Week 1 – January 18, 2021
The Georgia General Assembly kicked off the 2021 session on Monday, January 11th. The General Assembly completed four legislative days and is in recess until Tuesday, January 26. Speaker David Ralston of Blue Ridge was re-elected as Speaker of the House. Senator Butch Miller of Gainesville was reelected as President Pro Tempore of the Senate. The Committee on Assignments in the Senate announced committee chairmanships and committee assignments on Tuesday – see attached. The House plans to release committee assignments and chairmanships this week.
The highlight of the week was the Governor’s State of the State address. On Thursday, Governor Kemp presented to a joint session of the House and Senate. The Governor spoke about the state’s response to Covid-19 while keeping businesses open and keeping Georgians safe. The Governor is not proposing any budget cuts this year, nor any furloughs to state employees and no new taxes. He plans to focus on PPE tax credits, job creation and growth, broadband grants, and $1,000 supplements for teachers. You can watch the full State of the State address here.
The House and Senate Appropriations Committees have set joint budget hearings beginning on Tuesday, January 19 through Thursday, January 21. You can watch the hearings online here. You can view the Governor’s proposed budget documents here.
The Commission on Freight and Logistics released their report which can be viewed here.
Update courtesy of Lauren Fralick, GeorgiaLink on behalf of the Regional Business Coalition of Metropolitan Atlanta (RBC) – January 18, 2021.