Sesión en el pleno del Senado, 9 de febrero de 2026 (día legislativo 15)

Transcripción

314 turnos. Seleccione un tiempo para reproducir ese momento del video.

1. 0:09:48

   Good morning. Good

2. 0:20:44

   morning.

3. 0:20:44

   Good morning.

4. 0:20:48

   How's the senator from the 12th doing? Lookin' all right. The time for convening has arrived. The Senate will come to order. At this time, we'll ask all unauthorized personnel to exit the chamber.

5. 0:21:03

   Recognize the senator from the 6th to give us a read on the journal from the weekend.

6. 0:21:12

   Good morning, Mr. President. I hope you had a wonderful weekend. I know you enjoyed the Super Bowl. Good defense. Good defense and special teams, they win Super Bowls. Mr. President, we got a great group of pages here today. We got Carter Acry from Locust Grove, Bryce Blake from Atlanta, Corbin Calif from Valdosta, Julius Canada from Aragon, Aubrey Clifton from Statesboro, Emma Jean DeLoach from Valdosta, Drew Farmer from Fayetteville, Amelia Gerald Towski from Decatur, Sloane Hagler from Atlanta, Jeremiah Joyner from Vidalia.

7. 0:22:08

   In fact, Jeremiah was with, uh, our senator from the 19th. Uh, Christian Phillip from Atlanta, Sawyer Grace Strickland from Milledgeville. Y'all give these pages a big round of applause. We appreciate you being here and serving our great state and our great Senate. Mr. President, I spent all weekend reading the journal. I found it to be correct, so I move we dispense with the reading of the journal.

8. 0:22:39

   All right, Senator. Thank you for that, and thank you for all the good-looking pages that we have back there. Appreciate each and every one of you being here today. Is there objection to dispensing of the reading of the journal? Chair hears none. The reading of the journal is dispensed with. Is there objection to the confirmation of the journal? Chair hears none, and the journal is confirmed. All senators who have bills and resolutions introduced, please bring them to the secretary's desk at this time. First reading and references of the Senate bills and resolutions.

9. 0:23:07

   Senate Bill 4- 470 by Senators Albers of the 56th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Article 2 of Chapter 11 of Title 16 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated related to-

10. 0:23:16

    Judiciary

11. 0:23:17

    ... Senate Bill 471 by Senators Dolezal of the 27th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend an act providing that no local board of education-

12. 0:23:23

    Education and Youth

13. 0:23:24

    ... Senate Bill 472 by Senators Hickman of the 4th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Chapter 2 of Title 20 of the Official Code-

14. 0:23:30

    Education and Youth.

15. 0:23:33

    Senate Bill 473 by Senators Robertson of the 29th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Title 40 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.

16. 0:23:40

    Public Safety.

17. 0:23:40

    Senate Bill 474 by Senators Robertson of the 29th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Article 2 of Chapter 7 of Title-

18. 0:23:46

    Finance

19. 0:23:47

    ... Senate Bill 475 by Senators Kemp of the 38th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Code Section 20-2-420-

20. 0:23:52

    Education and Youth

21. 0:23:53

    ... Senate Bill 476 by Senators Tillery of the 19th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Title 33 and Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated.

22. 0:24:00

    Finance.

23. 0:24:02

    Senate Bill 477 by Senators Tillery of the 19th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Article 2 of Chapter 7 of Title 48-

24. 0:24:08

    Finance

25. 0:24:08

    ... of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to the imposition, rate, computation, and exemption of-

26. 0:24:11

    Finance

27. 0:24:12

    ... Senate Bill 478 by Senators Watson of the 11th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Chapter 6-

28. 0:24:16

    Natural Resources

29. 0:24:17

    ... Senate, Senate Resolution 715 by Senators Echols of the 49th and others, a resolution commending the Georgia FFA Association and recognizing-

30. 0:24:24

    Agriculture

31. 0:24:24

    ... Mr. President, that completes the order.

