Halfway Through Session
ome! Friday, Feb. 17 marked day 20 of the 2017 legislative session. That means we are halfway finished with this year’s session!
With just 20 legislative days remaining, we are working hard in preparation for the “Crossover Day” deadline. Crossover day is very important as it is the last day that bills can transfer or “crossover” to the other chamber with enough time to make it through the “process.” Looming deadlines mean that long nights at the Capitol are ahead. Despite our hurried frenzy, we have managed to accomplish a number of things for the betterment of Georgia.
The most important measure we addressed this week was HB 44, the full 2018 Fiscal Year budget, which will serve as the spending guideline for the 2018 fiscal year. A balanced budget is the only thing we are constitutionally required to pass over the 40-day legislative period. The FY 2018 budget is set by a revenue estimate of $24.9 billion.
As education continues to be our top priority, the 2018 FY budget allocates nearly $780.2 million towards education initiatives. Perhaps most importantly, the FY 2018 budget provides that $162 million is dedicated to a two percent merit pay increase for our hardworking teachers. The 2018 budget also includes that bus drivers and school nutrition personnel receive a two percent salary increase.
Education budget funding also includes, but is not limited to, the following:
•$1.6 million for Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS) trainers and school climate specialists to help reduce disciplinary incidents and promote school safety.
•$2.7 million in new and existing funds to provide one AP STEM exam for every student taking an AP STEM course.
•$4.05 million to fund additional school counselors for all school systems in Georgia.
•$445,145 for a competitive grant program available to school systems that have a large military population intended to fund counselor positions, providing additional support to students of military families.
•$1.5 million for the Governor’s Office of Student Achievement grant program, that will provide low performing high schools with a certified school counselor-graduation specialist.
Quality access to healthcare, mental and physical, also remains a focus and legislative priority, as we have allocated additional funding towards healthcare initiatives. HB 44 includes budget money for several key health services including:
•$14.9 million for relative foster parents caring for and raising our state’s foster children.
•$2.8 million for 80 new positions in the Division of Family and Children Services (DFCS) to provide support services for foster parents.
•$500,000 to expand the Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) to advocate on behalf of our children.
•$6 million for the creation of a Behavioral Health Crisis Center which would address emergency crisis needs for individuals struggling with mental illnesses by providing care 24/ 7.
•$2 million for Georgia Alzheimer’s Project, promoting early detection and treatment.
•$38.4 million for Medicaid growth.
•$20.7 million for behavioral health services for children under 21 who are diagnosed with autism.
•$325,000 for an Adolescent to Adult Transition model to improve outcomes for adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder.
•$2.5 million for behavioral health services for children ages 0 to 4.
As an avid supporter of our veteran and military population, I was also extremely pleased with the 2018 budget allocations in regards to benefiting our military service members and their families. Georgia boasts one of the largest military communities in the union and I am proud to support any effort aimed at improving military benefits. Listed below are military funding initiatives included in the 2018 FY budget:
•Funding for additional school counselors to school systems serving large military communities.
•$358,996 for four veteran benefits training officers who would work with the Veterans Accountability Court, serving those who have entered the criminal justice system upon returning home from combat.
•$137,650 to fund a women veteran’s coordinator to assist our female veterans.
•$359,437 for the Georgia Military Pension Fund to continue fiscal soundness and sustainability.
•Establishment of the Military Family Support Center in Marietta, a commissary that would sell discounted groceries and household goods to active-duty and retired military personnel and their families, which would service over 400,000.
One final key highlight of the FY 2018 budget is the appropriation for pay raises within various Georgia agencies which include the following:
•20 percent salary increases for state law enforcement agents, impacting officers and criminal investigators across 16 state agencies.
•$2.6 million for public safety training to support and adequately train state and local law enforcement officers.
•Funding for additional Georgia Bureau of Investigation personnel.
In addition to passing the 2018 budget, we also passed HB 9, which would close the privacy law loophole that currently allows the practice of “upskirting”; HB 139 to promote transparency within our Georgia school systems; HB 1, Georgia Space Flight Act (GSA) which would define procedures for commercial space flight activity, allowing us to be more competitive with neighboring “space friendly” states.
With the “big budget” handled, we will now be concentrating our efforts on the more controversial issues such as casino gaming and the expansion of medical cannabis. In the meantime, I will surely update you on all that is happening with your General Assembly.
If you have questions or concerns, please reach out to me anytime. Thank you for allowing me to serve as your voice under the Gold Dome and if you are in Atlanta, Paul and I would love to see you!