2018 State Legislative session off to “eventful and exciting” start
Editor’s Note: State Rep. Terry Rogers (R-Clarkesville) represents the 10th District of Georgia which includes portions of Habersham and White Counties. He serves as the Governor’s Floor Leader and Vice-Chair of the Appropriations Subcommittee, Economic Development & Tourism, and State Planning & Community Affairs Committees. Rep. Rogers also is a member of the Georgia House of Representatives’ Defense & Veterans Affairs, Human Relations & Aging, Regulated Industries, and Rules committees.
This is the first in an ongoing series of legislative updates from Rep. Rogers. The opinions expressed in this commentary are his.
The House convened for the second regular session of the 154th Georgia General Assembly on Monday, January 8, 2018. The first week of session is always eventful and exciting, and this year was no exception. As we convened to take up legislative business, committees immediately began meeting to review and discuss proposed legislation and set this Sessions agenda.
State of the State
On Thursday, Gov. Deal delivered his eighth and final State of the State address to a joint session of the House and Senate in the House Chamber. Gov. Deal has served as Georgia’s governor for the last seven years, and in about a year’s time, he will retire after four decades of public service to our state. I was honored to be asked to serve on his Committee of Escort for the speech and it was especially moving for me as I’ve been blessed to serve both as Gov. Deal’s Floor Leader and Representative. The Governor and Mrs. Deal are two of the finest people I’ve ever met and I truly believe that history will show him to be one of Georgia’s greatest Governors. In his touching address, the governor reflected on his administration’s challenges and successes, and he expressed his hopes and dreams for Georgia’s future generations.
Gov. Deal began his remarks by reflecting back to the year that he became Georgia’s 82nd governor in 2011. Since that time, our state’s unemployment rate has dropped from 10.4 percent to 4.3 percent, which is the lowest it has been in over 10 years; more than 675,000 private sector jobs have been created; our state has maintained a AAA bond rating and added to our Rainy Day Fund; and Georgia has been named the No. 1 state in which to do business for five consecutive years.
In addition to recognizing the significant economic progress our state has made in recent years, Gov. Deal also touted Georgia’s booming film and television industry, as well as noting investments in education, criminal justice reform, and measures taken to shore up the HOPE Scholarship and Grant Programs. Additionally, Gov. Deal has created a marketing campaign to highlight Georgia’s technical colleges. In Georgia, 30 percent of high school graduates do not complete any type of continued education or training, but this campaign encourages high school students to pursue this type of post-secondary education. Gov. Deal’s marketing campaign has been widely successful in reaching young people across the state, and the governor concluded his remarks about our technical colleges by recommending that the General Assembly allocate $1 million in the state budget to continue this campaign.
State budget
Along with delivering his State of the State address this week, Gov. Deal also released his recommendations for the Amended Fiscal Year 2018 state budget and the Fiscal Year 2019 state budget. Highlights from Gov. Deal’s Fiscal Year 2019 budget recommendations include $361.7 million for the Teachers Retirement System, $127 million for K-12 education, $30 million to assist low-wealth school systems, $28.8 million for child welfare services to fund out-of-home care growth and foster care per diem increases, $22.9 million to implement recommendations from the Commission on Children’s Mental Health, $5 million for accountability courts to implement new courts and expand existing courts, $31 million for transportation and $100 million to repair roads and bridges in Georgia.
Gov. Deal’s FY 2019 budget recommendations will financially preserve Georgia’s pension system for educators, provide determined students with additional access to higher education opportunities, grow mental health services for our state’s youngest citizens and upgrade and expand Georgia’s transit system.
As a member of the Appropriations Committee, I look forward to working with other members in using these recommendations as a guide to further revise and craft the state’s budget in our Joint House and Senate Budget Hearings. I will provide you with more information regarding the state budget and the budget process once we thoroughly review Gov. Deal’s recommendations.
Contact me
Even though I’m in Atlanta for the next couple of months, you are always my top priority. Please don’t hesitate to get in touch if I can help you in any way. I can be reached at 404-651-7737 or by email at [email protected]. Thank you for giving me the honor of serving you as your Representative!
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