32. 0:24:30

    First reading and references of the House bills and resolutions.

33. 0:24:36

    House Bill 629 by Representative Hawkins of the 27th and others, a bill-

34. 0:24:39

    Education and Youth

35. 0:24:40

    ... House Bill 877 by Representative Jackson of the 68th and others, a bill-

36. 0:24:44

    State and Local Government

37. 0:24:44

    ... House Bill 936 by Representative Canada of the one, 172nd, a bill to be entitled an act to authorize-

38. 0:24:50

    State and Local Government

39. 0:24:50

    ... House Bill 937 by Representative Ford of the 170th and others, a bill to be entitled an act-

40. 0:24:56

    State and Local Government

41. 0:24:57

    ... House Bill 938 by Representatives Ford of the 170th and others, a bill-

42. 0:25:00

    State and Local Government

43. 0:25:01

    ... House Bill 939 by Representative Ford of the 170th and others, a bill to be entitled-

44. 0:25:05

    State and Local Government

45. 0:25:06

    ... House Bill 940 by Representative Ford of the 170th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend-

46. 0:25:10

    State and Local Government

47. 0:25:11

    ... House Bill 941 by Representative Ford of the 170th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend-

48. 0:25:16

    State and Local Government

49. 0:25:17

    ... House Bill 945 by Representative Williamson of the 112th and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend-

50. 0:25:23

    Banking

51. 0:25:23

    ... House Bill 952 by Representative Franklin of the 160th and others, a bill to be entitled an-

52. 0:25:27

    State and Local Government

53. 0:25:28

    ... House Bill 953 by Representative Franklin of the 160th and others, a bill to be entitled-

54. 0:25:32

    State and Local Government

55. 0:25:32

    ... House Bill 980 by Representative Bonner of the 73rd and others, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Chapter 12-

56. 0:25:37

    Economic Development

57. 0:25:38

    ... House Bill 982 by Representative Campbell of the 135th and others.

58. 0:25:44

    State and Local Government

59. 0:25:45

    House Bill 1026 by Representative Shepherd of the 177th.

60. 0:25:47

    State and Local Government

61. 0:25:48

    House Bill 1037 by Representative Cummings of the 39th-

62. 0:25:50

    State and Local Government

63. 0:25:51

    ... House Bill 1- 1057 by Representative-

64. 0:25:53

    State and Local Government

65. 0:25:53

    ... House Bill 1074 by Representative Reeves of the 99th and others.

66. 0:25:57

    State and Local Government

67. 0:25:58

    House Bill 1093 by Representative Burton of the 107th.

68. 0:26:00

    State and Local Government

69. 0:26:01

    Mr. President, that completes the order.

70. 0:26:08

    Secretary will read reports of standing committees.

71. 0:26:13

    Mr. President, the Senate Committee on Rules has had under consideration the following legislation and has instructed me to report the same back to the Senate with the following recommendation. Pursuant to Senate Rule 2-1.10B, the Ke- Committee on Rules has referred the following legislation from the general's calendar. Senate Bill 395 to the Committee on Rules. Respectfully submitted, Senator Brass of the 6th District, Chairman. Mr. President, that completes the order. Secretary will read bills and resolutions for the second time. Senate Bill 166 by Senator Merritt of the 9th and others. Counties. Ordinances for governing and policing in unincorporated areas of counties.

72. 0:26:46

    Revised provisions. Senate Bill 301 by Senator Williams of the 25th and others. State flag, seal, and other symbols. Protection of government statuses, monuments, plaques, banners, and other commemorative symbols. Revised provisions. Senate Bill 398 by Senator Hatchett of the 50th and others. Wiretapping, eavesdropping, surveillance, and related offenses. Criminal offenses of virtual peeping established. Senate Bill 405 by Senator Setzler of the 37th and others. Magistrate Court. The maximum amount of civil claims that can be tried in magistrate court increased. Senate Bill 409 by Senator Walker III of the 20th and others. Insurers Use of Aerial or Satellite Images Act, an act.

