Lawmakers shy away from vote on gambling; turn eyes to the skies for economic development
Week Eight of the 2016 Georgia General Assembly is complete and with it Crossover Day has past. Crossover day, or day 30 of the 40-day legislative session, is the last day legislation can be passed and sent over to the State Senate for consideration by that chamber. Because this is the second year of the two-year session, bills that have not passed the House by now effectively are dead.
Two bills I have mentioned in every column this year, House Bill 677 and House Resolution 807, concern bringing casino gambling to Georgia. Both of these measures passed the House Regulated Industries Committee and House Rules Committee and were brought to the House floor for a vote last week. After the casino bills reached the House floor, it became clear to leadership that the support was not there to pass the Casino legislation and the two bills were held back from a vote. This ends the casino gambling issue for this year, but you can be certain the issue will be back next session. The final count of those who contacted me on this issue was 71 against and 33 for bringing casino gambling to Georgia. I appreciate everyone who took the time to call or send an email about their position on this important issue.
Some important legislation did pass the House last week, including House Bill 722. House Bill 722, also known as Haleigh’s Hope Act – Part II, is a continuation of last year’s effort to make cannabis oil legally available to Georgia citizens. This bill, and the cannabis related initiatives in general, have continued to receive opposition from the law enforcement community. Ultimately, this opposition resulted in a greatly watered down final bill. I remain convinced that Georgia is capable of moving forward on this issue with a highly regulated and controlled in-state production as have states like Minnesota. We do not have to be like Colorado to make this medicine safely available to Georgia citizens.
A bill that passed that has not received a lot of media coverage in our area is House Bill 734. HB 734, also known as the Commercial Space Flight Act, was drafted to establish the framework for a space program in Georgia. This initiative targets a commercial spaceport in Camden County down on the coast of Georgia. This bill demonstrates that legislators are looking to futuristic ideas to create economic development opportunities for Georgia.
Another bill to watch is House Bill 808, which passed the House and has headed over to the Senate. This bill proposes to reform the membership of the Judicial Qualification Commission (JQC) and specifies the selection of the board members of this committee. The JQC is the body that oversees Judges in our state and effectuates the removal of Judges guilty of misconduct. We have seen a wave of Judicial misconduct sweep our state over the past few years, with several instances in North Georgia. The State Bar of Georgia is opposing this bill and certainly will be lobbying the senators to try to stop this reform.
One remaining bill that is creating much interest in House District 28 is HB 757 or the “Religious Freedom” bill. This bill passed the House early in the Session and was called the “Pastor Protection Act.” It was amended in the Senate with the “First Amendment Defense Act” language and passed the senate. I predict this issue will dominate the final few days of this year’s legislative session. If you want to share your opinion on this issue or any others, please contact me. I can be reached at 404-656-0325 or [email protected].
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Rep. Dan Gasaway (R-Homer) represents the 28th GA House District. His district includes Stephens and Banks Counties and the southern end of Habersham.
