The Senate worked its way through several bills before lunch. SB 215, which proposes to prohibit the naming or renaming of State property (roads, buildings, parks, etc.) for living elected public officials, passed by a vote of 30 to 21. SB 215 had a great amount of debate including whether such naming be made posthumously in an effort to weigh the ‘greatness’ of a person’s accomplishments.

The Senate also passed out HB 785 regarding membership of the Georgia Rail Passenger Authority in the employees’ retirement benefit. This bill also passed by a vote of 49 to zero.

The Senate also passed out SB 389 which relates to the International Transfer of Prisoners Act. This bill passed by a vote of 46 to 3.

One bill of interest on the Senate’s calendar was HB 360, the proposed creation of the Safe Place for Newborns Act of 2002. This bill was not reached and now rolls back to the Rules Calendar.

On the House side of the hall, eleven bills were on its calendar. Interestingly, no Senate bills were included. Some of the bills the House passed included:

It passed out HB 1441, by a vote of 158 to 1, which addresses insurance premium tax credits for certified capital companies. This has been touted as a method in which to boost the State’s economy by encouraging capital investments in new business ventures. A tax break is provided to insurance companies who participate in the investment pools of certified venture capital companies investing in small businesses headquartered in Georgia. There is a requirement that at least thirty-five percent of the investments must be in a Qualified Technology Business such as Biotechnology and Pharmacology. The venture capital companies must be certified by the state Office of Treasury and Fiscal Services, and insurance companies who participate would share in the $75 million in tax exemption.

The House also passed by a vote of 162 to 1 HB 1220, which is a bill relating to "viatical" investments. Viatical investments involve the resale of a life insurance policy for persons who are approaching death. A company would purchase this investment at an amount less than full value. This is an effort to give the person, who is terminally ill, money for their immediate needs. The policy would then be resold to investors who would collect the full policy amount upon the death of the original owner. This is a new type of transaction; therefore, no state regulatory agency currently has oversight authority to ensure such companies operate in an ethical and proper manner. Thus, this bill classifies viatical investments as "securities," and gives the Georgia Securities Division of the Secretary of State’s Office regulatory authority over their sale and purchase.

The Senate is to take up the FY 2002 Budget on the Floor on Friday, March 1, 2002. Rumors are circulating that the Conference Committee will begin work on the FY 2002 Supplemental Budget over the weekend and may begin as early as Friday afternoon and then reconvene on Sunday, March 3, 2002.

This was light today due to the lengthy debates in the Chambers. However, the Senate Public Safety Committee did take up some legislation to help the situation in Walker County regarding the crematory. Rep. Snow presented HB 1481 to the Committee in an effort to fix, as he termed it, a "glitch" in the State’s law. He urged the Committee to assist him to help bring back order to the industry. HB 1481 defines ‘abandonment’ of a dead body and provides that it is a felony offense if someone is found guilty of such abandonment. The bill also defines a crematory and provides that these entities be licensed through the Secretary of State’s Office. Twenty-seven other states in the nation do not have licensing authority over crematories. Apparently, in 1995, the Funeral Directors Board ruled that crematories did not need to have trained funeral directors or have the need for inspections.

One issue which cropped up in the Committee related to the use of a dead human body by an accredited medical school or "a body donor program." The medical schools and teaching hospitals in the State are concerned that the bill might somehow hinder their use of human cadavers in medical education programs in its current form. This issue was brought to the author’s attention by Emory University, but the other programs around the State are also concerned. The author agreed that language would be worked out and an amendment would be made on the Senate Floor to address this concern. Sens. Harp and Haines appeared to also have concerns with this issue and will work with Sen. Mullis, who will handle the bill for Rep. Snow in the Senate, with this measure.

The House Insurance Committee also passed out several bills. Some of these included HB 716, HB 1115, and HB 1369.

HB 716, which provides for pre-certification procedures as well as continuity of care when a physician is terminated from a health plan, passed out after the Subcommittee report on the bill was made. This bill has many of the same provisions that SB 476 contains.

HB 1115 is the Department of Insurance bill relating to the use of credit scoring in underwriting practices. Rep. Knox chaired the Subcommittee where this bill was assigned. As the federal law allows, through the Fair Credit Reporting Act, use of consumer reports and credit reports, this bill tries to not violate or conflict with such. There were some minor amendments offered by the bill’s author, Rep. Ben Harbin, which were adopted. The bill passed by Committee Substitute, as amended, and now moves to the House Rules Committee.