Governmental Affairs Terry Mathews: 404-310-4173 [email protected] Scott Maxwell: 404-216-8075 [email protected] The following information is intended for the sole use of the clients of Mathews & Maxwell, Inc. Please contact the principals above to learn more about the services of the firm. Weekly Legislative Report #6 Week Ending February 22nd, 2019 The General Assembly completed its 20th legislative day on Friday, the halfway point of its 40-day session. Floor sessions are lengthening and committee meetings are beginning to stretch into the 5:00 and 6:00 p.m. realm as more and more bills work their way through the multi-layered process. FY 2019 Amended Budget Completed The House and Senate on Friday passed the FYA 2019 budget with a couple of amendments, finishing the General Assembly’s work on funding for the fiscal year ending June 30. Legislators found an additional $250,000 for home delivered meals to decrease the waiting list in each Area Agency on Aging across the state. They added $2 million to help hospitals located in rural, federally designated counties adversely impacted by Hurricane Michael, and made $20 million available for loans to farmers impacted by the hurricane. The increases are based on an estimated 3.3% revenue growth through June 30. That’s more than the 1.5% growth the state has seen since July 1 of last year, but legislators were confident of balancing the budget as required by the state constitution. Your Doc Is Just a Phone Call Away . Senator Renee Unterman (R-Buford) lost her HHS Committee Chair, but she certainly hasn’t retired from the fight. Unterman introduced and passed out of the Science and Technology Committee (which she now chairs) SB 115. This bill authorizes the Georgia Composite Medical Board to adopt rules and “issue telemedicine licenses to physicians who are licensed in other states, but not licensed in this state, to engage in the practice of medicine through telemedicine.” Telemedicine is, of course, much more than a telephone call as it utilizes audio, visual, and digital communications. An out-of-state physician issued a telemedicine license will not be allowed to practice in person within this state. And, Your Insurance Will Pay for It Unterman’s Committee also passed out her bill that requires insurance companies to reimburse professionals on both the originating and distant end of a telehealth conference as if the patient were seen in person. SB 118 modernizes the Georgia Telemedicine Act and renames it the Georgia Telehealth Act. “Telehealth” is a more encompassing term, covering educational events, public health efforts and health administration exchanges. Casino Gambling at Destination Resorts In last week’s report we told you that Sen. Brandon Beach (R-Alpharetta) introduced SB 45 to create the Georgia Horse Racing Commission, and SR 84, a Constitutional Amendment to allow pari-mutuel betting. On Thursday, both bills passed out of the Economic Development and Tourism Cmte. On Friday, across the rotunda, Rep. Ron Stephens (R-Savannah) put in the hopper a proposed Constitutional Amendment, HR 327, that would allow voters to approve the operation and regulation of limited casino gaming at licensed destination resort facilities, just as in the Senate version. That measure will be “first read” on Monday and assigned to a committee. What Really Happens to That $1.00 Scrap Tire Fee? Whenever Georgians purchase a new set of automobile tires, they pay a $1.00 per-old-tire fee that legislation intended to go towards clean-up of illegal dumps and hazardous waste sites. However, in the past decade $230 million have been raised by the tire fee plus landfill fees. Of that amount, only $80 million actually made it to the hazardous waste fund, while $150 million were siphoned off for other purposes. Likewise, Labor Commissioner Mark Butler has complained that he saw about $110 million diverted from his agency over a 12-year period. Of $57 million collected from a surcharge on traffic fines to establish driver education programs in schools, only $8 million has been used for that purpose. (The legislature has NOT rerouted any of the funding intended for transportation infrastructure from the 2015 refresh to the motor fuel tax structure.) Currently, the only way to absolutely ensure money gets to the intended program is to amend the state constitution. Thus, the House this week, as in previous years, passed a proposed Constitutional Amendment (HR 164) by Rules Chairman Jay Powell (R-Camilla) requiring such designated funds actually serve their intended purpose. The Senate has been reluctant to pass such measures in the past, worried that during another recession period like the 2008-2012 era such income streams may be desperately needed to fund priorities such as education and Medicaid. Powell’s resolution features kick-out exceptions for such emergency situations and requires a sunset on fund dedication