Crossover Week House Action
Friends,
FY2023 Budget
Last week, as mentioned previously, the House passed our FY2023 budget. House Bill 911, the FY2023 budget, includes bolstered funding for mental health coordinated care and law enforcement systems with an infusion of $148.9 million in new funds. HB 911 will now go to the Senate for their consideration. Typically, the approval of the budget is a back and forth process between the House and Senate over the details of the budget, and then the budget will await the Governor's signature. I will keep you informed about the process as we move through it. You can view the progress on HB 911 here: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/61136 Remember that your comments and personal feedback are valuable to the process.
Fair Election Protection
The House of Representatives passed additional legislation to restore confidence and transparency to our elections process.
House Bill 1464 grants the non-partisan Georgia Bureau of Investigation investigative power into elections issues, opens paper ballots to public inspection, institutes strong chain of custody requirements, mandates meaningful access for poll watchers, and restricts outside private money from influencing our elections.
Media outlets like the National Public Radio and the Atlanta Journal-Constitution have publicly acknowledged that this legislation will not affect how you and your fellow Georgians vote. It will increase transparency so that win or lose, all Georgians know and trust in the sanctity of an open and transparent election process.
Education
The House passed House Bill 1184, which gives every public school in Georgia the ability to administer nationally-recognized college entrance exams to every 11th grade student during school hours, school-wide.
The college application process can be complicated and difficult to navigate. This bill will prevent rural students in Georgia from having to drive to larger cities on Saturdays to take their tests.
To emphasize the importance of recess to our children’s development, the House of Representatives passed House Bill 1283 which requires that schools provide recess for all students from Kindergarten through 5th grade.
Healthcare
Addressing the healthcare needs of Georgians, particularly in rural communities, continues to be a focus of the House of Representatives this session.
We passed House Bill 918 to create an advisory council to help us address the needs of Georgians with rare diseases, as well as House Bill 1520 to create an advisory council to address healthcare workforce needs.
We passed House Bill 1041 to strengthen the ability of Georgians across the state to direct a portion of their Georgia income taxes to aid rural hospitals. This bill, known as the Georgia Heart Program, will allow the cap to increase from $60 to $75 million.
We passed House Bill 937 requiring that Medicaid cover doctor-recommended annual mammograms at no additional cost to the patient.
Issues You Care About
While we are getting close to the end of session, there are still nine legislative days left. Do not hesitate to reach out to me at 404.656.5052, Jon.Burns@house.ga.gov, or on Facebook at www.FB.com/JonBurnsGA. You can always watch session proceedings and our committee hearings at https://www.legis.ga.gov/house. I look forward to hearing from you.