73. 0:27:18

    Senate Bill 444 by Senator Kirkpatrick of the 32nd and others. Private review agents. Certain decisions with regard to the provision of insurance coverage for healthcare services shall not be based solely on artificial intelligence systems. Provided. Mr. President, that completes the order.

74. 0:27:44

    Before we go to the morning roll call, there's a senator here who's got a very special day today. It's the senator from the 9th's birthday. Happy birthday, Senator. How are you doing?

75. 0:28:02

    It's good, good to have you here on your special day, Senator.

76. 0:28:09

    It is now time for the morning roll call. Are there any motions to excuse? Recognize the senator from the 31st. Mr. President, ask for unanimous consent to excuse the senator from the 20th for business outside the Capitol. Without objection, the senator from the 20th is excused. Recognize the senator from the 33rd. Thank you, Mr. President, and good morning y'all. Ask for unanimous consent to excuse the senators from the 5th and 7th for business outside the Capitol.

77. 0:28:41

    Uh, without objection, senators from the 5th and the 7th are excused. Recognize the senator from the 42nd. Good morning, Mr. President. Ask unanimous consent to excuse the senator from the 50th for business outside the chamber. Without objection, the senator from the 50th is excused. Recognize the senator from the 22nd. Morning, Mr. President. Ask for unanimous consent to excuse the senator from the 44th for business inside the Capitol. Without objection, the senator from the 44th is excused. Any other motions to excuse?

78. 0:29:12

    Oh, I'm sorry. The majority leader. Sorry, Mr. President. I ask unanimous consent to excuse the senator from the 56th for business outside the Capitol. Without objection, the senator from the 56th is excused. Any other motions? Secretary will unlock the, unlock the machine to call, call the roll call. Signify your presence by voting the yeas switch. Secretary.

79. 0:30:42

    It is now time for our morning devotion. I would ask that all senators take their seats and cease all conversation. I would ask that the doorkeeper secure the chamber at this time. I now recognize the senator from the 1st to lead us in our pledge and introduce us to our pastor of the day. Senator.

80. 0:31:06

    Thank you, Mr. President. Let's pledge to the US flag. I pledge allegiance to the flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all. And now the Georgia flag. I pledge allegiance to the Georgia flag and the principles for which it stands, wisdom, justice, moderation, and courage.

81. 0:31:41

    Thank you, Mr. President. It's my honor here to introduce, uh, Pastor Brian Cooper. Um, Pastor Brian has lived in the state of Georgia most of his life and trusted Christ at the age of 13. Next year will mark 30 years of serving in ministry. He has been the pastor of Bethel Baptist Church in Richmond Hill since January 2016, and has met his wife, Asia. Asia, would you mind standing up? S- give a welcome here. Thank you very much. Being, being married to this man for 27 years, uh, they met in, uh, attending Crown College in Powell, Tennessee, and they have four beautiful children.

82. 0:32:19

    Uh, if you wouldn't mind standing in the, in the gallery there. Julia is married to Samuel and have their first granddaughter, Millie June. Uh, Preston's married Lily last March, and Peyton married his high school sweetheart, Sarah. And their youngest son, Justin, is not here, is currently serving in the United States Air Force. Thank you for being here.

83. 0:32:42

    The Coopers love serving the Lord together and spending time with friends and family, and also watching the Georgia Bulldogs. Thank you very much.

