Schedule
   The General Assembly reconvenes Tuesday, March 17, for day 31 of 40. Many important bills were passed before day 30, which was the deadline for when a bill must have been passed from one chamber to the next in order to stay alive this session. One such bill eliminating the so-called birthday tax on automobiles passed the House on Thursday. The schedule for the remainder of the session can be found here.

Budget
   With the mid-year budget behind them, the Fiscal Year 2010 budget will soon be acted upon by the House Appropriations Committee.

Transportation
   SB 39, the enabling legislation allowing for regional transportation SPLOSTs, was gutted by the House and passed out in a completely different measure involving MARTA. The original T-SPLOST Resolution, SR 44, has not been acted upon in the House Transportation Committee. The House statewide sales tax funding measure, HB 277 and HR 206, were also gutted in the Senate and substituted with the language from SB 39 and SR 44. Those bills have passed the Senate Finance Committee. Meanwhile, the Governor’s transportation agency reorganization bill, SB 200, passed the Senate and is in the House Transportation Committee.

Property and Auto Taxes
   The House and Senate have passed different versions of an original bill, HB 233, that would freeze property tax assessments for the next few years. The measure will be negotiated by a conference committee of both House and Senate members.
   The House also passed legislation in HB 480 that would eliminate ad valorem and sales taxes on cars and trucks beginning with new purchases next year. A title fee of seven percent would be paid at purchase up to a cap of $2,000. The birthday tax would continue on currently owned vehicles. Although used car purchases between individuals are currently not assessed sales taxes, the same title fee will apply to future sales. As much as $150 million of the proceeds will go to the Georgia Trauma Trust Fund to pay for enhancing trauma services throughout the state.

Energy
   The Georgia Nuclear Energy Financing Act, SB 31, awaits the signature of the Governor.

Sunday Alcohol Sales
   The House and Senate bills allowing counties to vote on whether to have Sunday retail sales of alcohol have flatlined in the committees of each chamber. They are not likely to be resuscitated.

Education
   The voucher bill, SB 90, is in Senate Rules Committee awaiting passage to the Senate floor. Having not passed out of the Senate by the 30th day, the bill will have to be considered next session.

Water
   HB 406, which would exempt water reservoir construction from local service delivery plans, passed the House and moves onto the Senate Natural Resources Committee.
   The Senate passed SB 228, a measure clarifying the buffer line between the marsh and the upland along the Georgia coast. The measure also clarifies that buffer restrictions do not apply to man made impoundments, detention ponds or other water features provided they are not fed by a surface stream of state waters.

Economic Development
   Governor Perdue’s economic development bills, HB 438 and HB 439, passed the House before crossover day and have been assigned to the Senate Finance Committee.

Track business legislation by category through the GA Chamber: http://www.gachamber.com/Track-Business-Legislation.65.0.html