Georgia General Assembly
Six things for legislators to do now that Session is over:
1. Catch up on three months’ worth of work you put off to serve your state.
2. Lose the “Freshman Fifteen” pounds, and those from each subsequent year of early mornings, late nights, and constant availability of Krispy Kreme donuts.
3. Make yourself feel better about the sacrifices you make by parking wherever you want and assuming your legislator tag will prevent tickets, even if it won’t prevent rude looks from fellow citizens.
4. Remind yourself of your importance in most voters’ lives by stopping any random person in your downtown area and asking who their state Senator is. Wince when they say “Johnny Isakson.” If you’re a State Rep, the answer will vary by geography, but will still be somebody else’s name.
5. Take MARTA to Turner Field today to exercise some “legislative oversight” on the way to Opening Day for Braves baseball. Or park in your legislative parking spot and scoff at the 99% who have to walk. Note that for House members, the prohibition on lobbyist gifts does not yet apply, so you’re free to accept dinner and game tickets today. If you serve in the State Senate, you’ll have to make sure you stay under the $100 gift cap in Senate Rules that applies to Senators only.
6. Take your spouse to a special appreciation dinner at their favorite restaurant to thank them for the service they provided, as they have probably done more than their usual share of housework, maintaining social ties, and caring for the kids.
Opening day will feature a flyover by historic military planes from the Commemorative Air Force Dixie Wing, a pre-game concert by Rodney Atkins, an appearance by the reigning 2013 Miss America, and Chipper Jones throwing out the first pitch.
All season, you’ll find a new hamburger purveyor, H&F Burgers, bringing you one of Atlanta’s most-sought after burgers from Holeman & Finch, and other changes, including upgraded Wi-fi.
Note: I’m in the market for 2-4 tickets to either the Saturday or Sunday Atlanta Braves v. Chicago Cubs games. Email me if you have some for sale.
Legislative Review
We began our review of legislation from the 2013 General Assembly on Friday, covering ethics, guns and abortion bills. Check there if you missed it. We’ll continue for the next couple of days going over issues from this year before returning to sanity normal programming.
Greg Bluestein of the AJC writes that Governor Nathan Deal will face some tough choices in the coming month as he has 30 days to decide whether to sign or veto legislation passed by the General Assembly.
Over a 40-day period, Deal and his aides will evaluate dozens of pieces of legislation often hashed out behind closed doors in the frenzied final hours of the session that ended Thursday, measures that could raise legal concerns and test his political savvy as he fights for re-election next year. Anything he doesn’t sign or veto in that window automatically becomes law.
He must debate controversial measures that expand the crackdown on illegal immigrants and fundamentally change the state’s approach to video gambling. He must scrutinize final changes to the $19.9 billion budget that didn’t land on lawmakers’ desks until late Thursday. And he must come to terms with an ethics overhaul that clearly doesn’t thrill him.
Still, the vetting process could have been more harrowing for Deal had lawmakers adopted an effort to expand access to guns across Georgia. That got tripped up in a fight over whether to allow firearms on colleges and universities after Deal pushed for more safety training for people seeking those permits.
It also would have put him in an uncomfortable bind between gun rights groups seeking looser restrictions and university administrators who fought back against so-called “campus carry” rules.
Perhaps looming largest is the minefield of lower-profile legislation approved in the session’s final minutes with little legislative oversight. The rapid-fire process was so pronounced in the Senate that some lawmakers complained they didn’t know what they were voting on. Often, a bill’s sponsor would simply announce that the proposal had been amended without discussing the changes.
And Deal must navigate all these pitfalls while keeping one eye on his re-election campaign. He’s planning to visit lawmakers around the state in the coming months as he builds his case for another term, and is eager to avoid any pitfalls during the vetting process.
Gov. Deal’s website will be updated to reflect his signature of measures passed this Session. As of today, the tote board looks like this:
Governor Deal will almost certainly sign House Bill 242, which revamps Georgia’s Juvenile Justice System with the goal of better outcomes that reduce recidivism while saving taxpayer dollars. Much of the impetus for Juvenile Justice Reform came from a report by The Governor’s Special Council on Criminal Justice Reform empaneled by Gov. Deal:
Council members point to the enormous expense of incarcerating young offenders in a state “youth development campus,” or YDC, while producing poor results, as evidence that the system isn’t working.
“I think most people would agree that it’s unacceptable that we have a 65 percent recidivism rate for those youths released from YDCs when a YDC bed costs $91,000 a year,” said Georgia Court of Appeals Judge Mike Boggs, co-chairman of the state’s Special Council on Criminal Justice Reform.
Supreme Court Chief Justice Carol Hunstein noted that moving away from detention centers for many youth doesn’t mean being soft on crime.
“No one is urging Georgia to become soft on crime,” the chief justice said. “Some of our juvenile offenders have committed heinous, violent crimes and must be treated as adults and locked away from society. But they are the minority. For our citizens’ sake, we must do better with the majority. Many of our juveniles deserve a second chance.”