bills of no longer than 10 years. It will be interesting to see how the Senate handles the issue this year. Voting System Clears First Hurdles HB 316, a bill that would replace Georgia’s outdated electronic voting machines, was passed by a subcommittee and full committee on the same day, Thursday. The replacement machines would have touch screens that direct a computer to mark a paper ballot. Opponents argued that paper ballots filled in by hand would be better and cost only $30 million as opposed to the $100-$150 million estimate for the touch screens. If the bill passes, Georgia election officials would seek competitive bids from voting system companies. The plan would be to test the ballot-marking machines during municipal elections this November to be sure they’re ready for the 2020 presidential primary election. A Little Respect, Please; That Tattoo Parlor Is Really A Body Art Studio With last term’s need to develop new language to regulate “microblading” for the eyebrows, it’s not surprising that the Department of Public Health wanted to “touch up” some other antiquated terminology on the books for things people do to their skin with needles. Per HB 328 by Karen Mathiak (R-Griffin), “tattoos” would be eased out of the code in several places to be replaced by the broader term, “body art.” That tattoo parlor on the corner is now a body art studio. But while the lingo may change, both studios and body artists would still have to be permitted by the Department of Public Health, just like their predecessors. Those that fail to operate within health regulations could have their permits suspended or revoked. Next Week The General Assembly meets every day next week, starting at 8:00 a.m. Monday with a high profile committee vote on HB 198, Certificate of Need (CON). Richard Smith (R-Columbus), Chairman of the Special Committee on Access to Quality Health Care, told his members on Friday that anyone who misses the controversial vote, “without a really good, and I mean really good excuse,” would be removed from the committee. You can’t spell contentious without CON! Tracking List Here are the bills we are tracking. New activity is noted in red. Click on the Bill Number to access the current version of the bill. The 2019 Legislative Session is the first session of the 2019-2020 Term of the Georgia General Assembly. Therefore, bills not passed or defeated during this session will be carried over to the 2020 session. Bills pending in the House or Senate Rules Committees at adjournment sine die of the 2019 session will be recommitted to the committee from whence they came. Aging HB 70, guardian and conservators of minors and adults; Revise Provisions (Rep. Chuck Efstration-R) Relating to guardian and ward, so as to revise provisions relating to guardians and conservators of minors and adults; to amend various provisions of the O.C.G.A., so as to make conforming revisions. Status: Referred to Juvenile Justice Cmte, Passed Cmte by Substitute, Pending Rules Cmte HB 77, Food Stamp Fraud (Rep. David Clark-R) Relating to fraud and related offenses and general provisions relative to public assistance, respectively, so as to redesignate Code Section 49-4-15, relating to fraud in obtaining public assistance, food stamps, or Medicaid, penalties, and recovery of overpayments. Status: Referred to Judiciary Non-Civil Cmte HB 91, Allowing the Federal Bureau of Investigation to retain fingerprints when an agency or entity is participating in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's program (Rep. Andy Welch-R) Relating to regulation and construction of hospitals and other health care facilities, so as to allow the Georgia Bureau of Investigation and, as authorized, the Federal Bureau of Investigation to retain fingerprints when an agency or entity is participating in the Georgia Bureau of Investigation's program. Status: Referred to Judiciary (Civil) Cmte, Passed Cmte, Pending Rules Cmte HB 135, “Authorized Electronic Monitoring in Long-term Care Facilities Act” (Rep. Douglas Demetrius-D) Relating to health care facilities, so as to provide for authorized electronic monitoring in long-term care facilities; to provide consent requirements; to provide for notice to the facility; to provide for cost and installation; to provide for an assistance program for Medicaid recipients; to provide for notice to visitors; to prohibit obstruction of electronic monitoring devices; to limit the dissemination of recordings; to provide for admissibility into evidence; to provide for limited liability. Status: Referred to Human Relations and Aging Cmte HB 246, Revise manner by which depositions taken at the instance of state are paid (Rep. Deborah Silcox- R) Relating to depositions to preserve testimony in criminal proceedings, so as to revise the manner by which depositions taken at the instance of the state are paid; to clarify how depositions shall be taken and filed.