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February 2, 2004 For more information contact: 404-817-6133 404-817-6247 404-817-6170 |
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February 2, 2004 Legislators returned to work today at the Capitol – it was a cold, wet day under the Gold Dome. Many remarked that it felt like midnight all day! Floor News Today marked the tenth Legislative Day this Session. Among the bills that the House took up were two dealing with Georgia's schools: · HB 366, which seeks to expand a 2002 law allowing retired teachers, under certain conditions, to re-enter the classroom without affecting their retirement benefits. HB 366 removes current restrictions that these retired teachers may only teach in low-performing schools and cannot return to schools to serve as counselors, librarians, principals, and superintendents (of these local school systems). There is a catch that principals and superintendents could not return to the schools from which they retired. These educators choosing to return to the classroom would still receive their regular retirement benefits in addition to their salaries. However, they would not accrue additional time served toward retirement benefit calculations. HB 366 passed by a vote of 168 to zero. · HB 1208, which seeks to extend some flexibility to the operation of local schools, also passed by a vote of 169 to zero. This initiative amends the "A-plus Education Reform Act" dealing with school councils. These councils are now allowed more flexibility in how they are created and who may serve on them. Each council would have an equal number of parents and teachers. After passing out of the House Health and Human Services Committee, the House also took up HB 1055 which benefits blind Georgians. The measure passed by a vote of 165 to one. It proposes to establish a universal information access telecommunications system within the State to help folks with severe visual impairments. Such system would become operational statewide on July 1, 2005 and would allow visually impaired persons access to local newspapers through an audio service. Funding for this initiative would be done through a one-cent per month surcharge for each household phone line in Georgia (with a maximum surcharge of $.20 per house). The House also passed a bill, HB 1175, to help women inmates learn a trade in an effort to keep them from becoming repeat offenders. The Department of Corrections offers such a program in the field of cosmetology, but the State Board of Cosmetology, in 1997, began refusing inmates a chance to stand for their cosmetology board examinations. These inmates thus could not get licensed once they completed their training. This proposal eliminates this barrier by requiring the Board of Cosmetology to administer an exam to any inmate who has completed all the necessary prerequisites for licensure. Costs for the examination would be provided by the Dept. of Corrections. A Floor Amendment was made to HB 1175 to allow for the addition of two additional board members to the State Cosmetology Board (one appointed by the Speaker and the other by the Lt. Governor). The bill passed with a vote of 164 to 3. An environmental bill created the most stir today - HB 242. It proposes to require the state Environmental Protections Division to publish a "statement of rationale" when implementing any regulation which deviates from federal regulatory statutes. HB 242 establishes guidelines on information which should be contained in regulations. The statement would include the scientific basis for the new regulation and any costs regarding its implementation on both State and local entities. Any professional opinions on such would also have to be included. These "statements of rationale" would also have to include alternate policy considerations which were discussed in developing the new standards. The bill cleared the House by a vote of 131 to 33. HB 941, a bill relating to those entities which operate an animal boarding facility and when they may implement liens against owners who do not pay boarding costs, also passed by a vote of 161 to 2. HB 1095, the spear fishing bill for catfish in the Savannah River Basin, cleared by a vote of 168 to 2. HB 1186 also passed unopposed today. This proposes standards for licensing persons who sell goods and produce at a State farmers' market. The Senate side had a lengthy list of bills which it wished to hear. Several were heard; two were held for Tuesday, SB 428 and SB 429. Both dealt with education with the first dealing with school attendance requirements and the second on the Office of Student Achievement (education flexibility and accountability). Here are a few measures which the Senate dealt with: SB 394 cleared the Senate by Committee Substitute by a vote of 47 to 5. This is the bill by Sen. Eric Johnson proposing a change to O.C.G.A. § 20-2-2080 to create the "American Heritage in Education Act." It proposes to allow local school boards and encourage teachers or administrators in a public school district to "read or post in a public school building or classroom or at an event sponsored by a public school or public school district excerpts, portions, or replicas of the following affirmations or documents of American heritage: (1) The United States Constitution, including the preamble; (2) The Constitution of Georgia, including the preamble; (3) The Declaration of Independence; (4) The Mayflower Compact; (5) The national motto, 'In God We Trust'; (6) The national anthem; (7) The Pledge of Allegiance; (8) The writings, speeches, documents, and proclamations of any of the signers of the Declaration of Independence, signers of the Constitution of the United States, or Presidents of the United States; (9) Organic documents from the pre-colonial, colonial, revolutionary, federalist, and post-federalist eras; (10) United States Supreme