Legislation Update ~ THE ASHE ADVOCATE

Georgia Politics

The following legislation originating from the Senate was approved by the House this week:

SB 13, which would allow a sentence of life without parole to be imposed, even when prosecutors do not seek the death penalty. Currently life without parole is allowed only as an option in death penalty cases.

SB 14, which would prohibit anyone on the national or state sex offender registry from being eligible for election to or service on local school boards.

SB 44, which would require school systems to give preference to products manufactured in Georgia when purchasing supplies, equipment and food.

SB 61, which would establish the Life Settlements Act, providing oversight and regulation of life settlement contracts and requiring brokers to be licensed and regulated by the Georgia Department of Insurance.

SB 69, which would require citizens to report suspicions of sexual exploitation of children.

SB 155, which would remove buffer zones from streams carrying mostly rainwater. I voted against this proposal because it offers too broad an exemption from environmental protection measures.

SB 165, which would authorize the Department of Community Health to obtain income eligibility verification from the Department of Revenue for Medicaid and PeachCare for Kids applicants.

SB 170, which would prohibit companies that do business in Sudan from submitting proposals for Georgia state contracts in the future.

House members also approved an amended version of HB 233, which would freeze property valuation reassessments for the next two years. The Senate agreed to final changes, sending the bill to the governor for his signature.


All credit to State Representative Kathy Ashe as this information was copied and pasted from her newsletter, The Ashe Advocate.