April 14, 2003

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Stanley S. Jones, Jr.

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After a beautiful weekend, Legislators returned to the Capitol to tackle more of the people’s business.  Today, it would appear that no resolution is in sight regarding the State’s Budget for FY 2004.  Now, more than ever, rumors are circulating about a Special Session.   The Senate kicked off its day at 10:00 o’clock a.m. while the House did not start the day until 1:00 o’clock p.m.   Near the end of the day, Leadership worked out a compromise for a schedule for the three remaining days.  They will work Thursday of this week and then return on April 22, 2003 for Day 39 and adjourn until April 24, 2003 for Day 40 or Sine Die.  Of course, the schedule may change again depending on how the Budget situation goes.  

Floor News  

          The House worked steadily on its calendar.  Here are a few noteworthy items:  

Georgia ’s children received some additional protections by the House today.  By a vote of 169 to zero, SB 101 passed which will forbid any person who is required to register under the state's sex offender registry from living within 1000 feet of a school, child care facility, or other areas where minors congregate.  This is a bill by Sen. Adelman.  His concern is that sexual offenders often repeat their crimes and look for areas where children congregate such as public and private parks, recreation facilities, playgrounds, skating rinks, neighborhood centers, gymnasiums, etc.  Violations of this law would be a felony with punishments of one to three years imprisonment.  A Floor Amendment was added, which includes language regarding persons who keep places of prostitution for pimping and pandering of minors.  This too is a  felony.  Any person found guilty of keeping a place of prostitution for children could serve up to 20 years in prison.  They also could be fined up to $10,000.  

Sen. Carol Jackson’s bill dealing with protections for peace officers made it to the House Floor.  SB 20, which mirrors a House bill by Rep. Morris, establishes a felony charge for instances where a person, who is infected individual with HIV or hepatitis, uses their bodily fluids (such as urine, semen, saliva, etc.) as a weapon to attack an unsuspecting member of law enforcement while the law enforcement personnel are in performance of their jobs.  Penalties for this crime would be imprisonment of between five and twenty years in addition to the person’s existing sentence.  SB 20 passed by a vote of 156 to 7.

One of the Governor’s bills also made it out of the House by a vote of 151 to 11.  This was SB 205 which deals with “meth labs.”  Methamphetamines are a rapidly growing part of Georgia ’s drug culture, and especially prevalent in north Georgia .  This drug can be made by mixing common ingredients not currently considered controlled substances .  These include “Sudafed,” a common sinus medication, and anhydrous ammonia, which is used by farmers on crops.  The bill establishes strict controls on the possession and transportation of anhydrous ammonia in Georgia .  The bill establishes a criminal offense  for “unlawful possession of anhydrous ammonia.”  A person would be considered to be unlawfully possessing such substance if it is purchased, possessed, transported, or distributed with the intent of using it to manufacture a controlled substance.  There are exceptions to when such ammonia could be possessed (to deal with legal uses). The bill requires this ammonia to be stored in approved containers, otherwise, he or she could be considered in violation.  If a person is found guilty of illegally possessing or stealing anhydrous ammonia, then a sentence of up to ten years in prison could be imposed as well as a fine of up to $100,000 be added.  Additionally, if a person is found to be in possession of more than 300 pills (ephedrine or Sudafed), then this too would be a crime.  Despite the exceptions, some worried the law could inadvertently prevent people from buying their needed medication in sufficient supply. As one lawmaker pointed out, some cold medicines or sinus drugs require up to four doses per day (two pills per dose).  Thus, one could reach the 300 limit rather quickly.   

          The Senate had a lengthy calendar, but recessed for lunch and returned around 2:30 o’clock p.m. to complete its list.  Some of the bills passed were:  

·        HB 236, Rep. Golick’s bill, which re-defines racketeering activity in Georgia ’s RICO statute to include insurance fraud, cleared.  Sen. Chuck Clay carried the bill and presented a Floor Amendment to better define “natural person” so as to make sure that such insurance fraud could only be done by an individual, rather than a company.  The bill passed by a vote of 52 to zero.

·        HB 422, Rep. Richardson’s bill amending income tax credits for businesses creating full-time jobs, also cleared.  This adds a new Code Section at 48-7-40.24 so that an income tax credit for full-time employee jobs is created for a business or the headquarters of a business which is engaged in manufacturing. This would not include retail businesses.  It would require regular work of 35 or more hours per week for each job and an investment requirement of the company so that be the close of the sixth taxable year following the withholding start-date a minimum of $450 million in qualified investment property would have to be purchased or acquired by the business enterprise to be used with the project.  A Committee Substitute was passed by a vote of 54 to zero.

