Georgia House lawmakers watch the vote count during a special session of the legislature in December 2023. Thursday, March 28, 2024, is “Sine Die” — the final day of Georgia’s 2024 legislative session. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)
Lawmakers have spent three months debating, revising and voting on hundreds of bills – and with just one day to go in the session, lawmakers are racing to pass (or kill) a slew of measures still in flux.
Legislators are expected to work late into the night on Thursday – before they tear their papers and toss them into the air with shouts of “sine die” sometime around midnight.
With Georgia’s primary elections just two months away, legislators have re-election on their minds. Debates will also be animated not only by conflicts between Democrats and Republicans, but also intraparty warfare between the House and the Senate. Among several differences, top Republicans in both chambers still need to iron out conflicts over the fiscal year 2025 state budget.
The legislature has already cleared several prominent bills, including measures to define antisemitism, create a private school voucher program, restrict cash bail, establish basic protections for tenants and rollback hospital regulations known as Certificate of Need.
In the final hours of session, how will Democrats translate anger at Republicans for deferring action on Medicaid expansion? Will the most controversial bills on LGBTQ youth, schools and voting pass? And in his traditional late-night speech in both chambers, will Gov. Brian Kemp, who has opted for a hands-off approach to the legislative session, fuel or pump the brakes on any bills that are on the edge?
Here’s your guide to the final day of the legislative session, followed by a handy reading and listening guide brought to you by the WABE newsroom. And watch all the action in the House and Senate chambers live here.
Lawmakers rush to pass bills before the deadline known as Crossover Day at the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta on Feb. 29, 2024. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)
Online Sports Betting
For several years, lawmakers have attempted to legalize online sports betting in Georgia. But pushback from religious conservatives opposed to gambling and conflicts over how to deploy the tax revenue has tripped up the legislation before. Democrats and Republicans have to work together to get the bill done.
SB 386 and SR 579, which includes a voter referendum to amend Georgia’s Constitution, have been sitting in the House Higher Education Committee and still need a House vote. Due to some tweaks in the House, these measures would still need final approval from the Senate.
Immigration
Republican lawmakers quickly advanced legislation targeting illegal immigration after a Venezuelan-born man who entered the U.S. illegally was charged with the murder of a 22 year-old college student in Athens.
A key outstanding measure is HB 1105, which would require local governments to coordinate with federal immigration enforcement agencies. The measure still needs final approval by the House.
Elections
The House still needs to approve a number of election bills that were significantly changed in the Senate.
The House has to consider HB 1207, which allows local election officials to adjust the number of election day voting booths based on early voting turnout and increases access for partisan poll watchers. HB 974 would make high-resolution scans of every ballot cast available to anyone online.
The Senate has yet to pass HB 976, which a Senate committee amended to create new rules for challenging the eligibility of voters. Democrats say this fuels mass voter challenges; Republicans say the bill will reign them in.
And the two chambers have yet to agree on a bill to remove QR codes from ballots, a top priority for Republicans who say the codes cause their constituents to distrust election results.
HB 986 still needs to pass the Senate and would criminalize the dissemination of deep fake videos or recordings by campaigns, candidates, parties or political committees in the weeks before an election.
These are among nearly a dozen election bills under consideration ahead of the 2024 election.
“Culture Wars”
Several controversial measures involving LGBTQ people, youth and education are still in the mix, but their paths to the governor’s desk are uncertain. These measures could help rally the GOP base ahead of primary elections, but could also deter some suburban swing voters who will be crucial in November. And of course, all would have consequences for children and families around the state.
SB 1170 would prohibit puberty blockers for minors experiencing gender dysphoria. The move comes after Republicans last year prohibited most gender-affirming treatments for children, but stopped short of banning puberty blockers. This measure has yet to clear any chamber.
This week, Republican senators passed HB 1104, which would limit sex education before the 6th grade and allow parents to request notification on every library book checked out by their children.
It would also prevent transgender student athletes from using the bathroom or locker room that matches their gender identity and would ban transgender girls from girls sports teams. That measure has yet to get a vote in the House.
Republicans in the Senate have also passed a religious liberty bill that Democrats and the business community say could open the gates to discrimination against LGBTQ people. And they have also approved measures requiring libraries to cut ties with the American Library Association. These bills have yet to pass the House, which is typically less amenable to this type of legislation.
Okefenokee Swamp Protections
Legislation to stop the construction of a titanium mine near the Okefenokee Swamp has long been stalled at the Capitol, but a last-minute compromise emerged last week with the blessing of House Speaker Jon Burns.
