TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2018 1 Senate Chamber, Atlanta, Georgia Tuesday, November 13, 2018 First Legislative Day Pursuant to a proclamation by His Excellency, Governor Nathan Deal, the Senate met in Special Session in the Senate Chamber at 10:32 a.m. this day and was called to order by Lieutenant Governor Casey Cagle, President of the Senate. The following Proclamation by His Excellency, Governor Nathan Deal, convening the General Assembly of Georgia in Special Session, was read by the Secretary: BY THE GOVERNOR OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA A PROCLAMATION CONVENING THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA IN SPECIAL SESSION WHEREAS: Article V, Section II, Paragraph VII of the Constitution of the State of Georgia grants to the Governor the power to convene a special session of the General Assembly by proclamation, stating and thereby limiting the purposes of the special session; and WHEREAS: The Regular Session of the 2018 General Assembly adjourned sine die on March 29, 2018; and WHEREAS: The Governor has determined that certain purposes warrant the convocation of a special session; and THEREFORE: By virtue of the power and authority conferred upon me by the Constitution of Georgia, I, Nathan Deal, Governor of the State of Georgia, do hereby convene the General Assembly of this State in Special Session on Tuesday, November 13, 2018, for the purposes and only those purposes specified as follows: 2 JOURNAL OF THE SENATE 1. To amend Act Number 301 of the 2018 Legislative Session, the Fiscal Year 2019 Appropriations Act, to provide emergency funding to state agencies and local governments responding to Hurricane Michael as well as providing for economic development and rebuilding; and 2. To ratify the Executive Order dated July 30, 2018, and numbered 07.30.18.01 in the official records of the Office of the Governor, and provide for general law regarding taxation related to the subject of that Executive Order and for general law regarding taxation as it relates to recovery and rebuilding from the impact of Hurricane Michael. Given under my hand and the Great Seal of the State of Georgia, at the City of Atlanta, on this 9th day of November, 2018. (SEAL) /s/ Nathan Deal GOVERNOR ATTEST /s/ Chris W. Riley CHIEF OF STAFF The following communication was received by the Secretary: Supreme Court of Georgia 244 Washington Street Room 572, State Office Annex Building Atlanta, Georgia 30334 THERESE (TEE) BARNES (404) 656-3470 CLERK/COURT EXECUTIVE (404) 656-6429 (DIRECT) April 17, 2018 BY HAND DELIVERY David A. Cook, Secretary of the Senate Secretary of the Senate’s Office 353 State Capitol Atlanta, Georgia 30334 Dear Secretary Cook, I write at the request of Justice David E. Nahmias to provide you with a certified copy of the order issued by the Court re-appointing Jamela S. McFadden, Esq., as the attorney member of the Hearing Panel of the Judicial Qualifications Commission, effective July 1, 2018, for a full four-year term ending June 30, 2022. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2018 3 Please do not hesitate to contact me at 404-656-6429 if you have any questions about this order. Sincerely, /s/ Tee Barnes Therese S. Barnes, Clerk SUPREME COURT OF GEORGIA Atlanta April 17, 2018 The Honorable Supreme Court met pursuant to adjournment. The following order was passed: It is ordered that Jamala S. McFadden, Esq. is hereby re-appointed by this Court as the attorney member of the Hearing Panel of the Judicial Qualifications Commission, effective July 1, 2018, for a full four-year term ending June 30, 2022. This appointment is made pursuant to OCGA § 15-1-21 (4) (A) (ii). The Clerk of this Court shall submit a certified copy of this order to the Senate forthwith, pursuant to OCGA § 15-1-21 (g) (1). SUPREME COURT OF THE STATE OF GEORGIA Clerk’s Office, Atlanta I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Supreme Court of Georgia. Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written. /s/ Therese S. Barnes The following communications from His Excellency, Governor Nathan Deal, were received by the Secretary: STATE OF GEORGIA OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR ATLANTA 30334-0900 Nathan Deal GOVERNOR 4 JOURNAL OF THE SENATE May 8, 2018 The Honorable David Ralston Speaker of the Georgia House of Representatives 332 State Capitol Atlanta, Georgia 30334 Dear Speaker Ralston: I have vetoed House Bills 354, 410, 441, 507, 508, 549, 550, 586, 600, 754, 795, 870, 912, 942, 995, 1039, and 1047 which passed the General Assembly during the 2018 Regular Session. Article III, Section V, Paragraph XIII of the Georgia Constitution requires that I transmit these bills to you together with the reasons for such vetoes. These bills and corresponding reasons for the vetoes are attached. Sincerely, /s/ Nathan Deal STATE OF GEORGIA OFFICE OF THE GOVERNOR ATLANTA 30334-0900 Nathan Deal GOVERNOR May 8, 2018 The