Legislators

The Business Court is a statewide court created by a constitutional amendment that passed with almost 70% of the statewide vote. The overwhelming standard and key to a successful business court is the ability for one party to be able to petition transfer the case to the Business Court. Currently, Georgia law requires both parties to consent to this transfer. Senate Bill 110 would have fixed the two-party consent issue, but it failed in a vote on the Senate floor. The failure of the Senate to enact one-party consent has ensured that the Business Court will be underutilized and essentially unavailable to businesses outside the metro Atlanta area.

This bill establishes gross negligence as the standard of care for officers and directors of Georgia non-profits, foundations, and cooperatives.  In 2017, the General Assembly set this standard for for-profit corporations, and SB 373 provides consistency for the organizing statutes not included in the initial legislation. This cleanup legislation corrected a discrepancy between for-profit and non-profits and passed both chambers.

The General Assembly has long established Georgia as a “Right to Farm” state to protect agricultural operations from frivolous nuisance lawsuits. This bill addresses vagueness and ambiguity in the law that Georgia shares with other states whose farmers have fallen victim to undue litigation. The Georgia Chamber supports adding the protections included in HB 545 so that Georgia’s #1 industry can continue to expand and thrive in the future.  On March 21, 2019, HB 545 passed the Senate Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee after passing the House on March 7, 2019 by a vote of 107-58.

The Georgia Senate failed to act on HB 545 during the 2020 session.

As originally introduced, HB 447 would provide for a partial extension of the sales tax exemption on jet fuel through the end of FY2039 and would impose a half penny excise tax per gallon of jet fuel to be levied for the purposes of supporting general aviation airports. By exempting jet fuel from sales and use tax, we will increase Georgia’s competitiveness, leading to more flights coming in and out of the state and benefit existing statewide companies in addition to those looking to come to Georgia, whose businesses depend on global air service.

Unfortunately, HB 447 was unfavorably modified in the Senate and did not move forward in 2019.

*The vote reflected on the scorecard is the House floor vote on the original language of HB 447.

On April 2, the Senate gave final passage to HB 224 by a vote of 49-3, after also passing the House on the same day by a vote of 158-5. HB 224 amends the Investment Tax Credit (ITC), Quality Jobs Tax Credit (QJTC), and the Historic Rehabilitation Tax Credit.

Georgia provides ITC’s for a portion of qualified investments in manufacturing facilities with the credit amount increasing based on the county tier, with more rural counties receiving higher credits. Currently, ITC’s are restricted to application of 50% of the income taxes within Georgia, which is highly restrictive because many manufacturing companies are large exporters of their goods leaving them with credits that are earned but unable to be used. By allowing a portion of ITC’s to be used against payroll withholding liability, we will strengthen the incentive for Georgia investment in the state’s most rural areas. HB 224 also revises the job creation threshold for the QJTC in tier 1 and tier 2 counties with a population of less then 50,000.

The Chamber supports legislation that encourages both existing and potential Georgia companies to invest in rural areas. By expanding the use of ITC’s to apply to payroll withholdings and modifying the threshold to earn QJTC’s in rural areas, HB 224 is another tool to improve Georgia’s rural economies.

On April 2, the House gave final passage to HB 353 by a vote of 107-55, after passing the Senate on March 28 by a vote of 41-10. HB 353 seeks to stymie insurance fraud schemes stemming from staged motor vehicle collisions.  HB 353 would make it illegal for individuals to intentionally cause a staged motor vehicle collision for the purpose of claiming insurance benefits or filing a civil lawsuit seeking monetary damages.  Not only is HB 353 important to help curb these kinds of illegal insurance fraud schemes, but more so to promote public safety by reducing injuries to the perpetrators or to the public caused by these intentional motor vehicle collisions.

The House and Senate appointed a Conference Committee to work out the policy differences between the two chambers with respect to the establishment of a statewide business court. All conferees (Reps. Efstration, Fleming, and Oliver and Sens. Stone, Dugan, and Kennedy) signed on to the consensus conference report and while the House gave its final passage to the Conference Committee Report on SB 110 by a vote of 135-28, the Senate, in a fairly unprecedented move, failed to even bring the report for a vote, effectively killing the business community’s preferred model for a business court that has proven successful in Fulton and Gwinnett Counties.

Unfortunately, the personal injury lobby (expressly exempted from the legislation) weighed in in opposition to the bill swayed enough of members of the senate to keep the bill from having a vote.

*The vote reflected on the scorecard is the House vote on the Conference Committee Report.

On March 21, HB 545 passed the Senate Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee after passing the House on March 7 by a vote of 107-58. The Georgia Senate failed to act on HB 545 in the waning days of the session, making it available for action in 2020. The General Assembly has long established Georgia as a “Right to Farm” state to protect agricultural operations from frivolous nuisance lawsuits. This bill addresses vagueness and ambiguity in the law that Georgia shares with other states whose farmers have fallen victim to undue litigation. The Georgia Chamber supports adding the protections included in HB 545 so that Georgia’s #1 industry can continue to expand and thrive in the future. HB 545 did not pass out of the Senate.

On March 29, the Senate gave final passage to HR 37 by a vote of 51-1, after passing the House on Feb. 21 by a vote of 169-1. HR 37 creates the Georgia Commission on Freight and Logistics. By 2030, Georgia will experience an increase of 1.5 million cars traveling our roads and a 60 percent increase in cargo freight coming through the Georgia Ports Authority. HR 37 provides the necessary framework to study these growing demands and will provide the state with data-driven investment strategies to ensure Georgia’s future as a leader in freight infrastructure and business.

On March 25, the House gave final passage of Senate Bill 106 by a vote of 104-67, after passing the Senate 32-20 on Feb. 26. SB 106 allows for the State Department of Community Health to apply for 1115 & 1332 waivers from the U.S. Department of Health & Human Services Centers of Medicare and Medicaid Services, and the U.S. Department of Treasury. SB 106 will help reduce private health insurance premiums for all Georgians and reform the state’s healthcare delivery system for those below the Federal Poverty Line. The Patients First Act is tailored to fit the needs of Georgia and will promote innovation and efficiency in healthcare throughout the state, and ensure our citizens enjoy a high quality of life.