HB 0126 |
Support | Crime to Interfere with a Park Ranger Executing their Duties |
Hamilton, Mark 24th |
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7/1/2013 |
House - Effective Date |
JudyNC |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation makes it a misdemeanor to interfere with a federal, state or county employee (other than law enforcement officers) enforcing ordinances and regulations regarding the use of a park. If said interference takes the form of a threat or aciton of violence, then it is a felony. |
HB 0177 |
Neutral | Oconee River Greenway Authority; change the membership |
Wilkinson, Joe 52nd |
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7/1/2013 |
House - Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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HB 0189 |
Support | DNR to Give Counties Notice of Park Closings |
Buckner, Debbie 137th |
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7/1/2013 |
House - Effective Date |
GF&P |
NR&E |
- |
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This legislation requires the Department of Natural Resources to provide at least a 60-day notice to a county or city before the State closes a park or recreation area, decreases its operating hours or services by 50 percent or more, or permanently changes a primary operational function within the local's jurisdiction. This is simply to give notice, providing the county some time to decide whether it wants to assume any responsibilities in operating the park or recreation area.
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HB 0199 |
Neutral | Expand GEFA's Reservoir Fund for Leak Detection and Conservation |
Lindsey, Edward 54th |
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1/13/2014 |
Senate Recommitted |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation expands the uses of the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority's Reservoir Fund to cover leak-detection, conservation-type and other water supply system assets. The Reservoir Fund will be renamed the "Georgia Reservoir and Water Supply Fund." While ACCG certainly recognizes the importance of leak detection and conservation, GEFA currently has about $318 in loaning capacity available for these purposes via its Georgia Fund, Clean Water and Drinking Water loan programs; whereas the Reservoir Fund only has $41 million in loaning capacity. |
HB 0226 |
Neutral | Revising Used/Scrap Tire Transportation Storage and Disposal Laws |
Nix, Randy 69th |
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4/30/2013 |
House - Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation adds several definitions to aid in EPD's enforcement of organics management and the hauling and storage of scrap tires. The bill defines compost and composting as an aerobic process and defines and limits who can transport used and scrap tires, not new tires. It authorizes, but does not require, local law and code enforcement agencies to enforce Georgia's used/scrap tire laws and limits the amount of scrap tires that can be stored by tire retailers, tire retreaders, salvage yards and the general public. Local governments would be exempted from the tire hauling registration and quantity restrictions. |
HB 0276 |
Support | Hazardous Waste Trust Fund - Fixing the Redirection of Fees |
Nimmer, Chad 178th |
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5/7/2013 |
House Date Signed by Governor |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation renews the fees that make up the Hazardous Waste Trust Fund (hazardous waste transporting, disposal, and the state's 75-cent-per-ton solid waste tipping fees, among others) for five years, from July 1, 2013 to July 1, 2018. Since 2004, over 60 percent of these fees have been redirected to the state's general fund, not going toward their statutorily-dedicated purpose of cleaning up hazardous sites, including old county landfills.
The bill applies a fee-reduction mechanism (also found in HB 127) to fix the redirection of HWTF and Solid Waste Trust Fund fees. If fees for these two trust funds are not appropriated for their designated purposes, then the fees will be proportionately reduced the following year.
Addressing the redirection of these fees was one of ACCG's policy priorities this legislative session.
Click here for a chart and summary of the HWTF's redirected fees since 2004.
Click here for a chart and summary of the SWTF's redirected fees since 2004.
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HB 0320 |
Support | Inert Landfills - Exempt from DNR Rule |
Harden, Buddy 148th |
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7/1/2013 |
House - Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| In January of 2013, the Board of Natural Resources adopted rules taking inert landfills out of the "permit-by-rule" category and requiring facility owners to instead obtain a solid waste handling permit which entails additional, substantive regulations and costs. This bill exempts from that new rule any inert landfill, public or private, which as of January 1, 2014 is certified by a professional engineer as being in full compliance with all permit-by-rule requirements as they previously existed before the DNR rule change. |
HB 0402 |
Neutral | Shore Protection and Coastal Marshlands Protection Acts - Revisions |
Stephens, Ron 164th |
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7/1/2013 |
House - Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation provides a variance procedure under the Coastal Marshlands Protection Act to allow for temporary activities within protected areas (i.e., television and movie sets/filming). |
HB 0549 |
Support | Water Pollution Spills - Counties to Assist in Public Notice |
Burns, Jon 159th |
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7/1/2014 |
Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation requires county emergency management agencies and health departments (once they are notified by the Environmental Proteciton Division) to place a public notice when there is a spill of pollutants that is reasonably expected to be a hazard to the public health and safety, to private and public drinking water supplies, or to animals, birds or aquatic life. |
HB 0741 |
Support | Septage Land Application Sites - Consistent with Local Zoning |
Kevin Tanner |
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4/23/2014 |
House Date Signed by Governor |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation requires those applying for septage land application permits to provide the EPD with a letter verifying that the proposed site complies with a jurisdiction's local zoning and land use ordinances. If a public hearing is held in the application process, it must occur in the same jurisdiction where the proposed site is to be located. |
HB 0908 |
Neutral | Reauthorize Solid Waste Trust Fund |
Lynne Riley |
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6/30/2014 |
Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation extends the sunset for the scrap tire fee from June 30, 2014, until June 30, 2019. This fee generates about $6 million annually and is supposed to fund the Solid Waste Trust Fund (for scrap tire clean up, landfill clean ups, litter reduction and recycling efforts at the local level). Over 60 percent of all funds have been redirected to balance the state's general fund since 2004 instead of being used for their statutorily-designated purpose. |
HB 0957 |
Evaluating | Georgia Brownfield Act - Liability of Certain Purchasers |
Chuck Williams |
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7/1/2014 |
Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation changes the Georgia Hazardous Site Reuse and Redevelopment Act to the Georgia Brownfield Act, as well as changes the liability of certain purchasers of brownfield property.