Honorable Casey Cagle The Honorable Butch Miller President of the Senate President Pro Tempore 240 State Capitol 321 State Capitol Atlanta, Georgia 30334 Atlanta, Georgia 30334 Dear Lieutenant Governor Cagle and Senator Miller: I have vetoed Senate Bills 315, 338, 342, and 357 which passed the General Assembly during the 2018 Regular Session. TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 13, 2018 5 Article III, Section V, Paragraph XIII of the Georgia Constitution requires that I transmit these bills to you together with the reason for such vetoes. These bills and corresponding reasons for the vetoes are attached. Sincerely, /s/ Nathan Deal 2018 Session of the Georgia General Assembly Veto Messages Veto Number 1 HB 354 House Bill 354 reconstitutes the Georgia International Maritime Trade Center Authority (GIMTCA) as a public corporation and instrumentality of the state. The Authority created by HB 354 is made up of appointments by each member of the Georgia General Assembly who represent a portion of Chatham County, the County Manager of Chatham County, the City Manager of the City of Savannah, the President of the Savannah Economic Development Authority, and the President of the Savannah Area Convention and Visitors’ Bureau. HB 354 also grants the Authority broad power to issue revenue bonds without any cap on the aggregate amount, unlike other authorities which are subject to aggregate limits on the amount of bonds that may be issued. Moreover, unlike many of our other state authorities, GIMTCA has no gubernatorial appointments, nor does it have a legislative oversight committee. The Authority’s lack of executive and legislative oversight and theoretically unlimited bond capacity could lead to obvious negative consequences for the entire state stemming from the absence of accountability. For the foregoing reasons, I VETO HB 354. Veto Number 2 HB 410 House Bill 410 provides a list of information that home owners associations, property owners associations, and condominium owners associations would be required to provide to a homeowner upon request and caps the fees the association could charge for producing and transferring that information. First, the cap provided by HB 410 is, to my knowledge, lower than that of any other state in the nation with such a cap and may not be sufficient to cover costs of providing the information required, which could result in increased costs to association members. Second, such associations often contract with private parties to provide these services so that association members need not complete the tasks personally, on behalf of the association. Consequently, it appears that HB 410 could impose burdensome responsibilities on associations and their members and, regardless, 6 JOURNAL OF THE SENATE absent sufficient justification, parties should generally be left alone to dicker the terms of their private agreements without government intrusion. For the foregoing reasons, I VETO HB 410. Veto Number 3 HB 441 House Bill 441 would allow for the creation and use of self-settled spendthrift trusts—also known as self-settled asset protection trusts. Under current law in Georgia, a spendthrift provision may be included in a trust instrument which, generally, can shield the assets in the trust from certain creditors of a beneficiary. However, a spendthrift provision is inapplicable to a beneficiary who is also a settlor or contributor, to the extent of the contribution to the trust. Self-settled asset protection trusts, as proposed in HB 441, would allow a person to create, or settle, a trust naming the settlor as a beneficiary, while shielding the trust assets from certain creditors. Such trusts have been subject to controversy and scrutiny due to the potential opportunity to shirk creditors while preserving the assets of the trust for distribution to the settlor/beneficiary. In a recent trend, many states have begun permitting self-settled asset protection trusts which were previously prohibited throughout the United States, though a majority continue to prohibit such trust instruments. I commend the authors for their willingness to seek input and adjust the bill throughout the legislative process, but am concerned of possible unintended consequences presented by a complex new estate planning tool. Though I do not dismiss the potential merit of these proposed trust instruments in comprehensive estate planning, I have not yet been convinced of the need for such trusts in Georgia. As a state, we want to ensure that the creditor-debtor relationship is an equitable one that facilitates economic prosperity and mobility, and self-settled spendthrift trusts—without proper safeguards— have the potential to negatively impact this balance. For the foregoing reasons, I VETO HB 441. Veto Numbers 4, 5, 6, and 7 HB 507, 508, 549 and 550 House Bills 507, 508, 549 and 550 provide governing authorities for the cities of Jonesboro, Morrow, Lovejoy and Lake City, respectively.