Lawmakers ready for the new session
Monday’s opening for the Georgia General Assembly coincides with the College Football National Championship and a visit from President Donald Trump.
Floyd County’s four delegates to the Georgia General Assembly are prepping for the 40-day session slated to start Monday.
The first day at the Capitol in Atlanta, however, is expected to be little different this year, with hordes of visitors — and President Donald Trump — coming in for the College Football National Championship.
Georgia will face Alabama in Mercedes-Benz Stadium downtown at 8 p.m. City, county and state offices will close by 3 p.m., Gov. Nathan Deal announced Thursday.
Rep. Katie Dempsey, R-Rome, said she hasn’t decided yet if she’ll go to the game or watch it from the condo she rents during the session.
“But I’m definitely pulling for it,” she said. “(Husband) Lynn and I are both Georgia grads, as are our children and their spouses.”
With the round trip between Rome and Atlanta clocking in around 140 miles, local lawmakers use their state per diem allotments to lease lodgings when the Legislature is in session.
Dempsey and Rep. Eddie Lumsden, R-Armuchee, both spent two days in their offices this week, meeting with agency representatives. She chairs the human resources subcommittee of the House Appropriations Committee. He’s now the chair of the Human Resources and Aging Committee.
Lumsden said he expects to sponsor several bills for the Division of Family and Children’s Services and the Georgia Bureau of Investigation. There also are a couple dealing with the insurance industry.
“I’m trying to get a good understanding of what they want, so we can move forward on them,” he said.
Lumsden said he may watch the game from home. House and Senate leaders are discussing a late start, or cancellation, of Tuesday’s session in deference to Monday’s festivities.
Sen. Chuck Hufstetler, R-Rome, said he’ll be heading to Atlanta on Sunday, after he finishes his shift at Redmond Regional Medical Center at 7 a.m. He hasn’t decided about the game in person.
“I stay about a halfmile from the stadium, but ticket prices are high. I’ll probably watch it on high-def,” he said.
The first legislative week is typically to get settled, but Hufstetler said he expects to be working some House and Senate bills stalled in conference committee last year.
“Including one on income tax,” he said. “We need to make some adjustments in light of the federal tax bill, but we hope to lower it . ... If we can get this worked out in conference, we can send it straight to the chambers for a vote.”
Rep. Christian Coomer, R-Cartersville, is the House Majority Whip. He’s been reaching out to his deputies, he said, “and taking the pulse of legislators, to see what they want to get done this year.”
He’ll be going home — 100 miles, round trip — to watch the game, and wouldn’t be surprised if Tuesday’s meeting is canceled.
“It’s not uncommon for us to be in session just three or four days a week in the early part of the session,” he pointed out.
Work will get underway in earnest after Thursday, when Deal is scheduled to present his State of the State address and his proposed budget.
“Despite it being an election year, I think the House is going to be prepared to get some important items done,” Coomer said. “Especially rural development. It looks like the Senate is willing to work with us on that.”