SB 132 would not stop the mine, but would effectively place a moratorium on its construction for three years. Environmentalists believe the bill does not go far enough – and some Republicans who say the mine would create jobs in a disadvantaged region are frustrated with the pause.
But enough lawmakers saw the measure as a compromise. Its fate in the Senate is unclear.
Film Tax Credit
HB 1180 would reform Georgia’s generous film tax credit. Sponsors want a better return for taxpayers. Opponents worry the new requirements to receive the tax credit will negatively impact smaller studios.
A Senate committee added exceptions for big studios, which House supporters say takes the teeth out of the bill. The measure has yet to pass the Senate and the House would still need to approve their changes.
Compensation for the Wrongfully Convicted
SB 429 would create a state board to review compensation for the wrongfully convicted. Currently, the legislature has to approve individual pieces of legislation for each person applying for compensation, often slowing the process significantly.
Several wrongfully convicted Georgians have appeared in the legislature to lobby for the bill and share their first-hand experiences. The measure passed the House on Tuesday, but still needs approval by the Senate.
Tax Credits
Lawmakers are looking to solidify a handful of measures that could directly impact your pocketbook.
HB 1019 would raise the homestead tax exemption to $10,000 and HB 1021 would increase the child tax credit to $4,000 per child. Both have yet to pass the Senate.
HB 971 would create a $300 credit for taxpayers who sign up for firearm safety training or purchase safe storage devices. The bipartisan measure is viewed as a small, but significant step for advocates of gun safety. It still needs to clear the Senate.
The Flint River hosts a diversity of unique wildlife and has been the center of a fight over private property rights. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)
Sine Die Reading & Listening Guide
WABE is home to a robust team of policy experts covering every nook and cranny of the Capitol. All session long, “Gold Dome Scramble” hosted by WABE Politics Reporters Sam Gringlas and Rahul Bali has featured the best policy reporting WABE has to offer – from under the Gold Dome to the Fulton County courthouse and the campaign trail.
Environment (March 21)
WABE’s Marisa Mecke and Emily Jones cover the environment and climate. This session, they have tracked legislation to protect the Okefenokee Swamp and regulate access to navigable rivers and streams. They also cover Georgia’s Public Service Commission, which regulates electric utilities.
A judge rules that Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis can stay on the election interference case involving former President Trump if special prosecutor Nathan Wade steps aside. WABE’s Sam Gringlas unpacks the decision by Judge Scott McAfee and what it means for the case going forward.
WABE’s Juma Sei covers education. Juma is tracking legislation focused on literacy, school lunch and public money for private school tuition, known as school vouchers. He also reports on how hot-button “culture war” issues are shaping debates about school sports, curriculum and libraries.
President Joe Biden and former President Donald Trump descend on Georgia for competing rallies, as the 2024 campaign turns to the general election when Georgia will be a key battleground.
A heated debate over immigration policy crops up under the Gold Dome after a Venezuelan-born man who authorities say entered the U.S. illegally was charged with the murder of a 22-year-old nursing student on the University of Georgia campus. Emily Wu Pearson covers immigration for WABE.
Former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley makes a last stand in her home state as she challenges former President Trump for the Republican presidential nomination. Georgia voters and politicians head east for the First in the South primary. How does South Carolina set up the election ahead in Georgia?
WABE’s Sam Gringlas reports from Beaufort, South Carolina and Rahul Bali reports from Greenville, South Carolina, on this special episode.
WABE’s Marlon Hyde talks about Georgia’s film tax credit, a Republican-led effort to make it harder for workers to unionize, the electric mobility industry and online sports betting.
Georgia is one of just 10 states that has yet to fully expand Medicaid. Democrats saw a glimmer of hope this year, but ultimately Republicans opted to stick with Gov. Brian Kemp’s limited expansion. WABE’s Jess Mador covers health.
Brittany Wise a few weeks after the traffic stop last spring that led her children to enter foster care. The state did not return her kids because she lacked stable housing and income. (Matthew Pearson/WABE)
Housing (Jan. 25)
WABE’s Stephanie Stokes, an investigative reporter who covers housing, brings us a story in partnership with ProPublica: “When families need housing, Georgia will pay for foster care rather than provide assistance.”
The state legislature’s constitutionally mandated responsibility is to pass a state budget. With more than $35 billion a year at stake, veteran Atlanta Journal-Constitution reporter James Salzer breaks down why you should care about the state budget.
The legislative chambers have been cleaned and sanitized. New nameplates have been attached to desks and the microphones have all been tested. The Georgia Capitol is ready for the return of 236 lawmakers, their staff, lobbyists and journalists for the start of another 40-day session.
