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Notes from the Georgia Senate |
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Notes from the Georgia Senate
Senate approves FY '09 budget and income tax reform
By State Sen. Chip Pearson
With four days remaining in the 2008 legislative session, the pace was lightning quick last week, as members make their final push of the year. This is the time of the session when you'll see members running from committee room to committee room, trying to get their bills moving. The big news at the Capitol this week was the passage of the Fiscal Year 2009 Budget in the Senate. The only bill that our state Constitution requires members of the Georgia General Assembly to pass during the legislative session is a state budget. This year's budget places an emphasis on education, healthcare, economic development, transportation and more. The FY 09 budget is a $21.4 billion package that funds the most critical services our state provides to citizens. Here are some of the highlights of the FY 09 budget:
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Notes from the Georgia House |
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Notes from the Georgia House of Representatives
By State Representative Amos Amerson
Teachers pay in Georgia ranks #1 in southeast, #2 nationally
As a former educator and current member of the House Higher Education Committee and Appropriations (K-12 Education) Committee, I have a natural interest in seeing that our teachers are some of the best paid in the southeast and the nation.
In some of my previous columns about the FY 2009 Budget, I wrote about holding firm on the 2.5% pay raise for teachers ($160 million). This pay raise is in addition to 3% salary increases awarded to more than half of the teachers through normal progression on the teacher salary schedule. Georgia consistently ranks #1 in highest average teacher salary in the Southeast, and this pay raise will ensure that Georgia maintains this ranking. According to the John Locke Foundation, Georgia ranks #2 nationally in average teacher salary when adjusted for cost of living, pension contribution, and teacher experience.
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NRA's "Bring Your Gun to Work" Bill Gutted |
January 18, 2008
GEORGIA CHAMBER'S LEGISLATIVE AGENDA
MAKES SIGNIFICANT ADVANCES FORWARD
IN FIRST WEEK OF LEGISLATIVE SESSION
NRA's "Bring Your Gun to Work" Bill Gutted; State Chamber-supported
Water Management Plan passes overwhelmingly in both Senate and House
The Georgia General Assembly convened on Monday, January 14, a day that saw the House of Representatives override twelve gubernatorial vetoes from last year.
Tuesday, January 15, a record, sellout crowd of 3,000 – including more than half of the members of the General Assembly, statewide Constitutional officers, judges from the Georgia Supreme Court and the Georgia Court of Appeals, hundreds of local elected officials and local chambers of commerce leaders – attended the annual Georgia Chamber of Commerce Eggs & Issues breakfast and heard from Gov. Sonny Perdue, Lt. Governor Casey Cagle and Speaker of the House Glenn Richardson.
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Legislative Updates 