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SB 0011 |
Support | Reauthorize the Georgia Geospatial Advisory Council |
Carter, Buddy 1st |
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5/7/2013 |
Senate - Veto V5 |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation reauthorizes the Georgia Geospatial Advisory Council to audit Georgia's geospatial capabilities at the county, regional and state level. |
SB 0136 |
Neutral | Creation of Hunting and Boating Under the Influence Offenses - Require Boater Education |
Miller, Butch 49th |
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5/15/2013 |
Senate - Effective Date |
GF&P |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation creates criminal offenses for boating and hunting under the influence of alcohol. Persons convicted of hunting while under the influence will pay a fine, and have their hunting license suspended. Person convicted of boating under the influence will suffer the same sanctions as those driving under the influence. The legislation also requires anyone operating a watercraft to complete a boater education course certified by the Department of Public Safety. |
SB 0156 |
Evaluating | Borrow Pits - Forresty Exemption |
Tolleson, Ross 20th |
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7/1/2013 |
Senate - Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation excludes excavated areas of fewer than five acres incidental to forestry land management from the definition of "borrow pit" so long as no earthen material is removed for sale. |
SB 0176 |
Evaluating | Hazardous Sites - Revisions to Voluntary Remediation Program |
Tolleson, Ross 20th |
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2/20/2013 |
Senate - Senate Read and Referred |
- | NR&E |
- |
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| This bill is identical to HB 357. Please see HB 357 for details. |
SB 0210 |
Support | Georgia Legacy Program |
Tolleson, Ross 20th |
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3/12/2013 |
House - House Second Readers |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation creates the Georgia Legacy Program, a successor organization for the Georgia Land Conservation Trust Fund and the Georgia Land Conservation Revolving Loan Fund. The Georgia Legacy Program is designed to provide funding options to acquire critical areas for clean water, game, wildlife or natural resource based outdoor recreation, as well as support local parks, trails and programs for good health.
Additional information can be found here. |
SB 0213 |
Neutral | Flint River Drought Protection Act Revision |
Tolleson, Ross 20th |
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7/1/2014 |
Effective Date |
A&CA |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation makes several revisions to the Flint River Drought Protection Act. Among those, it calls for the Department of Agriculture and the State Soil and Water Conservation Commission to work with EPD to look at enhancing programs and incentives to support agricultural water efficiency measures, support pilot projects on innovative irrigation technologies, identify ways for measuring agricultural uses of water, and encourage the retirement of unused surface and ground water farm permits. The EPD Director may modify all farm water permits to reach scheduled efficiencies by 2020 in "affected areas" (all areas in which groundwater flow affects the Flint, or where drainage into Spring Creek, Ichawaynochaway Creek, Kinchafoonee Creek and Muckalee Creek occurs). If the state is augmenting stream flows to help protect aquatic life habitat, the EPD Director can notify downstream surface water permit holders not to use the increased flows in said affected areas. Several other provisions are included. |
SB 0299 |
Neutral | Stream Buffers - Reduce 150-foot Buffer Requirement Upstream from Reservoirs/Water Intakes |
Steve Gooch |
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7/1/2014 |
Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| Current Department of Natural Resources rules require 150-foot stream buffers on waters seven miles upstream of drinking water reservoirs and intakes, allowing some variances if other water protection measures are taken. This bill allows these buffers to be decreased so long as the local government submits a watershed protection plan to EPD (and it is approved) that still maintains water quality. The state's 25-foot (all streams) and 50-foot buffers (trout streams) are not impacted by this legislation.
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SB 0306 |
Neutral | Floridan Aquifer - Permanent Prohibition on Water Injection |
William Ligon Jr. |
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1/23/2014 |
Senate Read and Referred |
- | NR&E |
- |
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| The current moratorium on injecting surface water into the Floridan aquifer expires on July 1, 2014. This legislation would permanently bar the injection of both surface and ground water into the aquifer. |
SB 0361 |
Neutral | Georgia Geospatial Advisory Council |
Buddy Carter |
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7/1/2014 |
Effective Date |
NR&E |
NR&E |
- |
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| This legislation would create the Georgia Geospatial Advisory Council. The Council will audit the geospatial capabilities at the state and local level. The audit shall make recommendations for utilizing geospatial data capabilities to meet FEMA notification requirements, recommendations for moving forward to achieve governmental data interoperability and enhanced delivery of services to Georgia's citizens through the geospatial approach. |
SB 0380 |
Evaluating | Inert Landfills - Allow to Operate by Permit by Rule Once Again |
Jeff Mullis |
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2/17/2014 |
Senate Read and Referred |
- | NR&E |
- |
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| In 2013, the Department of Natural Resources ended the practice of allowing inert landfills to be "permit-by-rule" facilities, instead requiring them to obtain full solid waste handling permits to operate. This legislation effectively overrides the new DNR rule and allows inert landfills to operate if they simply notify the EPD Director within 30 days of commencing operations - thus going back to permit-by-rule facilities. While various inert landfill rules remain in place, this bill ends DNR's requirements that inert landfills be designed by a professional engineer; have routine methane monitoring programs; have 30-year post closure care plans; provide surety responsibilities; and measure and report the waste received to EPD. |
SR 0531 |
Neutral | Transportation, GA Dept. of; maximize the use of funding mechanisms aimed at reducing diesel emissions |
Tolleson, Ross 20th |
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3/28/2013 |
Senate - Senate Passed/Adopted |
- | NR&E |
- |
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