84. 0:32:52

    Thank you, Senator Watson. I appreciate it. Thank you, Mr. President, for the opportunity. I'm glad to be able to be here, and I'm thankful that my family can be here. I was here a couple of years ago and, uh, my wife came along, and, uh, it's always good when she comes along. She helps keep me in line. And, but I'm glad that my children can be here today. Uh, my greatest joy outside of Jesus is my family, and I thank the Lord for them. I think what you all do in this room has a great impact on families

85. 0:33:21

    I spoke a couple of years ago in this room on the subject of beginning with God because it all ends with God. Today, I want to look in the Book of Psalms where the Bible gives us this passage, chapter 14 or Psalm 14. The Bible says, "The fool has said in his heart, there is no God. They are corrupt. They have done abominable works. There is none that doeth good. The Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men to see if there were any that did understand and seek God." The Bible says in verse number two of this passage that the Lord looked down from heaven upon the children of men, at the conclusion of the verse, to see if there were any that seek God.

86. 0:34:07

    I have been pastoring the church that my dad pastored for thirty-four years. I have been pastoring it for the last ten years. And there have been many times throughout the last ten years that I have said to myself, uh, how many times has my dad looked over heaven and seen what I am doing or what we're doing? And I wonder if he's proud. I wonder if he recognizes it. I wonder if he's able to see. People ask me, "Do you think they can see what's going on?" The Bible tells us we're compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses. Let us lay aside the sin that doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us.

87. 0:34:41

    And I'm sure there are many in this room that have loved ones who have gone on before them, and they said to themselves, "I wonder if they look over heaven, what they see." May I encourage you with this thought this morning? There is one that looks over heaven. His name is God. The Bible says He looked down from heaven. And my question to us this morning is when God looks down, what does He see? When the Lord looks into this room, when the Lord looks at the direction of our state, the leadership, uh, the agendas that are being promoted, when God looks down, is He pleased?

88. 0:35:18

    It's easy to look at that corporately and say it's important, it's vital, but that begins with us understanding as an individual we have a responsibility to please God first. In all things, the Bible says, He might have the preeminence. Whenever you begin to put pen to paper, whenever you begin to stand and address the issues that are put forth in this room, may you know this truth, that God is looking down. The Bible teaches us that every man will give an account of himself. Every person in this room will stand before God with the opportunity that they've been given, and you have to answer to one.

89. 0:35:55

    It's not the preacher, it is God. He's looking down today. And every thought, every action, every deed, every word,

90. 0:36:08

    every step in our life, we ought to consider God is watching. The Bible tells us this, that the eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good. God sees it all. I had an older pastor explain to me that verse one time. He said, "You know, when God looks at your life, we, we view our life by moments. But when God looks at our life, He sees it as a picture that is painted on a canvas complete. He sees it the beginning from the end.

91. 0:36:40

    He sees all the details." And today He is watching. He's watching what we do in this room. May God help us to do our best for His glory. The greatest thing in my life that I can tell you about me is that I, as a thirteen-year-old boy, I understood that God loved me. There's no perfect people in this room. God loves imperfect people, and He sent a perfect son to die on a cross that we might be redeemed.

92. 0:37:13

    Jesus said to those that were confused about where He was going, He said, "I am the way, the truth, and the life. No man cometh unto the Father, but by me." You must know Jesus as your savior. I understood as a thirteen-year-old boy that if I died without Jesus Christ, I had to be separated from Him for all eternity. But Jesus made a way. He made a way on a cross when He died and shed His blood for your sin and for my sin. And that, my friend, demands that we consider Him.

93. 0:37:44

    God looked down from heaven. And my question to you this morning is as, as He looks, what does He see in this place? I pray, I pray that each one of us understand the responsibility we have before God. As I close in prayer this morning, I want to say to each of you, our church prays for you. We are grateful for the leadership in our state. We're grateful for each of your services. Your willingness to be a public servant is an example, and we're thankful for that.

94. 0:38:19

    I appreciate your willingness to help our state be what it should be. Thank you for the opportunity to be here. Let's pray together, may we?

95. 0:38:30

    Our Father, I do thank you today for your love, for your grace, and for your mercy. I thank you for giving us another day of life. I thank you for blessing us beyond what we deserve. Lord, you are good. So Lord, I pray today as we bow our heads, I ask for wisdom. I pray that you'd grant every individual in this room the strength and the courage and the wisdom to do what is right. May we understand, Lord, that you are looking down from heaven and we have a responsibility to be pleasing to you.

