Friday, March 12, 2004

Notes from the Georgia State Senate

By Senator Valencia Seay

This past week in the Legislative Session, we have considered essential budget items as well as tackled tough issues such as the statewide smoking ban. Because we are nearing the end of the session, it has been a week filled with long committee meetings so that we can get this vital legislation out of committee, onto the Senate Floor and over to the House of Representatives for final passage. A bill is lost if it does not make it to the House by Day 33, and there are still many issues that we must discuss before that deadline.

The Fiscal Year 2004 Supplemental budget has been one of the most important things we have debated on the Senate Floor this session. We adopted the amended version, which focuses expenditures on children, jobs, and basic human needs. We carefully considered the needs of our citizens as we reviewed changes in the budget that revises the state's current financial plan. The proposal goes to a joint conference committee where a team of Senate and House members will negotiate and present a final compromise.

We have had to make tough decisions during these challenging times and the state's financial outlook is not as bright as we had hoped when we developed the initial FY 2004 budget last year. We have had to re-prioritize our current finances and make decisions about where the money we do have will go the rest of this year. We have done what we could to fully fund Medicaid to make sure our neediest citizens are cared for. We also have kept money in the budget for the Katie Beckett Waiver for disabled children, and we have money in this supplemental budget for the Central State Hospital in Milledgeville. We also included the addition of money to restore funding to the Department of Public Safety and funds to reinstate reduced appropriations for high risk pregnant women and their children.

The amended budget now goes to a joint Senate and House conference committee where legislators will compromise to finalize the 2004 budget. Last week, Gov. Sonny Perdue lowered the official revenue estimate by $109 million since state tax collections currently are not meeting expectations, so the Senate and House will have to trim additional items from the 2004 budget so that it is balanced, as required by Georgia law. The current budget year ends on June 30, 2004.

On Thursday, the Senate passed SB 507, the proposed smoking ban for most indoor public areas, including restaurants. It passed 45-7 and moves to the state House where it will probably face tougher opposition.

This is a very personal issue for me because my mother smoked for 45 years and died from a smoking- related illness. The side effects for smokers as well as those around them are deadly and I believe that every Georgian has the right to breathe smoke-free air. The bill states that bars that earn less than 20 percent of their income from food will still be able to allow smoking. Hotels will also be allowed to keep up to 20 percent of their rooms as smoking rooms and small, non-restaurant businesses with less than seven employees can allow smoking. I feel this is a good compromise to protect the health of Georgia's citizens while still allowing business owners and those who smoke their right to do so.

Senate Bill 525 also passed which requires the removal of vehicles involved in traffic accidents from the main roadway if possible. This will allow traffic to move on the road and not block an entire highway because of a minor accident and should help relieve congestion on our roadways.

I encourage you to call me or come for a visit. I work for you and your concerns are my concerns. ?