Hunstein highlighted that Georgia spends more than $90,000 annually on each juvenile behind bars, only to watch 75 percent of offenders commit crimes again.
“Surely our return on investment warrants juvenile justice reform,” she said.
The chief justice also urged greater investment in behavioral health programs. She said she often hears from juvenile court judges who are frustrated that they have few options — other than incarceration — for petty thieves and other repeat criminals who need counseling related to sexual abuse, physical abuse or other hardships.
“It’s almost impossible to get mental health services for clearly disturbed youngsters unless they threaten suicide or homicide,” she said. Quoting one juvenile court judge, she added, “If we wait for the explosions, they will come.”
Years of profound dysfunction in Washington have eroded Americans’ confidence in government. Our national leaders have lost virtually all their credibility when it comes to addressing society’s most pressing challenges. Fortunately, just as our Founders intended, states are increasingly finding innovative policy solutions for many of these problems.
Can you imagine Congress ever accomplishing such a feat?
Georgia House and Senate legislators have overwhelmingly passed House Bill 242 that dramatically alters the juvenile justice and civil code landscape. We believe three principles are essential today and in years ahead to ensure juvenile justice reform is a success in our state.
• First, Georgia must do a better job deciding which of our youth offenders belong in secure facilities.
• Along with smarter placement of young offenders, we must give judges and other court officials the most sophisticated tools available to aid them in deciding individual cases. Risk and needs assessment tools — critical to evaluating a juvenile’s risk of reoffending and treatment needs — are simply not being used to their full potential in Georgia today.
• Finally, Georgia needs to expand and improve proven community programs for our less serious, lower-risk youth. How? By reducing the number of lower-risk youth sent to expensive secure facilities, the state will generate savings that can be invested in community options with a proven track record.
I believe that one key ingredient in the passage of sweeping reform for both adult offenders last year, and juveniles this year, was the leadership of Governor Nathan Deal. Without a strong conservative willing to put his name behind the measures, they might have been decried as “soft on crime,” rather than “smart on crime.” Deal provided cover on the right for legislators who will face reelection next year.
It’s also worth noting that Governor Deal supports accountability courts as vehicles for rehabilitating offenders where the underlying issue may be drug abuse or mental health problems.
Deal is a former prosecutor and judge. His son, Superior Court Judge Jason Deal, who swore-in his father as governor, is known to hand out stiff sentences to drug dealers. But Judge Deal also presides over accountability courts in Hall and Dawson counties, and he’s a believer.
“Those who get it, those who buy into what we’re doing, they’re changed people when they complete drug court,” Jason Deal said. “Drug court is the best part of what I do as a judge. It’s by far the most rewarding.”
A 2010 state audit found that 29 percent of state prison inmates with substance-abuse problems committed another crime within two years of release, compared to only 7 percent of drug court graduates. Drug courts also operate at a fraction of the cost — about $20 a day, compared to $51 a day for a state prison bed. The audit estimated that sending offenders through drug court saved the state $14 million in 2009.
The mugshot bill passed by the legislature will have new relevance for nearly three-dozen educators, administrators and former Superintendent Beverly Hall from Atlanta Public Schools. According to the Rome News-Tribune,
The legislation that cleared the Georgia General Assembly last week takes aim at commercial websites that publish police booking photographs of people who are arrested, and then charge for their removal.
House Bill 150 requires the sites to remove the photographs at no charge within 30 days of receiving a written request from the individual.
But the law exempts news media and other news or commentary sites, and that’s where the commercial sites see a loophole.
In a response issued from Florida-based Mugshots.com lawyer Mark Epstein, company officials indicate they think the new regulation won’t stand.
“The obvious problem with that phrasing is — what constitutes ‘news or commentary’ for purposes of the bill?” the statement said.
I’ve heard of people buying the print version of local mugshots that are often sold in convenience stores, and using them to play a game called “Meth or not Meth.”
As for the indictments, FoxNews.com brings us some details.
In addition to Hall, 34 people were indicted: four high-level administrators, six principals; two assistant principals; six testing coordinators; 14 teachers; a school improvement specialist and a school secretary.
All of the people named in the indictment face conspiracy charges. Other charges in the 65-count indictment include false statements and writings, false swearing, theft and influencing witnesses.
Howard would not directly answer a question about whether Hall led the conspiracy.
“What we’re saying is that without her, this conspiracy could not have taken place,” he said. “It would not have taken place if her actions had not made that possible.”
Hall faces up to 45 years in prison, Howard said.
The cheating came to light after The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reported that some scores were statistically improbable.
Congressional Politics and 2014 Senate Race
Bob Barr announced national-level consultant hirings for his 2014 Congressional campaign. Media will be Fred Davis with Strategic Perceptions and Kellyanne Fitzpatrick Conway will poll; John Weaver will serve as General Consultant with Jeff Breedlove as in-house strategist.
