With just hours left on the clock, lawmakers scrambled under the Gold Dome at Georgia’s State Capitol to strategize, negotiate and move to pass legislation on Friday, April 4 – the final day of this year’s legislative session, otherwise known as Sine Die.
Sen. Steve Gooch (R-Dahlonega) told Now Habersham at the Capitol on Friday that he feels this year’s legislative session was a positive one for Georgians, specifically for investments made in certain areas while also maintaining fiscal conservatism in passing a $37 billion budget.
“A lot of good, conservative legislation has passed (this session),” Gooch said. “Of course, our biggest focus every year is the budget. We just finished putting the final touches on the budget … state funds will be spent primarily on public safety and education. We’re proud of the work we’ve done on that.”
On Friday, just after 10 a.m. outside the House Chamber, Rep. Victor Anderson (R-Cornelia) said that while he’s glad to see this session come to a close, he’s eager to continue working on legislation for Georgians in the months before next year’s session.
“I can’t wait to get this one over with – not because I don’t love what we do here – it just gets so intense at this level,” Anderson said. “It’s time for us to take a little break, but the break won’t be long. We have a study committee coming up, as well as other duties and responsibilities for constituents back home. (After today), I’ll be as busy a month from now as I am right now.”
District 50 Sen. Bo Hatchett (R-Cornelia) also described the 2025 session as successful.
“This was a very productive and really efficient session,” said Hatchett, who pointed to the passage of legislation addressing human trafficking to Senate Bill 1, which prohibits transgender females from participating in women’s sports, as top accomplishments.
Sen. Drew Echols (R-Gainesville) had just come out of the Senate Chamber when he expressed his thoughts on the session as a whole.
“I feel like I got some things done,” Echols, who took office last year, said. “I got three or four bills through the Senate, over to the House and back to the governor’s desk…I feel good about that.”
District 32 Rep. Chris Erwin, R-Homer, said that while the session would likely end by midnight Friday, he felt ready for the days ahead.
“I’ve still got a lot of energy – because we’ve got to finish strong,” Erwin said. “…I’m also very excited to get back to God’s country in Northeast Georgia. I’ve still got the energy, but I’ve still got the desire to be back there where home is.”
In the coming days, Now Habersham will have more from our local lawmakers about this year’s legislative session and the expected impacts their actions will have on Georgians.