96. 0:39:03

    May we allow the Word of God to guide the principles of our life. May the steps of every person be ordered by the Lord in this place. May you protect, may you grant wisdom, strength, and Lord, we say to each public servant this morning thank you for your willingness to serve. We thank you for our state. Bless it.

97. 0:39:27

    Grant us prosperity and strength. May we be an example to all those around us, and we will give you the glory for it because, God, you alone are worthy. We ask this in Jesus' precious name. Amen. Good job. Appreciate it.

98. 0:44:47

    We have a very special guest here today. We have Doctor of the Day, but the doctor of today is, uh, has a unique tie to this body right here. So, s- uh, I'll let the senator from the 19th who's introducing her today explain that to everyone. So, Senator. Thank you, Mr. President. As you know, we have a Doctor of the Day every legislative session day here, and today we have one back from my district. I've met her once. The, uh, uh, Doctor of the Day is Dr.

99. 0:45:17

    Ashton Nicole Tillery. She's here today. She's an OBGYN, uh, delivering. Her group delivers around 1,000 babies down in Vidalia, Georgia each year. She has clinics in Vidalia and in Hazlehurst. She studied at NIH, studied at the Medical College of Georgia, uh, was in the partnership at the University of Georgia, where she met the love of her life. Thank you. Thank you. And made her best decision ever at that point in time. Uh, but let me tell you about the other things she does too. She's on the library board back in our home county because she understands that literacy matters.

100. 0:45:48

     She takes care of our boys all day, every day, John and William, 20 months old and four years old. She takes care of Jeremiah, who's sitting there in the back wi- that allows me to be up here. And she's more than just a physician. She's someone who cares about our community, and she's the absolute love of my life. So baby, thank you for being our Doctor of the Day. All right.

101. 0:46:11

     Oh, thank you. Thank you guys so much for having me today. I just wanna tell all of you thank you. I know that coming to do this job, you take a lot of time away from your own families, your communities, and your careers as well. So I certainly appreciate the work that you come, um, to the capital to do for all Georgians. And because of the work you do, the future of medicine in the state of Georgia is incredibly bright. So thank you guys so much. All right.

102. 0:48:23

     We have some very special guests here today, and, uh, glad we're able to recognize these fine ladies here behind us. Secretary, read the caption please.

103. 0:48:36

     Senate Resolution 648 by Senators Anderson of the 43rd and others. A resolution recognizing and commending the Junior League movement on the occasion of its 125th anniversary and honoring its enduring legacy of developing women leaders and strengthening communities through volunteer service, civic engagement, and advocacy, and for other purposes. Whereas, for 125 years, the Junior League movement has advanced women's leadership for a meaningful community impact through volunteer action, collaboration, and leadership development w- and whereas, the Association of Junior Leagues International supports a global network of nearly 300 local leagues, uh, across multiple countries, mobilizing more than 112,000 women committed to strengthening communities through service and leadership.

104. 0:49:15

     Now therefore be it resolved by the Senate that the members of this body recognize and commend the Junior League movement on its 125th anniversary and extend its appreciation to Junior League movements, past and present, for their enduring contributions to leadership development and community im- improvement. Mr. President, that completes the order.

105. 0:49:36

     Is there objection to the adoption of the resolution? Chair hears none. The resolution is adopted. I'd like to recognize the senator from the 43rd to speak to the resolution and introduce our special guest. Senator. Thank you, Mr. President. Good morning, colleagues. Today is a beautiful day to celebrate with Georgia SPAC, which is a form of Junior Leagues, um, throughout Georgia. We are commemorating 125 years of Junior League impact.

106. 0:50:08

     As a member of Junior League DeKalb, Sustainer status, I made it. If you know, you know.

