ATLANTA – Gov. Brian Kemp brought his bill-signing tour to Brunswick Thursday, signing a package of measures related to coastal issues.
House Bill 1341 declares the white shrimp Georgia’s official crustacean. White shrimp account for 70% of the state’s annual shrimp harvest, Kemp told coastal Georgia political and business leaders during a ceremony at the state Department of Natural Resources Coastal Regional Headquarters.
House Speaker Jon Burns said having an official state crustacean will help promote Georgia white shrimp to consumers at restaurants and grocery stores.
“It’s a family business. It’s gone on in our state for generations,” said Burns, R-Newington. “We want to ensure the opportunity continues to exist in the future.”
Kemp also signed House Bill 1041, which will increase the bonding capacity for the Savannah Convention Center to $400 million; House Bill 244 updating state hunting and fishing regulations; and House Bill 206, which will create a statewide program letting local development authorities help property owners finance improvements.
The governor has been traveling the state during the last two weeks signing bills the General Assembly passed during the recent legislative session. Last week, he signed a series of tax cuts in Augusta and a package of health-care bills in Athens.
This week, Kemp stayed home in Atlanta to sign education-related bills and legislation aimed at human trafficking at the state Capitol before heading to Brunswick for Thursday’s signing ceremony.
Kemp has until May 7 to sign or veto this year’s crop of bills. Anything he doesn’t sign or veto by that deadline would become law automatically.
Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis is among several incumbents not participating in this weekend’s Atlanta Press Club debates.
ATLANTA – No incumbents have agreed to participate in this weekend’s Atlanta Press Club candidate debates ahead of next month’s primaries, which has the organization concerned.
Democratic U.S. Reps. Lucy McBath of Marietta and David Scott of Atlanta, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, and Georgia Supreme Court Justice Andrew Pinson have either declined to participate or have not confirmed their participation.
The press club is asking all of the invited candidates to confirm their participation by Friday.
“The Atlanta Press Club believes it is the responsibility of people running for public office to answer questions from their local media that will help inform voters before they cast their ballots,” the organization wrote in a statement released Thursday.
“If a candidate is running for public office, the candidate should be willing to participate in the democratic process, which includes attending debates and fielding questions from journalists and opponents.”
It’s the press club’s policy to represent any candidate who declines to participate in a debate by an empty podium.
McBath is being challenged in the 6th Congressional District Democratic primary by Cobb County Commissioner Jerica Richardson and state Rep. Mandisha Thomas. A crowded field of six Democrats is opposing Scott in the 13th District.
Christian Wise Smith, a former Fulton County prosecutor who unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for state attorney general two years ago, is running against Willis.
Pinson is being opposed in a nonpartisan state Supreme Court primary race by former U.S. Rep. John Barrow, a Democrat who represented Georgia’s 12th Congressional District from 2005 until 2015.
ATLANTA – Gov. Brian Kemp signed legislation Wednesday aimed at illegal squatting.
House Bill 1017, which the Georgia House and Senate passed unanimously during this year’s legislative session, creates the offense of unlawful squatting when someone enters upon the land or premises of the owner without the owner or rightful occupant’s knowledge or consent.
The bill comes amid an increase nationwide in highly publicized reports of trespassers committing violence against homeowners, landlords, or real estate agents, as well as vandalizing properties.
“For property owners in Georgia, squatters are occupying their property, which presents a very difficult and expensive legal problem,” said state Rep. Devan Seabaugh, R-Marietta, chief sponsor of House Bill 1017.
“We have homeowners tied up in court for eight months to two years in some cases trying to get these squatters removed from their property. House Bill 1017 sends a message to squatters that they are criminals, and they will be treated like criminals.”
Under the measure, violators will receive a citation advising them to present documentation within three business days authorizing their presence on the land or premises. Failure to do so will subject the violator to being charged with misdemeanor criminal trespass.
If the person does present documentation, a hearing would be set within seven days to determine its validity.
If the documentation is found to be improperly executed or fraudulent, the person would be subject to arrest and a fine based on the fair market monthly rental value of the property. A law enforcement official would have to show the person an affidavit regarding his or her claim to the property at least three days before executing an eviction.
The bill had five cosponsors in the House, all Republicans.
House Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones sponsored expanded paid parental leave in Georgia.
ATLANTA – State employees will be able to receive up to six weeks of paid parental leave under legislation signed by Gov. Brian Kemp.
House Bill 1010, which the General Assembly passed overwhelmingly last month, will double paid parental leave for state workers following the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child in their home, providing a total leave of up to 240 hours. The legislature passed a bill in 2021 authorizing 120 hours of paid parental leave for state employees.
Nonprofit advocates for paid parental leave praised passage of the bill Wednesday but called for extending the benefit beyond just state workers. About 78% of Georgia’s workforce remains without access to paid family leave, according to the group 9to5 Georgia.
“We will continue organizing and advocating toward our larger goal of every worker in this state having access to paid medical, family, and parental leave, no matter where one works or the size of their employer,” said Jasmine Bowles, 9to5 Georgia’s executive director.
“We hope that lawmakers will continue to be responsive to the overwhelming majority of voters who support comprehensive paid leave and want our state to enact more paid leave policies.”
House Bill 1010 was introduced by House Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones, R-Milton, and carried in the state Senate by Judiciary Committee Chairman Brian Strickland, R-McDonough.
House Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones sponsored expanded paid parental leave in Georgia.
ATLANTA – State employees will be able to receive up to six weeks of paid parental leave under legislation signed by Gov. Brian Kemp.
House Bill 1010, which the General Assembly passed overwhelmingly last month, will double paid parental leave for state workers following the birth, adoption, or foster care placement of a child in their home, providing a total leave of up to 240 hours. The legislature passed a bill in 2021 authorizing 120 hours of paid parental leave for state employees.
Nonprofit advocates for paid parental leave praised passage of the bill Wednesday but called for extending the benefit beyond just state workers. About 78% of Georgia’s workforce remains without access to paid family leave, according to the group 9to5 Georgia.
“We will continue organizing and advocating toward our larger goal of every worker in this state having access to paid medical, family, and parental leave, no matter where one works or the size of their employer,” said Jasmine Bowles, 9to5 Georgia’s executive director.
“We hope that lawmakers will continue to be responsive to the overwhelming majority of voters who support comprehensive paid leave and want our state to enact more paid leave policies.”
House Bill 1010 was introduced by House Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones, R-Milton, and carried in the state Senate by Judiciary Committee Chairman Brian Strickland, R-McDonough.
