State House Bills I Find Interesting (HB11 – HB20)

Conclusions:
HB 11: OPPOSE Rating: 5
HB 12: OPPOSE Rating: 1
HB 13: OPPOSE Rating: 1
HB 14: SUPPORT Rating: 10
HB 15: SUPPORT Rating: 9
HB 16: SUPPORT Rating: 8
HB 17: SUPPORT Rating: 10
HB 18: SUPPORT Rating: 10
HB 19: OPPOSE Rating: 1
HB 20: SUPPORT Rating: 7

Commentary:

HB 11 has something to do with prosecution of criminal cases and makes some kind of procedural distinction between an accusation and an indictment. I don’t fully understand this one, so I’m going to have to revert to my default of OPPOSE pending further information.

HB 11: OPPOSE
Rating: 5

HB 12 is posed as a ‘consumer protection’ bill regarding insurance practices in relation to members of the armed forces. I OPPOSE this on two grounds: 1) that it unduly limits private decision and contract. Personal responsibility can be a pain sometimes, but that doesn’t mean that government should step in and babysit us. 2) that it violates the Equal Protection clause of the 14th Amendment by specifying one group for added protection over any other.

HB 12: OPPOSE
Rating: 1

HB 13 modifies the crime of jaywalking to clarify that it applies to anyone on foot along a road of any kind. It further restricts movement in the name of ‘safety’ and for this reason, I must OPPOSE this measure.

HB 13: OPPOSE
Rating: 1

HB 14 would make the elections for sheriff, district attorney, and solicitor general non-partisan. While I can certainly appreciate the idea that partisan elections with the associated party labels make it easier for some people to decide who to vote for, I reject that idea as nothing but pure laziness. Law enforcement and prosecution, which is what each of these offices are involved in, should not be a partisan issue, and because of this I SUPPORT this measure

HB 14: SUPPORT
Rating: 10

HB 15 clarifies legislative review of proposed rule changes. It both specifies that the rules must be made available for public review and that if a committee objects to one of the rules it is to be presented to the entire chamber within five days for an up or down vote. If more than 2/3 of each chamber votes against the rule, the rule is automatically voided, otherwise it goes to the Governor to decide. This seems like a good plan to me, and I SUPPORT this bill.

HB 15: SUPPORT
Rating: 9

HB 16 makes it a misdemeanor of a high and aggravated nature to electronically track a person without his or her consent. Exceptions are provided for actions of an official law enforcement agency, actions of US military personnel when performing official duties, parents or guardians tracking their kids, or OnStar-type commercial systems. (Note OnStar isn’t referred to in the language of the bill, that is what I understand the bill to be referring to when it says “The provision of a commercial service such as mobile telephone service or vehicle safety or security service which incidentally allows the provider of the service to determine the location or movement of a device provided to a customer of the commercial service.” When I first saw what the bill was covering, I planned to object based on parents monitoring their kids, but that exception is already in the bill. So while I’m not such a huge fan of government being exempt from this law, I do like that it at least attempts to provide residents of Georgia with a bit more privacy, and therefore I will SUPPORT this bill.

HB 16: SUPPORT
Rating: 8

HB 17 is called the “Small Business and Jobs Protection Act of 2009″ and upon seeing that title, I was once again prepared to OPPOSE this bill before reading it – which is why reading the bill is so important, because this is actually a GREAT bill. What does it do? Not much… just eliminates all corporate income taxes beginning January 1, 2010. THIS would actually do exactly what it says – protect small businesses and thus jobs. Honestly, this is one of the best bills I’ve yet seen, and I’ve now read more than 300 of them so far!

HB 17: SUPPORT
Rating: 10

HB 18 is called the “Small Business and Jobs Protection Act of 2010″ is is even better than HB 17 – which I just rated as high as I can. This one repeals all ad valorem taxes on “all tangible personal property constituting the inventory of a business”. Like HB 17, THIS would actually protect businesses and thus jobs in this state. I fully SUPPORT this bill as well.

HB 18: SUPPORT
Rating: 10

HB 19 would ban the use of any wireless device – including cell phones and radios – while driving. I’ve written about Albany’s attempts at a similar ban before, and my objections still stand. I most strenuously OPPOSE this bill due to its blatant and flagrant disregard for individual freedom.

HB 19: OPPOSE
Rating: 1

HB 20 requires that policies or rules relating to the Department of Human Resources and the Georgia Trauma Care Network Commission not be excluded from having to follow the requirements of rule making that most other rules have to follow. This makes sense to me, and while I don’t have an extremely strong reason to SUPPORT it, I don’t have a reason at all to OPPOSE it, and therefore I SUPPORT it.

HB 20: SUPPORT
Rating: 7