107. 0:50:17

     It has been a journey, an adventurous journey, and a lifetime of memories, friendships, and community impact. Junior League is about women leading change, and today we celebrate from leagues represented across the state. We have Albany, Atlanta, Athens, Augusta, Cobb, Cobb County, Columbus, DeKalb County, Douglas County, Golden Isles, Hall County, Macon, Perry, Gwinnett County, and Savannah.

108. 0:50:52

     Joining me on the platform are members of SPAC and our fearless leader, Chairwoman Ms. Heather Gaylord, who is a fellow Hornet and an alum of the Alabama State University. In her work in Junior League, she has served in many capacities, especially Junior League of DeKalb, membership committee, public policy chair, AGLI, and she has taken on the helm to lead SPAC. Please welcome Heather to the stage.

109. 0:51:27

     Good morning, everyone, and thank you to the members of the house for this recognition. My name is Heather M. Gaylord, and I am a sustaining member of DeKalb County's Junior League. I am also the acting chair and chair elect for the Junior League of Georgia SPAC, which is the State Public Affairs Committee. This is our State Capital Day, and this is one of the ways that we engage with our leagues from across the state of Georgia to the legislative process and introduce them to public service. We are commemorating 125 years of the Junior League, and we thank the Junior League for the legacy of advocacy, civic engagement, and everything else that they represent today.

110. 0:52:06

     We are guided, Junior League of Georgia SPAC, by our four pillars, which are aid and protection of women and children, healthcare, education, and equity. So on behalf of Georgia SPAC, we thank Senator Tonya Anderson for your leadership. We thank you for our recognition and for everything you've done for this organization. Thank you.

111. 0:52:29

     I, I must add, we have, um, Tijuanna Williams, Shaneka Johnson, and Karen Hicks.

112. 0:52:34

     Yes.

113. 0:52:35

     All right.

114. 0:54:27

     Thank-

115. 0:54:27

     Are there any unanimous consents? Does any senator wish to rise on a point of personal privilege?

116. 0:54:51

     You have before you a consent calendar of privileged resolutions. Does any senator wish to remove a, a resolution from the consent calendar? Is there objection to the adoption of the resolution on the consent calendar? Chair hears none. The res- and the resolution on the consent calendar is adopted.

117. 0:55:12

     Are there any motions to withdr- to withdraw or commit?

118. 0:55:21

     All right, heading on to the rules calendar. Secretary, read the caption. Senate Bill 147.

119. 0:55:43

     Senate Bill 146 by Williams of the 25th and others. A bill to be entitled an Act to Amend Titles 31, 36, and 44 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to health, local government, and property, respectively, so as to provide regulations and protections of cemeteries and burial grounds. To provide procedures concerning the issuance of permits for the disinterment and re- reinterment of human remains. To provide definitions. To provide statutory construction. To confirm cross references. To provide for related matters. To repeal conflicting laws and for other purposes. The committees of the Senate on Regulated Industries and Utilities recommends that this do pass by substitute by Senator Cowsert of the 46th, and, chairman.

120. 0:56:23

     Mr. President, the Senate Committee on Regulated Industries and Utilities offers the following substitute to Senate Bill 146. A bill to be entitled an Act to Amend Titles 31, 36, and 44 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to health, local government, and property, respectively, so as to provide regulations and protections of cemeteries and burial grounds. To revise pro- procedures concerning the issuance of permits for the disinterment and reinterment of human remains. To provide pro- procedures concerning the issuance of permits for the disturbance of abandoned cemeteries. To provide civil remedies for failures to obtain such permits. To provide for the issuance of permits for, uh, permits for the establishment of family burial plots.

121. 0:56:54

     To provide minimum requirements of family burial plots and for other purposes. Mr. President, that completes the order.

122. 0:57:01

     Recognize the senator from the 25th to speak to the measure.

