| Day 37 The Senate
and House passed the following education related bills, as of March 26, 2015. Please remember that bills do not
become law until signed by the Governor. Please share any concerns you may
have regarding HB170 and the proposed use of SPLOST and/or eLOST funds with
your legislators and the conference committee members. HB170, the Transportation Funding Act
of 2015. The Senate and House versions
of this bill are very different. There
will be considerable negotiations this week in order for this bill to make it
through the legislative process prior to the end of the 40th
day. The Senate version of the bill does
not require counties or school systems to spend part of their SPLOST and/or
eLOST funds on transportation. This bill
has been assigned to conference committees for final negotiations and agreement
before the end of the 40th day. The House
made a motion to disagree on Tuesday. The House insisted on its position on Wednesday. Conference Committee appointed on
Wednesday. House Members: Jay Roberts, 155th; Mark Hamilton 24th;
Calvin Smyre 135th Senate Members: Steve Gooch, 51st; Tommie Williams, 19th;
David Shafer, 48th The Governor has warned
legislators that he may require a special session if an adequate version of the
Transportation Bill does not pass. HB76, the FY16 budget. The Senate and House have agreed to most
recommendations by the Governor, but there are some differences that resulted
in the bill going to a conference committee this week. CONFERENCE
COMMITTEE MET ON TUESDAY. Members of the
conference committee are: Senators Jack
Hill, David Shafer, Bill Cowsert, House Representatives Terry England, Jan
Jones, Jay Powell. The committee will
continue discussions this week. Discussions are ongoing with no indication that a final version has been
reached. HB177, school
personnel required to report child abuse shall be notified by child protective
agency upon receipt of report and completion of investigation. — PASSED THE
SENATE, March 26, 2015. HR640, create a House
Study Committee on Health, Education, and School-Based Health Centers. — PASSED THE HOUSE, March 26, 2015. SR287, Opportunity School District
Constitutional Amendment. — PASSED THE HOUSE (121-47) March 25, 2015. House
immediately transmitted to Senate. SB133, substitute, Opportunity School
District establishment. — PASSED THE HOUSE (108-53) March 25, 2015. Will need to go back to the Senate for
agreement. House
immediately transmitted to Senate. HB91, elimination of the High School
Graduation Test and awarding of a High School diploma to individuals who need
to pass any section of the test to graduate. — PASSED THE SENATE March 25, 2015 HB1, the use of medical marijuana in
a very limited access. — PASSED THE SENATE March 24, 2015. The House agreed to the Senate substitution
to HB1, March 25, 2015. SB2, the Move on When Ready bill will allow students who complete certain requirements
relating to postsecondary coursework to be awarded a high school diploma. This bill has been amended in the House Rules
Committee to remove the age 16 requirement. — PASSED THE HOUSE March 24, 2015. Senate
Agreed. PASSED THE SENATE March 25, 2015. HB62, waive
certain qualifications for a student whose parent is an active duty military
service member stationed in Georgia within the previous year to receive the
Special Needs Scholarship. — PASSED THE SENATE March 24, 2015. HB198, the Jason Flatt Act-Georgia Suicide Prevention Training Act. —
PASSED THE SENATE March24, 2015. HB164, as passed by the House, this
bill will extend the suspension of the professional learning requirements until
the new regulations are in place. — PASSED THE SENATE March 23, 2015. HB75, the Midterm FY15 Budget. This bill has been signed by the Governor, and
schools have already received their midterm adjustment sheets. — SIGNED by the
Governor THURSDAY ACTION: The House Rules
Committee sent SB141 back to committee to be
fixed. The language of the original
SB141 will be placed back into the bill and parts of HB492 will be added to the original
language. More information will be
following, as the committee finishes its work. The committee has no scheduled meeting to work on this. The fix may be done in the ante room of the
House. The language of the bill is
uncertain at this time. SB129, the "Georgia Religious
Freedom Act", was tabled in committee after two very long hearings. FRIDAY ACTION: Senate Rules Committee — cancelled Senate Rules Committee — will
meet at 11 a.m. on Monday SENATE CALENDAR for Day 38 contains the
following four education related bills: HB131, substitute, "The End to
Cyberbullying Act". HB313, substitute, limited paid leave
for public employees for the purpose of promoting education. HB362, to authorize licensed health
practitioners to prescribe albuterol sulfate inhalers, for schools. HB551, to authorize political subdivisions to provide for
voluntary contributions by employees through payroll deductions to certain not
for profit organizations. House Rules Committee — Meets at 9:00
a.m. HOUSE CALENDAR for Day 38 contains no education
related bills. Please remember,
it is the practice of the House to have additional Rules Committee meetings
during the day to add additional legislation to the calendar for full House
Consideration. We do not think that this
will happen on Friday afternoon. Day 38 of
the session will be on Friday, and day 39 of the session is scheduled for next
Tuesday. Day 40, the last day of the
session, is scheduled for Thursday, April 2nd. The pace has
slowed as we get to the end of the week. With most committee work now completed, the House and the Senate Rules
Committees and the full House and Senate become the center of attention. If you have
any questions regarding this legislative session, please give me a call at
404-909-1639. Michael
Surma mwsurma@bellsouth.net Legislative
Liaison Georgia
School Superintendents Association |