Conclusions:
HB 61: SUPPORT Rating: 9
HB 62: OPPOSE Rating: 2
HB 63: OPPOSE Rating: 5
HB 64: SUPPORT Rating: 10
HB 65: OPPOSE Rating: 1
HB 66: SUPPORT Rating: 7
HB 67: SUPPORT Rating: 9
HB 68: OPPOSE Rating: 4
HB 69: SUPPORT Rating: 6
HB 70: OPPOSE Rating: 1
Commentary:
HB 61 increases the amount of sales tax exemption on gasoline from 3% to 4%. It appears that this has the effect of cutting the sales tax on gasoline completely, which is a good thing in my book, and therefore I will SUPPORT this bill even though it takes a different approach than I would to a common goal. (I’d prefer cutting the sales tax on gas directly rather than providing for an exemption to do this.)
HB 61: SUPPORT
Rating: 9
HB 62 creates the State Veterinary Education Board consisting of the Commissioner of Agriculture, the Deans of two Veterinary-related colleges at UGA, a ‘person actively engaged in the production of livestock in this state’, and a veterinary doctor. This board would be allowed to make service-cancellable loans to vets whose practice involves food animal specialties. I’m going to OPPOSE this on the grounds that it creates another level of bureaucracy and gives UGA an unequal share of control of this board. If it turns out that UGA is the only school in the State to get a Vet Doc degree, I will reconsider that objection. But I still OPPOSE this on the bureaucracy issue regardless.
HB 62: OPPOSE
Rating: 2
HB 63 repeals the current OCGA Title 36 Chapter 44, the ‘Redevelopment Powers Law’ and recreates a new one with the same chapter and title name. This isn’t exactly my specialty here, and I’m going to go with the default OPPOSE of not fully understanding this one. As always, if someone can explain it I may change my mind.
HB 63: OPPOSE
Rating: 5
HB 64 has the language from HB 50 at the end, but also says that within 72 hours of a funeral director obtaining a body, he must file the certificate of death. It also authorizes the funeral director to report a treating physician to the Composite State Board of Meical Examiners for disciplinary action of the treating physician does not complete, sign, and return the medical certification of cause of death within 30 days. As with HB 50, I see nothing wrong here, and I SUPPORT this bill.
HB 64: 10
Rating: 10
HB 65 appears to be a new regulation on towing vehicles putting a cap on the maximum weight they are allowed to tow. I OPPOSE this on the grounds that regulations on private business need to be eliminated, not created.
HB 65: OPPOSE
Rating: 1
HB 66 basically allows cities the option of creating a SPLOST-style tax specifically for sewer improvement. I’ll SUPPORT this one on the grounds that it allows the local population to decide, rather than elected officials or bureaucrats.
HB 66: SUPPORT
Rating: 7
HB 67 allows a 4% tax credit for food expenses and eliminates legislative findings that target the poor. In other words, this takes a tax credit program that started out benefiting only a certain segment of the population, modifies it, and allows it to benefit the entire population. Again, I would prefer a straight tax cut rather than a tax ‘credit’, but I like this proposal, and it has my SUPPORT.
HB 67: SUPPORT
Rating: 9
HB 68 is another of those sneaky ones that prove the need to read the bills before voting. It largely deals with the process and procedure for claiming a body and who has the right to do so. But it sneaks in 3 little lines on what I am showing to be the topf of page 8, specifically the proposed Code Section 43-18-72(a)(1)(G), that limits the rights of property owners by not allowing a crematory within 1,000 feet of a residential subdivision. This particular clause was inserted by State Senator Don Balfour (R-Snellville), Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, due to a crematory operating near his home, and he admitted such on the floor of the Senate when this bill was being debated there. This clause alone warrants an OPPOSE stance on this bill, even though the rest of the bill appears to be good.
HB 68: OPPOSE
Rating: 4
HB 69 allows a doc to issue a nonresuscitation order without the concurring opinion of another doc if the person asking the doc to do so has a durable power of attorney for the person being nonresuscitated. While I could see this being a potential problem, the problems I see don’t necessarily negate themselves just because a second doc is involved, and I really have no basis for opposing this measure, so it has my SUPPORT.
HB 69: SUPPORT
Rating: 6
HB 70 bans anyone from living in a home where a family day-care center is operated if they have ever been charged with (not necessarily convicted of) a variety of crimes involving minors or a felony. In other words, if your mom runs a day care center from her house and you ever plead nolo, were adjudicated as a first offender with no admission of guilt, or were convicted of something like cashing a bad check, you can’t live with her or she has to shut down her business, per this bill. This bill also discusses fingerprinting of various day-care operator classes, such as director, employee, etc. If this bill strictly dealt with persons convicted of some crimes involving children, I could possibly be convinced to change my stance. However, that first clause I mentioned, the proposed Code Section 20-1A-37, is enough to kill this bill for me, and I most strenuously OPPOSE this measure.
