Sen. Ben Watson
Columnist
After having finished 25 days of the 40-day legislative session, the Georgia General Assembly is approaching the all-important “Crossover Day,” which is scheduled for Thursday, March 6. Crossover Day is the day when any bill must pass out of their respective body to be considered by the other body. If legislation has not passed one legislative body by this date, the legislation is considered dead for the rest of the session. This is an important step in ensuring only the most important and relevant bills are considered in the waning days of a legislative session.
The Georgia Senate took up the first of two major budget bills for which we must pass each session. The mid-year state budget of $40.5 billion prioritizes disaster relief, infrastructure needs, and prisons, and easily passed the senate. The mid-year budget is designed to give the state government a look at where their budget is and what needs to be adjusted in regard to government receipts for the first six months of its fiscal year.
The Senate took the House of Representative’s budget and made additions and subtractions that they felt were necessary while keeping the budget at the agreed-upon $40.5 billion. We have included $750 million to help Georgians with disaster relief funding. The Senate supported Governor Kemp’s recommendation for $501 million to increase surface water supplies in Coastal Georgia, which also helps to supply the Hyundai electric-vehicle manufacturing plant now under construction in Bryan County. The Senate also agreed to the governor’s request for an additional $50 million in school-safety grants, enough to provide every school in Georgia with nearly $70,000. School districts are being given the flexibility to spend those dollars on security improvements as they see fit.
The Senate also agreed to use part of our state’s $16 billion budget surplus to pay for a $1 billion income tax rebate for Georgia taxpayers. Single tax filers will receive $250, single filer heads of households will get $375, and married couples filing jointly will receive $500.
To deal with one of the most hideous scourges facing this county, the Senate passed the “Fentanyl Eradication and Removal Act,” Senate Bill 79. This legislation removes existing statutes relating to possessing, selling, distributing, manufacturing, and trafficking opiates and creates a separate schedule of offenses specific to fentanyl and its related substances.
One of my top priorities is ensuring that the Georgia Trauma Care Network remains effective. The network was created 20 years ago, and Georgia’s mortality rate concerning trauma has gone down from 16% above the national average to 6% below the national average. This means that we are saving 1,803 lives per year through the trauma care network. The Senate honored the Georgia Trauma Care Commission this past week.
I will keep you updated on legislation affecting our community as we progress through the session. Thank you for your continued interest in the work of our General Assembly.
As your public servant, feel free to visit me at the Capitol or to reach out by phone or email. I am in 325A Coverdell Legislative Office Building. My office phone number is (404) 656-7880, and my email is ben.watson@senate.ga.gov. I look forward to continuing to serve you.