Rep. Jack Kingston is the case in point. He’s the chairman of the House Appropriations Subcommittee on Labor, Health and Human Services and Education and he’s expected to enter the Senate primary against Reps. Paul Broun and Phil Gingrey. Rep. Tom Price is touted as a potential candidate as well.
The differences among the lawmakers are subtle, so Kingston could be vulnerable to attack from his right flank in a primary that may hinge on who is more fiscally conservative.
It’s becoming apparent that the knives will be out should the 1st District representative announce his candidacy. Broun said that what distinguishes him from the field is his fealty to constitutionally limited government.
“I think Americans want somebody who is going to reduce the spending,” Broun said in an interview. “So anyone who has voted for bigger government, bigger spending, is going to have troubles in a primary race if they’re running against someone who has the record that I have.”
The National Republican Congressional Committee made a small purchase of airtime in the Augusta market, home to Democratic Congressman John Barrow.
#SocialMedia
3) “Talk about people and families, not just numbers and statistics”
Political junkies often need to remember to step back and take a look at what matters to the people. Yes, that position statement sounds good on paper associated with a few Excel bar charts, but is that really the best way to get the message across to the voters? Are these statistics going to really excite the voter?
Republicans must keep it simple and close to personal everyday life when articulating plans and policies. Yes, I love talking about effective tax rates versus actual tax rates, but the part constituents care about is the opportunity to have more “take home pay” and grow their personal wealth to achieve the American dream.
The report points out that “Democrats tend to talk about people, [while] Republicans tend to talk about policy.” The Republican Party needs to highlight positive polices to excite people and grow our base.
In the current issue of James Magazine, published by InsiderAdvantage, I write on a related topic about a difference in style between Governor Deal and State Rep. Stacey Abrams when the two announced legislation to roll back the GPA requirement for the HOPE Grant to technical colleges.
A recent press conference in which Republican Governor Nathan Deal announced his support for rolling back the required GPA for the HOPE Grant to technical students from 3.0 back to 2.0 highlights the difference in style between our Governor and a female Democratic State Representative, Stacey Evans, who supports the same legislation.
In one press conference, we see two politicians supporting the exact same legislation, but two entirely different styles of communicating about that measure. We also have a lesson in how Republicans might increase and broaden our support by changing the way we communicate without changing our principles.
If we can rethink the way we convey the benefits of conservative policies, we can connect conservative fiscal management with the hopes, dreams and aspirations of more Georgians in a way that lets more Georgians know that their needs are at the heart of what we do in managing our state.
You can view Governor Deal’s part of the press conference here and State Rep. Stacey Evans here.
Ends & Pieces
Air Force General Philip Breedlove, who is being elevated from the top Air Force slot in Europe to top commander of all US Forces in Europe, is a graduate of Georgia Tech, where he first was commissioned in 1977 through the ROTC Program.
Pro-tip for elected officials: constituent service doesn’t require that you get yourself arrested, but Brunswick City Commissioner Henry James Brooks, Sr. did just that. Brooks was arrested Thursday and charged with obstruction of justice in connection to the horrific baby shooting in Brunswick.
It was an epically bad Thursday for Brooks, as he was also indicted for alleged official corruption in neighboring Camden County.
Jack Winter, former Chairman of the Fulton County Republican Party, who previously served on the Judicial Qualifications Commission, was appointed by Governor Deal to the Technical College System of Georgia Board. Normally, that might sound like a downgrade, as the JQC is very high profile, and the Technical College System less so; this year is different, as Gov. Deal has made clear that Technical Education is at the center of Georgia’s ability to compete with other states in attracting new jobs.
Congratulations also to Dick Yarbrough, a columnist who often writes about Georgia Politics, on his appointment to the Board of Juvenile Justice, which also is involved with a signature issue identified by Governor Deal.
Court of Appeals Judge Lisa Branch was appointed by Gov. Deal to the Commission on Child Support. Also appointed to the Commission were former State Senator Chuck Clay and Fulton County Superior Court Judge Tom Campbell, who served as a Republican in the State House of Representatives
The commission arose from executive order in 2005, and its tasks include analyzing child support data, calculating obligation tables, developing training manuals for judges and lawyers and monitoring appellate courts’ acceptance of appeals of domestic relations cases.
State law requires the commission to have 15 members, including an appellate court judge and three superior court judges. Each member serves a four-year-term except state legislators. Deal tapped Branch for the appellate court last July.
State Senator Buddy Carter has been appointed by the Governor to the State Workforce Investment Board. Former State Senator Johnny Grant was appointed to the Board of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities and Duke Blackburn, who ran for State Senate in a 2011 Special Election eventually won by Senator Mike Crane, was appointed to the State Board of Corrections.
Sometimes supercars hide beneath the staid exterior of a normal production vehicle.
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