SJB Newsletter 4.5
This past week, I had the honor of attending the annual Law Enforcement Appreciation BBQ in Glennville hosted by our friend Wayne Dasher. There were dozens of Sheriffs from across the state in attendance, and it was great to see so many of these heroes and thank them for what they do every day to keep us safe and secure.
Sheriffs from across the state at the annual Law Enforcement Appreciation BBQ in Glennville
The event was certainly a timely one. As we have continued to work to make Georgia the best place to live, work and raise a family, one of the most important policy areas we have addressed recently has been public safety. Over the past few years, we have seen an uptick in crime—particularly in our metro cities. To that end, working with Governor Kemp, the General Assembly has prioritized strengthening public safety across our state, standing with our men and women of law enforcement, and taking a hard stand against violent crime and repeat offenders. As a result, we have made significant progress to decrease crime rates, support our heroes who protect us, and make communities across our state even safer. This past session, we were able to pass a number of policies to do just that, including:
SB 92—Prosecuting Attorneys Qualifications Commission: This will create an oversight commission to hold District Attorneys who are failing to do their jobs accountable. While most of the District Attorneys across our state do a fantastic job, there are a few who are refusing to prosecute criminals and execute their oath of office. This independent commission will have the authority to review those issues and ensure the rule of law is being upheld.
HB 1105—Combatting Illegal Immigration: This legislation will more forcefully ban sanctuary city policies by requiring our local governments to comply with federal immigration laws and identify and detain illegal immigrants in our state.
SB 63—Requiring Cash Bail for Certain Offenses: This important legislation will ensure that aggravated offenses require cash bail, which will help keep more egregious offenders behind bars and hopefully cut down on repeat offenders—which will help protect our law enforcement officers and communities at the same time.
HB 500—Increasing Penalties for Police Car Arson: As a response to some of the senseless rioting we have seen over the past few years, we are taking a very hard stance against this lawlessness by ramping up criminal penalties for this type of arson. This will help crack down on these types of behaviors while also protecting our law enforcement officers and their property.
These are just a few of the measures we have taken to support our law enforcement and keep Georgia communities safe—and we will continue building on this work over the coming months and years.
In case you missed it, this past week I also had the opportunity to join the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s Politically Georgia radio show to recap the legislative session and highlight some of our accomplishments—and work yet to be done. You can listen by clicking the link HERE.
Lastly, I want to give a special shoutout to Dayle, as her birthday is today, April 5. She is simply the best—and we are going to spend the day enjoying the beautiful Southeast Georgia weather at home.
My Best,
Speaker Jon Burns