the bill would focus on addressing a shortage of mental health providers and streamlining the way agencies share information about patients.
Other bills still waiting their fate:
Senate Bill 222, which would ban nonprofit organizations from making donations to county election offices, is headed back to the Senate for an agreement. The House voted 100-69 along party lines to approve an amended version of the bill. Under the new version, DeKalb County could keep the $2 million in private grant money to help run elections – a big twist from the original version.
House Bill 444, a renter protection bill that would require landlords to provide housing that is “fit for human habitation” could receive a vote in the Senate today.
A House and Senate conference committee is trying to agree on House Bill 189, which would raise Georgia’s 80,000-pound weight limit for trucks on state and county roads.
A conference committee is also trying to agree on the $32.4 billion FY24 budget – which must be voted on before the session ends today. The latest version of the budget that passed the state Senate includes $6,000 pay raises for state troopers, GBI investigators and game wardens, along with $2,000 for teachers and other state employees.