Court decisions; and (11) Acts of the United States Congress, including the published text of the United States Congressional Record." Additionally, the bill states that "there shall be no content based censorship of American history or heritage in this state based on religious or other references in these writings, documents, affirmations, or records." It now heads to the House. The Senate also dealt with hunting issues. SB 406 passed, by Committee Substitute, by a vote of 50 to 2, a bill dealing with deer hunting with dogs. This changes provisions in O.C.G.A. § 27-3-17(c). It remains unlawful for any person to hunt deer with dogs on any tract of real property unless a permit for hunting deer with dogs has been issued by the department for such tract to the owner or owners of such tract or the lessee of deer hunting rights for such tract. The proposal adds that "there shall be no minimum acreage requirements for any permit for hunting deer with dogs issued to the owner or owners of a tract of real property." Also, a permit for hunting deer with dogs shall not be issued to a lessee of deer hunting rights for any tract of real property that is less than 250 contiguous acres. There must accompany an application a written description of the tract boundaries and a map showing key features such as public roads or streams on or bordering the tract and occupied dwellings on adjacent properties. The application must be signed by all persons owning any portion of the tract of real property or an authorized agent thereof. The Senate also passed SB 430 which permits quadriplegics to hunt with special equipment by a vote of 53 to zero. SB 405 passed by Committee Substitute by a vote of 50 to zero. This is Sen. Cheeks' bill dealing with financial institutions in Title 7. There are a number of provisions in the bill such as it authorizes banks to lease real or personal property; authorizes loan officers to serve as credit committees (for credit unions lending monies); prohibits licensing of certain persons convicted of certain crimes; increases the record-keeping time requirement (current law is three years and this raises it to five years); etc. New Legislation HB 1296 – Rep. Beasley-Teague has proposed an amendment to the Tax Code in O.C.G.A. § 48-7-27(a)(12) so that military income received by a taxpayer who is a full or part-time member or retired member of the military service or armed forces of the United States or any reserve component thereof shall not be subject to the State income tax. HB 1298 – Rep. Franklin and others have offered this change to O.C.G.A. § 39-1-1 so as to change provisions relating to the status of minors and provide that a minor shall not have the legal capacity to contract or to give legal consent (this will govern any earlier enacted law and include O.C.G.A. § 16-6-3; O.C.G.A. § 19-3-2; and O.C.G.A. § 15-11-110 et seq.) HB 1301- Rep. Moraitakis and other have proposed an amendment to O.C.G.A. § 16-9-20 concerning deposit account fraud. It eliminates the use of "present consideration" and changes it to "consideration." Consideration is defined as to include, without limitation: "A) an obligation or debt of rent which is past due or presently due; B) an obligation or debt of state taxes which is past due or presently due; C) an obligation or debt which is past due or presently due for child support when made for the support of such minor child and which is given pursuant to an order of court or written agreement signed by the person making the payment; D) a simultaneous agreement for the extension of additional credit where additional credit is being denied; E) a written waiver of mechanic's or materialman's lien rights; and F) an obligation or debt which is past due or presently due for services rendered or goods sold." HB 1302 – Rep. Lunsford and others have offered this amendment to Title 33 to enact the "Small Business Employee Choice of Benefits Health Insurance Plan Act." This is similar to SB 50 which was pursued in 2003. This would allow that small businesses' employee health benefit plans not be required to contain the State mandated health benefits to be offered in those policies or contracts. These state mandated health benefits do not mean the standard provisions or rights which are required to be present in an individual, blanket, or group policy or contract for accident and sickness insurance pursuant to State law or regulations unrelated to specific health illnesses, injuries, or conditions of the insured, including, but not limited to, those related to continuation of coverage in O.C.G.A. § 33-24.21.1, O.C.G.A. §33-24-21.2(4), O.C.G.A. § 33-30-6; entitlement to conversion privileges as found in O.C.G.A. § 33-24-21.1; termination of coverage in O.C.G.A. § 22-24-21 and O.C.G.A. § 33-24-28; or coverage of newly born or adopted children in O.C.G.A. § 33-24-22. This would impact policies written, issued, or delivered on or after July 1, 2004. For each sale of accident and sickness policies or contracts in which the proposed group or individual policyholder has chosen a health benefits plan which does not provide state mandated health benefits, the insurer must provide a written notice and maintain a signed acknowledgement of the notice that the policyholder received such. HB 1303 – Rep. Jamieson has proposed tinkering with the hospital lien law found in O.C.G.A. § 44-14-471. It changes the timing of notice and filing provisions for liens. An operator of a hospital, nursing home, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice shall be required not less than 30 days prior to the date of filing the statement required provide written notice to the patient and to the best of the claimant's knowledge, the persons, firms, corporations, and their insurers claimed by the injured person or the legal representative of the injured person to be liable for damages arising from the injuries