·        HB 492, another piece of legislation by Rep. Richardson and similar to the one mentioned above, gained passage by a vote of 50 to 3.  The bill passed by Senate Finance Committee Substitute with a Floor Amendment.  The Floor Amendment made by Sens. Price and Johnson dealt with the increase of the amount of the retirement income exclusion for State income tax purposes.  In taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2006 and prior to January 1, 2007 , retirement income excluded from taxation would be $55,000; and for taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2007 , retirement income from any source allowed would be $65,000.  Sen. Lamutt raised concerns about the bill.  The underlying bill dealt with the headquarters or a subsidiary of a business which employs at least 50 or more persons in new full-time jobs so that the business would be granted a tax credit.  It also provides for the allowance of tax credits relating to investments in certified capital and delays implementation of insurance premium tax credits.

·        HB 544, a bill by Rep. Jamieson, was presented and passed without discussion or changes.  This deals with monthly income tax returns and increasing thresholds.  The passage by Committee Substitute was 49 to zero.

·        HB 597, Rep. Jackson’s legislation for the Secretary of State, was held under Rule 142 after a good deal of discussion and several amendments.  The bill basically reduces the numbers of persons on the various licensing boards overseen by the Secretary of State, which would lower annual costs by approximately $100,000.  It only reduces the numbers where boards are currently more than five persons.  Persons who would be removed would be either the longest serving board member or the first person in alphabetical order.  There were attempts to strike the portion concerning the psychologists board by Sen. Steve Thompson.  Additional changes were proposed by the boards of forestry and accounting.  Sen. Seabaugh had proposed changing the board of accounting as it currently has a representative on its board who is a registered public accountant (there are only five of these persons in the State with this “RPA” designation;  Sen. Seabaugh stated that he was committed to working with the State so as to perhaps “grandfather” those five individuals in as “CPAs.”)Sen. Eric Johnson proposed that the Governor have the power to decide who on each of the boards must be eliminated rather than some other formula. In the end, Sen. Johnson’s amendment passed.  Due to the length of the amendment, the bill had to remain; thus Rule 143 was invoked.  Sen. Connie Stokes spoke in opposition to the bill.  

New Legislation  

HB 1000 – Rep. Stephens has proposed amending the Chatham County Hospital Authority appointments.  This is local legislation as approved on April 25, 1969 (Ga.L. 1969, p. 3603).

This would allow nine members to serve six year terms, staggered, in order to provide for the expiration of the terms of one third of the membership at any one time.  Chaham County Commissioners would select the members of the authority by a majority vote and shall not be prohibited from appointing members of the county commission to serve as members of the Authority.  Members of the Chatham County Hospital Authority in office on May 1, 2003 shall serve out the remainder of the terms.  

HB 1001 – Rep. Bannister and others authored this measure amending O.C.G.A. § 34-8-195 in order to provide that employees of employee leasing companies and professional employer organizations shall be presumed to have voluntarily left employment without good cause if the employees do not contact the employee leasing companies and professional employer organizations for reassignment upon the completion of an assignment.   

HB 1004 – Rep. Bordeaux has offered along with some colleagues this bill to amend Chapter 9 of Title 31 in an effort to deal with the abortion issue and consent for surgical and medical treatment.  The bill would enact the Woman’s Right to Know Act and provide that provisions relating to consent for surgical and medical treatment would apply to abortion procedures.   It specifically amends O.C.G.A. § 31-9-5 regarding the applicability of consent to abortion and sterilization procedures so that this chapter in the Code would not apply to just sterilization procedures (now it includes abortion).   The bill also amends O.C.G.A. § 31-9-6.1(a) concerning disclosures for procedures by stating as follows:  

          “Except as otherwise provided in this Code section, any person who undergoes any surgical procedure under general anesthesia, spinal anesthesia, or major regional anesthesia, any person who undergoes an abortion, or any person who undergoes amniocentesis diagnostic procedure or a diagnostic procedure which involves the intravenous or intraductal injection of a contrast material must consent to such procedure and shall be informed in general terms the following:  

1) A diagnosis of the patient’s condition requiring such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure;

          2) The nature and purpose of such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure;

3) The material risks generally recognized and accepted by reasonably prudent physicians of infection, allergic reaction, severe loss of blood, loss or loss of function of any limb or organ, paralysis or partial paralysis, paraplegia or quadriplegia, disfiguring scar, brain damage, cardiac arrest, or death involved in such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure which, if disclosed to a reasonably prudent person in the patient’s position, could reasonably be expected to cause such prudent person to decline such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure on the basis of the material risk of injury that could result from such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure;

          4) The likelihood of success of such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure;

5) The practical alternatives to such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure which are generally recognized and accepted by reasonably prudent physicians; and

6) The prognosis of the patient’s condition if such proposed surgical or diagnostic procedure is rejected.”

HR 766 – Reps. Broome and Sholar have co-authored this Resolution commending Donalsonville Hospital for being named one of the Top 100 Hospitals in 2001 by the Solucient Modern Healthcare organization.  

