The Georgia Senate Public Safety Committee Wednesday advanced a bill that would add bail requirements to a laundry list of criminal offenses in order to get released from jail.
Georgia lawmakers are considering a bill that opponents compare to Florida’s “Don’t Say Gay” legislation, which seeks to limit the way teachers and others responsible for caring for minors can answer questions about the child’s sexual orientation or gender identity — though its sponsor said he plans to bring the bill back with changes to accommodate criticism from parents and educators.
The first bill to emerge from a legislative study committee that met last year to explore how to prepare Georgia to accommodate an anticipated influx of electric vehicles is making its way through the General Assembly.
The Georgia Senate passed a controversial bill to create a monument to Georgia native and U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas on Day 18. Thomas was born in Savannah.
Georgia lawmakers are pushing bills that would allow sports betting and horse race betting without a state constitutional amendment. They argue such gambling be legal under the authority of Georgia's state lottery. The House bill would allow sports betting only.
A bill sponsored by Marietta Republican state Rep. Sharon Cooper, who chairs the House Public Health Committee, pushes to require health insurance plans to cover comprehensive biomarker testing for Georgians who may not have access to it today.
A Georgia Senate bill could compel cities and counties to enforce bans on homeless people sleeping or camping in public. The measure also lets the state designate camping areas for homeless people and calls for an audit of spending on homeless programs.
The Georgia Senate voted to increase penalties for street gang recruitment on Day 17, while Democrats in both the House and Senate highlighted five gun bills they’re proposing to reduce gun violence.
Legislation extending aid to pregnant women in Georgia through the federal Temporary Assistance to Needy Families program sailed through the state House of Representatives on Monday.
A bipartisan group of lawmakers, including several who work in health care, has lined up behind a proposal to raise the tax rate on cigarettes and vaping products in the name of public health.
Workers who assist people with disabilities would receive about a $5-per-hour salary increase if decision-makers heed the recommendations packed into an ongoing wage review. But service providers say such an increase would fall short of what is needed.
Georgia is moving toward increasing the weight limit for large trucks to 90,000 pounds. The House Transportation Committee voted 18-11 for the bill on Thursday, sending it to the full House for more debate.
