Business leaders joined forces Thursday at the State Capitol to show their support for legal reform in Georgia. With SB 68 and 69 now being considered by a special House Rules subcommittee, members of the state’s business community gathered to tell their individual stories about how Georgia’s “broken civil justice system” is raising the cost of doing business and threatening job creation in the state. Industries across the state are appealing to the House to pass the legislation while keeping the meaningful reforms in the bill as passed by the Senate.
“Make no mistake – we expect to be held accountable for our actions, and we support Georgians’ rights to a fair and balanced court system,” said Caylee Noggle, President and CEO of the Georgia Hospital Association. “SB 68 protects that right but also brings meaningful reforms and balance to our civil justice system, easing pressures on providers and hospitals –- key to safeguarding our workforce, enhancing patient safety, and averting tough choices that lead to decreased healthcare access. This effort will help our providers feel safer to practice medicine in Georgia.
“We have always worked with all our legislative partners in support of healthcare. And, just as we continue to treat every Georgian who walks in our doors for care regardless of their ability to pay, we will continue to work with every legislator and policymaker in the pursuit of a healthier Georgia,” Noggle added. “The Georgia Hospital Association continues to advocate strongly for the passage of SB 68, as passed by the Senate, as a critical step toward preserving and improving Georgia’s healthcare system.”
Noggle was one of several key business leaders who spoke at the press conference. Among the others were Charles Tarbutton, President of BH Transfer Co., Sandersville, and Haley Bower-Frank, chief marketing officer for Clipper Petroleum.
“I speak not only on behalf of the 325 families that are part of the BH community, but also on behalf of the over 330,000 Georgians that work in the trucking industry – 1 in 12 Georgians,” said Tarbutton. “Seventy-six percent of Georgia’s communities are completely dependent on trucking to deliver the goods they consume. Georgia runs on trucking. Safety and compliance is, and always has been, the number one priority of the trucking industry. But Georgia’s trucking companies are being run off the proverbial road by Georgia’s imbalanced legal climate. At this moment, our small business is the target of a dozen or so lawsuits in the state of. However, the threat of nuclear verdicts like the one a few weeks ago against Ford means that we will be pressured to settle those lawsuits without our day in court and claimants having to prove actual injuries. And we are but one of thousands of trucking companies in Georgia that face the exact same threat every single day.
“This fight is not about insurance companies. It is about the survival of small businesses in Georgia that provide the majority of jobs in Georgia. We are investing in and growing our business in surrounding states. We are limiting our investment in Georgia, which limits our growth here,” Tarbutton added.
Many at the Capitol believe the House could vote on the two bills, sponsored by Senate President Pro Tem John Kennedy, R-Macon, as early as next Thursday.