and shall include in that notice a statement that the lien is not a lien against the patient or any other property or assets of the patient and is not evidence of the patient's failure to pay a debt. Such notice shall be sent to all such persons and entities by first-class and certified mail or statutory overnight delivery, return receipt requested and that operator shall file no sooner than 15 days after the date of the written notice provided for in this Code section, in the office of the clerk of the superior court of the county in which the hospital, nursing home, or provider of traumatic burn care medical practice is located and in the county where in the patient resides. HB 1305 – Rep. Lunsford has proposed a change to O.C.G.A. § 48-8-85 to authorize the proceeds of a joint county and municipal sales and use tax to be used to retire certain general obligation debt. This would be placed on a ballot for consideration. HB 1306 – Rep. Lunsford and others have proposed amending special county sales and use tax provisions to provide for the issuance of general obligation debt for certain projects in capital outlay projects (it proposes to allow these monies to be used for roads, streets, bridges, police cars, fire trucks, ambulances, garbage trucks, and other major equipment – currently, roads, streets, and bridges are not permitted). If monies are used for roads, streets and bridges, then the authorized uses of the tax proceeds shall include acquisition of rights of way for roads, streets, bridges, sidewalks, and bicycle paths; construction; renovation and improvements (including resurfacing); relocation of utilities; and improvement of surface water drainage from roads, streets, bridges, sidewalks, and bicycle paths within both the unincorporated area of the county and within the incorporated area of municipalities within the county. HR 1098 – Rep. White and others have proposed this Resolution to urge Congress to propose an amendment to the United States Constitution to prohibit judicial taxation. HR 1117 – Rep. Forster and others have proposed an amendment to the State's Constitution to provide that persons who have not obtained a high school diploma or its recognized equivalent are not eligible to hold office or an appointment of honor or trust in Georgia. SB 455 – Sen. Nadine Thomas has authored her solution to help the medical malpractice insurance crisis. This bill proposes to add O.C.G.A. § 31-7-7.2 so that "No hospital or other medical facility as defined in Code Section 31-7-1 shall require a licensed doctor of medicine, doctor of podiatric medicine, doctor of osteopathic medicine, or doctor of dentistry who has fulfilled the licensing requirements of this state and the educational and board requirements of a specialty or subspecialty to have malpractice or professional liability insurance as a condition of being granted the privilege of treating the doctor's patients at the hospital or other medical facility." Further, the bill states that no insurer doing business Georgia which is authorized to issue contracts under Title 33 shall "deselect, terminate the services of, require additional utilization review, reduce capitation payment, or otherwise penalize a hospital or other medical facility which acts in compliance with the provisions of subsection (a) of this Code section." This has been referred to the Senate Health and Human Services Committee. Committee News The Senate Insurance and Labor Committee held a meeting in the Senate Chambers due to overcrowding and lack of meeting space as the Senate ran long on its calendar and no one appeared to wish to meet in other buildings on the "hill." Thus, Chairman Lamutt called his meeting to order and proceeded to hear various bills. HB 259, a bill by Rep. Channell, which amends the timely payment of health insurance claims so as to not allow insurers which have penalties include such in the calculation of lifetime caps, passed out of Committee. Sen. Golden will carry this initiative in the Senate. Next the Committee heard from Rep. Debbie Buckner on a bill which allows the Dept. of Administrative services to act as a broker for hospitals operating 24-hour, seven day per week emergency rooms in an effort to allow them to get better pricing for medical malpractice insurance coverage. The bill, as originally before the Committee, would have only applied to not-for-profit hospitals; an amendment was made by Sen. Crotts to also allow for-profit hospitals to participate and the Committee adopted a Committee substitute. The motion carried. Sen. Harp will carry the bill in the Senate. Sen. Faye Smith also tried to get a bill through the Committee which would have allowed State employees who work for the Dept. of Corrections to make payroll deductions so as to benefit a foundation helping families of police officers who are hurt or killed in the line of duty. A number of concerns were raised over this bill and it was held for more study. The Senate Judiciary Committee also met this afternoon with a very lengthy calendar. One bill on its list, SB 225, which deals with amendments to frivolous litigation acts and proposes to create a vicarious liability on insurers, was held. SB 240, a bill amending the State's laws concerning how teens and others may get abortions, passed. It strips out the 24-hour notice previously allowed for a loca parentis. Senators believe that 24-hour notice must be given by physicians and "other persons" allowed to perform these procedures to the teen's parents or guardians. This will now make it harder for teenagers to get abortion procedures in the State. Other News
Despite the rain and horrible weather, lobbyists for various interests
met on a number of issues. Tort reform is still among the top priorities. It
is likely that more tort reform initiatives will be introduced this week. |
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