General Assembly Returns to the Capitol 

as 2012 Legislative Session Gets Underway

Governor Deal Gives Annual State of the State Address and Releases Budget

On Tuesday night, Governor Nathan Deal gave the annual State of the State address through a live presentation on Georgia Public Broadcasting.  To watch the Governor’s State of the State presentation, click here.  To read the Governor’s speech, click here.  Governor Deal focused on several key areas, including education, workforce development, transportation, criminal justice, and job creation.  During the speech, he announced several initiatives that will impact counties, including:

• A sales tax exemption on energy used in manufacturing, which will result in an estimated $108 million annual revenue loss to local governments;
• A sales tax exemption on certain types of construction projects of regional significance if approved by the state and local officials; and
• $10 million for the creation of specialty courts (such as drug courts or mental health courts).

The General Assembly will recess next week for the Martin Luther King, Jr. holiday (Monday) and budget hearings from state agency heads.  They will return on January 23 – 26 for legislative days six through nine.  ACCG is reviewing the Governor’s proposed amended FY 2012 budget and FY 2013 state budget and will provide more information about issues to support and areas of concern in next week’s Legislative Update. 

Legislation on Foreclosure Registries Sent Back to Committee

An effort to quickly pass House Bill 110 (HB 110) on the Senate floor was thwarted earlier this week when ACCG, the Georgia Municipal Association and several metro counties raised concerns on its impact to local government.  This legislation seeks to establish limits on foreclosure registries established by counties and cities.   ACCG is concerned about this legislation because it contains loopholes that will curtail the ability of counties and cities to require owners of foreclosed or vacant properties to maintain their properties.   HB 110 bars counties and cities from obtaining periodic updates to the contact information registered for some foreclosed properties making it difficult to address citizen complaints about these properties. 

HB 110 has been sent back to the Senate Banking Committee for more consideration.  Watch for additional updates on this legislation and be prepared to contact your Senator if county concerns are not addressed.

Register Now for the ACCG Capitol Connection Conference – Schedule Delegation Meetings

The ACCG Capitol Connection Conference is scheduled for January 30 – 31 at the Atlanta Marriott Marquis.  In addition to getting the latest update on what’s happening at the State Capitol, county officials also will hear from Governor Nathan Deal, Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle and House Speaker David Ralston.  It’s not too late to register – for more information on the conference schedule and training sessions, click here.   While you are in Atlanta, be sure to schedule a meeting with your state legislators to discuss issues highlighted at the conference.  Good times to target for meetings include Monday evening or Tuesday afternoon.  If you schedule a delegation meeting, please let Kanika Greenlee know who you are meeting as well as the date, time, and location.  You can email her at kgreenlee@accg.org.

Stay Connected with ACCG throughout the Legislative Session

ACCG wants county officials to stay informed and engaged throughout the legislative session and provides several tools to make this easy to do: 

• Legislative Updates:  Watch for each week’s electronic Legislative Update which provides the latest information on key bills to watch and summarizes legislation of concern to counties that has been introduced or is progressing.  Updates are emailed on Fridays.
• Legislative Database:  Look up specific legislation by bill number, issue area, or other categories in the ACCG Legislative Database.  Each bill ACCG is tracking includes a position, staff summary, and links to its status on the General Assembly’s website.  Legislation marked as “Evaluating” means that ACCG staff is still reviewing the bill to determine its impact to counties while legislation marked as “Negotiating” means that ACCG staff has some concerns on the bill’s impact to counties and is working with legislators to try to get them addressed.  Go to www.accg.org and click on “Legislative Advocacy” or “ACCG Legislative Center” to find the database.
• Twitter:   For more up to the minute information on the issues that ACCG is working on at the Capitol, follow us on Twitter through @gacounty.  ACCG will post daily “tweets” to let you know what’s happening with important legislation.