Sen. Ben Watson

Guest columnist

I have been focused this week on my legislative efforts to honor local leadership and advocate for education reform as we navigate the critical Crossover Day period. Crossover Day is the legislative day when a bill must pass out of its original chamber (House or Senate) to stay alive for the rest of the legislative session. If it doesn’t “crossover” to the other chamber by that day, the bill usually dies for that year.

In an effort to increase access to healthcare and significantly reduce healthcare costs, I have been a big proponent of the elimination of the archaic “Certificate of Need” laws in Georgia that govern hospitals, doctors and specialists. Certificate of Need, commonly known as “CON,” requires many new technologies and procedures to prove to a governmental board that the equipment/procedure will not cut into another hospital’s profitability, essentially putting patient care last. This is especially problematic when dealing with cancer.

As a cosponsor of Senate Bill 367, this would eliminate Georgia’s Certificate of Need requirement for all facilities, service lines and equipment dedicated to treating cancer. This legislation would rectify a regulatory system that forces patients to travel unnecessary distances for treatment, while their oncologists spend time and money filing applications and legal appeals.

I am the sponsor of S.B. 552, legislation that would codify into law Charlie Kirk’s brave efforts to bring both the Word of God and the truth of conservative values to school campuses across America through open discussion and debate in public forums. This bill ensures that students’ First Amendment rights to organize, gather, and speak are protected, regardless of their religious, political, or social viewpoints, or those of school administrators. I am pleased to report that the Senate, with bipartisan support, overwhelmingly passed S.B. 552, and it now heads to the House for consideration.

The Senate voted and passed S.B. 439, which is designed to put guardrails around referrals to assisted living facilities and personal care homes.

I co-sponsored S.B. 465, which helps determine, for income tax purposes, whether a business will be disqualified from tax credits and other tax breaks, as a business enterprise, if it engages in the hiring illegal aliens for large-scale projects. In this era of cracking down on illegal immigration, this is designed to make businesses with major projects think twice before hiring illegal immigrants to work on projects because businesses risk their tax benefits.

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 to me 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.