HB 70: OPPOSE
Rating: 1
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State House Bills I Find Interesting (HB 61 – HB 70)
Conclusions:
HB 61: SUPPORT Rating: 9
HB 62: OPPOSE Rating: 2
HB 63: OPPOSE Rating: 5
HB 64: SUPPORT Rating: 10
HB 65: OPPOSE Rating: 1
HB 66: SUPPORT Rating: 7
HB 67: SUPPORT Rating: 9
HB 68: OPPOSE Rating: 4
HB 69: SUPPORT Rating: 6
HB 70: OPPOSE Rating: 1
Commentary:
HB 61 increases the amount of sales tax exemption on gasoline from 3% to 4%. It appears that this has the effect of cutting the sales tax on gasoline completely, which is a good thing in my book, and therefore I will SUPPORT this bill even though it takes a different approach than I would to a common goal. (I’d prefer cutting the sales tax on gas directly rather than providing for an exemption to do this.)
HB 61: SUPPORT
Rating: 9
HB 62 creates the State Veterinary Education Board consisting of the Commissioner of Agriculture, the Deans of two Veterinary-related colleges at UGA, a ‘person actively engaged in the production of livestock in this state’, and a veterinary doctor. This board would be allowed to make service-cancellable loans to vets whose practice involves food animal specialties. I’m going to OPPOSE this on the grounds that it creates another level of bureaucracy and gives UGA an unequal share of control of this board. If it turns out that UGA is the only school in the State to get a Vet Doc degree, I will reconsider that objection. But I still OPPOSE this on the bureaucracy issue regardless.
HB 62: OPPOSE
Rating: 2
HB 63 repeals the current OCGA Title 36 Chapter 44, the ‘Redevelopment Powers Law’ and recreates a new one with the same chapter and title name. This isn’t exactly my specialty here, and I’m going to go with the default OPPOSE of not fully understanding this one. As always, if someone can explain it I may change my mind.
HB 63: OPPOSE
Rating: 5
HB 64 has the language from HB 50 at the end, but also says that within 72 hours of a funeral director obtaining a body, he must file the certificate of death. It also authorizes the funeral director to report a treating physician to the Composite State Board of Meical Examiners for disciplinary action of the treating physician does not complete, sign, and return the medical certification of cause of death within 30 days. As with HB 50, I see nothing wrong here, and I SUPPORT this bill.
HB 64: 10
Rating: 10
HB 65 appears to be a new regulation on towing vehicles putting a cap on the maximum weight they are allowed to tow. I OPPOSE this on the grounds that regulations on private business need to be eliminated, not created.
HB 65: OPPOSE
Rating: 1
HB 66 basically allows cities the option of creating a SPLOST-style tax specifically for sewer improvement. I’ll SUPPORT this one on the grounds that it allows the local population to decide, rather than elected officials or bureaucrats.
HB 66: SUPPORT
Rating: 7
HB 67 allows a 4% tax credit for food expenses and eliminates legislative findings that target the poor. In other words, this takes a tax credit program that started out benefiting only a certain segment of the population, modifies it, and allows it to benefit the entire population. Again, I would prefer a straight tax cut rather than a tax ‘credit’, but I like this proposal, and it has my SUPPORT.
HB 67: SUPPORT
Rating: 9
HB 68 is another of those sneaky ones that prove the need to read the bills before voting. It largely deals with the process and procedure for claiming a body and who has the right to do so. But it sneaks in 3 little lines on what I am showing to be the topf of page 8, specifically the proposed Code Section 43-18-72(a)(1)(G), that limits the rights of property owners by not allowing a crematory within 1,000 feet of a residential subdivision. This particular clause was inserted by State Senator Don Balfour (R-Snellville), Chairman of the Senate Rules Committee, due to a crematory operating near his home, and he admitted such on the floor of the Senate when this bill was being debated there. This clause alone warrants an OPPOSE stance on this bill, even though the rest of the bill appears to be good.
HB 68: OPPOSE
Rating: 4
HB 69 allows a doc to issue a nonresuscitation order without the concurring opinion of another doc if the person asking the doc to do so has a durable power of attorney for the person being nonresuscitated. While I could see this being a potential problem, the problems I see don’t necessarily negate themselves just because a second doc is involved, and I really have no basis for opposing this measure, so it has my SUPPORT.
HB 69: SUPPORT
Rating: 6
HB 70 bans anyone from living in a home where a family day-care center is operated if they have ever been charged with (not necessarily convicted of) a variety of crimes involving minors or a felony. In other words, if your mom runs a day care center from her house and you ever plead nolo, were adjudicated as a first offender with no admission of guilt, or were convicted of something like cashing a bad check, you can’t live with her or she has to shut down her business, per this bill. This bill also discusses fingerprinting of various day-care operator classes, such as director, employee, etc. If this bill strictly dealt with persons convicted of some crimes involving children, I could possibly be convinced to change my stance. However, that first clause I mentioned, the proposed Code Section 20-1A-37, is enough to kill this bill for me, and I most strenuously OPPOSE this measure.
HB 70: OPPOSE
Rating: 1