Gold Dome Update
Highlights from the House
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Monday, March 15, brought us to the 10th week of this year’s legislative session as we concluded the week with legislative day 35. With only 5 legislative days until the conclusion of the 2021 session, we have been working until late in the evening reviewing bills within our respective committees. In addition to passing many bills out of the House, we also heard Chief Justice Melton, of the Georgia Supreme Court, deliver his final “State of the Judiciary,” address.
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State of the Judiciary
On Tuesday, March 16, Chief Justice Melton gave the annual State of the Judiciary address, updating the legislature on what our courts have accomplished over the past year as well as outlining what lies ahead for our judicial branch. Melton reported that throughout the pandemic courts have remained open to address essential functions and critical cases where an immediate liberty or safety concern was present. Melton also highlighted that all state courts have transitioned to video conferencing among other rule changes which have restored our courts to a fully functioning capacity.
As a result of the pandemic, criminal and civil jury trials have been suspended, creating a substantial backlog within the judicial system. Although the trial suspension has been lifted, it could take our courts up to three years to catch up on suspended trials. Due to the backlog, the state’s statutory speedy trial deadline has been suspended under the Statewide Judiciary Emergency. Chief Justice Melton urged the General Assembly to champion legislation to address this issue long term. During his speech, Justice Melton reflected on his upcoming retirement from the Supreme Court and announced that the Supreme Court unanimously voted to name Presiding Justice David Nahmias as our state’s next Chief Justice.
Judiciary Reform
In line with Chief Justice Melton’s recommendations, our House body successfully passed Senate Bill 163. This bill provides a solution to the court’s handling of backlogged cases. When the Statewide Judiciary Emergency ends, SB 163 would allow chief judges of Georgia’s superior court judicial circuits or state courts to continue to suspend statutory speedy trial deadlines until the deadlines can be reasonably met. A sunset date of June 2023 has been set to specifically target the current backlog. However, the bill does give the Supreme Court chief justice the ability to reinstate the speedy trial requirements at their discretion before the sunset date. We are confident this legislation will greatly assist our courts in addressing backlogged cases.
Education
In keeping our commitment to education, we saw the overwhelming passage to Senate Bill 88, which offers several solutions to strengthen the teacher pipeline for Georgia schools. Stipulations of SB 88 are as follows:
- Allows the Georgia teacher of the year to serve as advisor ex officio to the State Board of Education,
- Requires local school systems to support a nontraditional teacher certification pathway for veterans to become certified teachers.
- Revises the state’s tiered evaluation system allowing schools to focus their observational resources towards teachers who need more support in the classroom.
- Requires the Georgia Professional Standards Commission (PSC) to create innovative programs to promote teacher education programs at Georgia’s historically black colleges and universities.
- Directs the PSC to provide aspiring teachers with increased coursework in differentiated instruction and reading fundamentals, which would better prepare new teachers before they enter the classroom.
We are confident this measure will ensure that Georgia is recruiting and retaining the brightest educators for our students.
End It.
Last week also brought our continued fight against the vile practice of Human Trafficking through the passage of Senate Bill 34. This bill works to support survivors of human trafficking as they rebuild their lives in Georgia. In addition to victims of family violence, SB 34 would also allow human trafficking victims to petition for a name change “under seal,” meaning these would be processed by the court confidentially, allowing victims to remain safe and protected from those who exploited them. This legislation furthers our recent efforts to restore justice and wellbeing to survivors of human trafficking ensuring that we do everything in our power to end this horrific practice.
Week 10 also brought the passage of the following bills:
House Bill 703, which would provide for nonpartisan elections for the Bleckley County probate judge;
House Bill 704, which would provide for nonpartisan elections for the office of chief judge of the Magistrate Court of Bleckley County, as well as provide for the sitting chief judge of this magistrate court to serve out his or her term of office;
Senate Bill 5, which would require individuals to have a dentistry license to administer conscious sedation in a dental facility or “medispa,” but this bill would allow certain medical professionals to administer such sedation under the supervision of a licensed dentist or anesthesiologist; this bill does not apply to physicians and does not expand the scope of the practice of dentistry;
Senate Bill 43, the “Non-Covered Eye Care Services Act,” which would prohibit insurers from requiring an ophthalmologist or optometrist to accept a payment amount set by the insurer for services that are not covered eye care services under the covered person’s eye care benefit plan as a condition to join or participate in its provider network, as well as allow these eye care providers to decide whether or not to offer discounts for non-covered services or products, regardless of the insurer;
Senate Bill 66, which would authorize the Georgia Foundation for Public Education to create a nonprofit corporation which could receive private donations to fund grants to public schools, and this bill would authorize an income tax credit for education donations and end the Public Education Innovation Fund Foundation on December 31, 2021;
Senate Bill 140, which would authorize the state to dedicate a monument in honor of former Governor Zell Bryan Miller at the State Capitol using private funds;
Senate Bill 143, which would correct a reference in the statutory affidavit of non-payment for mechanics and materialmen;
Senate Bill 168, which would allow the board of directors of a Georgia corporation to hold annual and special shareholder meetings wholly or partially by means of remote communication unless otherwise provided by the corporation’s by-laws or articles of incorporation;
Senate Bill 169, which would allow public procurement officers to accept surety bonds with electronic signatures and electronic corporate seals, as long as the signature and seal comply with the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act and other Georgia code;
Senate Bill 182, which would require counties, municipalities and consolidated governments to treat fence detection systems the same in zoning and permitting matters as alarm systems and prohibit these government entities from prohibiting the installation or use of fence detection systems that comply with Georgia code;
Senate Bill 210, which would allow and provide guidelines for the issuance, regulation and usage of digital license plates for motor vehicles;
Senate Bill 221, which would provide for the allowance of eight different leadership committees for the purpose of campaign financing for Georgia political offices, and these leadership committees would be authorized to receive contributions and make expenditures to elect or reelect a political candidate in both majority and minority parties.
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Keep Up with Capitol Hill
The Georgia General Assembly has unveiled a brand-new website! This site is easy to navigate and I encourage you to explore this great informational tool.
Check out the helpful links below.
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The countdown to 40 continues as we head into the final legislative days of 2021. During the last few days, we will continue our review of Senate bills under consideration, as well as give final approval to House bills amended by the Senate. In the meantime, please feel free to reach out to us with questions or concerns regarding legislation. Be on the lookout for future updates as we continue to work on your behalf. As always, thank you for the honor of allowing us to serve you under the Gold Dome as we continue our efforts towards ensuring simple, smart and effective government within our great state of Georgia.
Respectfully,
Shaw Blackmon
Representative of Georgia's 146th House District
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Representative Shaw Blackmon
District 146
Phone: 404-463-7583
Address: 401-K State Capitol
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
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