Committee News  

          Senate Appropriations Committee  

          HB 526, the bill proposed to amend Chapter 8 of Title 31 in order to enact the “Nursing Home Provider Fee Act,” cleared the Committee.  This provides that a fee be imposed on nursing homes in order that the State may obtain financial participation  from the federal government.   This would apply to the nursing homes which serve the medically indigent.  It would apply to those homes which have disproportionate numbers of the medically indigent which means the patient days attributable to medically indigent residents account for more than 15% of the nursing home’s total patient days during a 12-month period.  Medicare program patient days are not included.  There would be a segregated account established within the Indigent Care Trust Fund for the deposit of these provider fees.  All revenues raised through these provider fees would be credited to the segregated account, within the Indigent Care Trust Fund, and would be invested in the same manner as authorized for investing other monies in the State’s treasury.  Contributions and transfers to the Indigent Care Trust Fund pursuant to provisions outlined in O.C.G.A. § 31-8-153 and O.C.G.A. § 31-8-153.1 would not be deposited into the segregated account.  Fees collected would be dedicated and used for the sole purpose of obtaining federal financial participation for medical assistance payments to nursing homes that disproportionately serve these medically indigent.  The provider fees would be quarterly; the fees would be reported on a form prepared by the Department of Community Health and submitted no later than the 30^th day following the end of the quarter.  Initial payments are due no later than July 30, 2003 and would be based on patient days for the quarter ending June 30, 2003. The General Assembly is authorized to appropriate the State funds to the Department of Community Health for use in any fiscal year all revenues dedicated and deposited into this segregated account; any appropriation from the segregated account for any purpose, except for serving the medically indigent in nursing homes, shall be void.  This will require Centers for Medicare Services waiver approval.  

          Senate Health and Human Services Committee  

HB 697, the bill by Rep. Gardner which proposes to provide for a patient’s right to independent review when that person is covered by the State’s health insurance plan, passed out of the Committee.  This follows the exhaustion of the Department of Community Health’s process for review of treatment and/or coverage disputes which a person might have with the State Health Benefit Plan.  The bill was brought by Rep. Gardner at the request of a Georgia Tech professor covered by the State’s plan.  There will be virtually no costs to the State to allow for this independent review.  This change to the law will be inserted in O.C.G.A. § 33-20A-31 in order to change who an “eligible enrollee” is under definitions to also include an employee as defined in O.C.G.A. § 45-18-1(2).  

HB 318 was also before the Committee.  This measure was drafted by Rep. McClinton and carried in the Senate by Sen. Unterman.  This bill would enact the “Adult Day Center Licensure Act” in order that the Department of Human Resources could promulgate rules and regulations to cover the operations of adult day centers.  The bill is modeled after the childcare licensing law.  The bill is supported by the Council on Aging and others.  An effort was made by Rep. Sally Harrell to add language to the bill, similar to her bill HB 935, to create an advisory council, within the Division of Aging in the Department of Human Resources, on drug access issues for senior citizens.  There was dissent over this proposal by Sens. Preston Smith and Don Balfour.  The Committee split on their vote on whether or not to add Rep. Harrell’s language; the Chairman broke the tie so as to not allow the amendment to ‘ride’ this bill.  Thus, Sen. Preston Smith made a motion to pass the bill by Committee Substitute which carried.  The bill will add a new Article 7 to Chapter 6 of Title 49.  

HB 183 was before this Committee and passed without any changes.  This legislation by Rep. Borders proposes to expand the exception to the misdemeanor of tattooing near the eye.  Such could only be performed by a physician or an osteopath or a person under the general supervision of a licensed physician or osteopath.  This change comes in O.C.G.A. § 16-12-5.  A first offense is a misdemeanor; a subsequent violation will be a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature.  This is to address issues where persons in tattoo parlors are performing these procedures which in turn are causing eye infections.  The Georgia Society of Ophthalmologists worked with Rep. Borders on the bill but does not wish for any changes to occur to the bill.  Apparently, there is a concern that this bill could be used as a vehicle for optometrists to alter their scope of practice.  Sen. Stokes stated that all bills were subject to being perfected, basically, indicating that amendments might occur on the Senate Floor.  

HB 594 also cleared out of the Committee without changes.  This is the bill amending Article 1 of Chapter 18 of Title 45 so that retirees of community service boards. with at least 10 years of actual service and after they have attained the age of 60, can participate in the State Health Benefit Plan.   

          Senate Judiciary Committee  

          It reported out HB 708 which amends O.C.G.A. § 45-1-4 regarding complaints or information regarding fraud, waste, and abuse in state programs and operations.  This is one of the ‘whistleblower’ bills.   It establishes definitions for ‘retaliate’ or ‘retaliation’ and prohibits an employer from making, adopting or enforcing any policy or practice which prevents an  public employee from disclosing or threatening to disclose a violation of or non-compliance with a law, rule, or regulation to either a supervisor or a government agency.  The bill currently contains language that states that this new law would not apply to institutions or facilities permitted or licensed by Title 31.