REP. ENGLAND: State legislative session nearing the end

BUDGET
On the budgets, we had to make some difficult cuts because of a reduced revenue projection. As a member of the House Appropriations Committee, I am proud to report to you that we have succeeded in funding our priorities despite cuts that were made.

In the FY08 Amended Budget, we funded $20 million for equalization grants for our schools and we have funded an additional $10 million for those in the FY09 budget. We also funded over $50 million trauma care to help hospitals that treat the critically injured, $2.7 million to the public defender program to ensure all Georgians receive fair legal representation regardless of their ability to pay, and $40 million for reservoir projects to meet Georgia’s future water needs. This midyear budget also included $210 million in bonds for school construction projects around the state. This budget was adopted by both the House and the Senate, and signed by the Governor.

In the FY09 Budget, we remained committed to funding education, healthcare, public safety and natural resources despite a $245 million cut in estimated revenue. Our top priority was to restore the $141 million in austerity cuts to education and after many weeks with long nights, we did restore $90 million of those cuts and had hoped the Senate would restore the remaining $50 million in austerity cuts. We also funded a 2.5 percent pay raise for our teachers and state employees, a pay raise for our public safety officers including correctional officers and those under the Department of Natural Resources, community health centers, and of course that final $10 million in equalization grants for our schools. This budget was immediately transmitted to the Senate for consideration.

The Senate has adopted a version of this that differs from what the House passed. The Senate has refused to fund the additional $10 million needed for equalization grants for our schools, cut $35 million from the money we included to reduce the austerity cuts to education, added an additional $48 million in bonded debt above the limit the state is allowed to hold, raided $16 million from the state’s reserve fund for the State Health Benefit Plan, and eliminated the pay raises for our correctional officers. The House has unanimously disagreed with these changes and a conference committee has been appointed to work out those differences.

TAXES
Tax cuts were a hot topic of discussion leading in to this session and the House has delivered on that promise to pass a tax cut for Georgians. The House adopted House Resolution 1246 that would allow Georgians to vote to eliminate the ‘birthday tax’ on personal vehicles over a two year period, eliminate the state’s portion of the ad valorem taxes on personal vehicles and property, and cap assessments on personal property at 2% per year and commercial property at 3% per year. Tied to this was a measure that would have provided for a $10 fee on every vehicle registered in Georgia to fund a statewide trauma care network. This was a complete and permanent tax cut that would have saved Georgians over $750 million.

It is unfortunate that I must report the fact that our colleagues in the Senate have killed this measure. The Senate did offered a different tax cut but it is not permanent and it does not completely eliminate any tax burden on Georgians. Instead, the Senate’s plan offers only a partial reduction and does not make that reduction permanent. While I do believe that we need to further explore this idea, the House has spent more than a year holding hearings and meeting with Georgians on this issue of tax cuts. And what we heard loud and clear was that Georgians no longer want to pay a tax on their birthday. I hope that over the next legislative recess we can hold hearings on reducing or eliminating the income tax, but for now we need the complete and permanent elimination of the birthday tax.

TRANSPORTATION
Just this week, the House delivered on a promise to address transportation. Senate Resolution 845 is a constitutional amendment that would allow a ‘Regional Commission Area Transportation Tax.’ Currently in Georgia, there are Regional Development Centers that exist and under measure would be changed to Regional Development Commissions made up of local elected officials in a multi-county area. These commissions would meet to determine the top transportation needs of the region and then would be able to propose a ballot question to the region’s voters calling for a transportation sales tax not to exceed 1 percent and only for a specified time period. All funds raised will stay within each their regions to fund transportation projects in that region.

Several amendments were adopted by the House to address concerns including a provision allowing individual counties to ‘opt out’ of participation in the regional transportation sales tax, to include certain exemptions to the tax including fuel for off-road heavy duty equipment, farm and agricultural equipment, locomotive, aircraft and water craft, and to create a special fund within the Department of Transportation to collect the motor fuel taxes so that those can then be used for transportation projects. This is a good bill because it addresses our transportation needs on regional basis rather than attempt a ‘one size fits all’ solution. This is a better solution because our rural communities have different priorities than Metro Atlanta and we are empowering every corner of the state to address their own needs. We have also put the power of taxation at the smallest level of government – directly in the hands of the taxpayers! This bill gives those who would pay the tax the voice to decide if they want to pay the tax.

WATER
During the first week of our legislative session, we addressed Georgia’s water issues by adopting a statewide water management plan. House Resolution 1022 ratified the statewide water management plan as prepared by the Water Council. The plan creates 11 water regions treating all parts of Georgia equally, and provides a long term strategy for water use and conservation. The first step will be region-to-region scientific assessments of current sustainable capabilities of our water resources.

Next, each region will conduct future economic and population growth forecasts. And finally, each region will complete a regional water plan to include conservation measures, meet current and future usage needs, and include local government management practices. These tasks must be completed by the year 2010. We also passed an important bill that would speed up the process of building reservoirs in the state. It will streamline the permitting process and move much of the control over these water impoundments from Environmental Protection Division (EPD) to Georgia Environmental Facilities Administration (GEFA).

Our work here will be completed on Friday, April 4th. In our final days, we will finalize our budget, hopefully reach an agreement with the Senate on a tax cut, and then I look forward to returning home.

God Bless you and your family. Please feel free to contact me if I can be of any help.

Representative Terry England represents parts of Barrow county in the House of Representatives. During the Session he may be contacted at:

501 Coverdell Legislative Office Building