123. 0:57:26

     Thank you, Mr. President. Ladies and gentlemen, come before you with, uh, Senate Bill 146. This bill codifies what cemeteries are and how they're to be treated, defines what abandoned cemeteries are, and it also prevents disturbance of cemeteries. And, uh, this is something that, uh, would also define what an abandoned cemetery is, but it sets out something that's uniform throughout the state for rural counties where people are trying to set up a cemetery on their property.

124. 0:58:06

     They cannot sell these spaces. This would be for a family only. If it was, um, cemetery spaces for sale, then they would register under the Secretary of State's office through the Securities Division to form a perpetual care cemetery. I ask for your favorable consideration, and I'll be glad to take any questions if there is any, Mr. President.

125. 0:58:43

     You do have one question, Senator. I recognize the senator from the 37th.

126. 0:58:48

     Yes, sir.

127. 0:58:49

     Does the gentleman yield?

128. 0:58:50

     I do.

129. 0:58:51

     I, I appreciate your short presentation. I was, um, just wanted to ask just kind of in plain language, if you're, if, if, if a church is running a small cemetery, what thi- what provisions does this bill change the status quo of our law today? That, that, that was my only question.

130. 0:59:06

     I'm having trouble hearing you. I'm sorry. Um, but I think you're referring to a church cemetery. This would not affect a church cemetery unless it became abandoned.

131. 0:59:18

     Okay.

132. 0:59:18

     And then they would give definition of an abandoned cemetery and how it is treated and how it is classified.

133. 0:59:26

     But this in no way changes the, the, the rights, responsibilities, duties, legal status of church cemeteries in any way, correct?

134. 0:59:33

     Right.

135. 0:59:35

     Thank you, sir.

136. 0:59:35

     Uh-huh. Thank you. I ask for your favorable consideration. Thank you, and I yield the way.

137. 0:59:42

     Senator has yielded. Does any other senator wish to speak for or against the measure? Chair hears none. Is there objection to the previous question being ordered? Chair hears none. The previous question is ordered. Question is on the adoption of the committee substitute. Is there objection to the adoption of the committee substitute? Hearing none, the committee substitute is adopted. Is there objection to the main question being ordered? Chair hears none. The main question is ordered. Question is on the passage of the bill by substitute. All those in favor of vote yay. All opposed nay. Secretary, unlock the machine.

138. 1:00:13

     Order.

139. 1:00:49

     Order. On

140. 1:02:45

     the passage of the bill, the Ayes are 46 and the Nays are zero. This bill, having received the requisite constitutional majority, is therefore passed by substitute.

141. 1:03:11

     Moving on. Senate Bill 150. Secretary, read the caption.

142. 1:03:19

     Senate Bill 150, uh, by Senator Hickman IV and others. A bill to be entitled an act to amend Article 7 of Chapter 3 of Title 47 of the OCGA relating to retirement allowances, disability benefits, and spouses' benefits so as to extend the program to permit public school systems to employ certain beneficiaries of the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia as classroom teachers in a full-time capacity to June 30th, 2034, to reduce the number of years worked by a beneficiary to 25 before being eligible to be hired under this code section, to provide for related matters, to provide conditions for an effective date and automatic repeal, to repeal conflicting laws and for other purposes.

143. 1:03:51

     The Senate Committee on Retirement recommends that this bill do pass by substitute by Senator Williams of the 25th. Chairman. Mr. Pres-

144. 1:04:16

     Recognize the senator from the fourth.

145. 1:04:23

     He hadn't read it. Read the caption. Hold on one second. They gotta read it. Stand. They gotta read it. Oh.

146. 1:04:46

     The Senate Committee on Retirement offers the following substitute to Senate Bill 150, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Article 7 of Chapter 3 of Title 47 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to retirement allowances, disability benefits, and spouses' benefits so as to extend the program to permit public school systems to employ certain beneficiaries of the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia as a class of teachers in a full-time capacity June 30th, 2034, and for other purposes. A fiscal note has been attached.

147. 1:05:12

     Senator Hickman.

148. 1:05:24

     Thank you, Mr. President. I'm here today to present Senate Bill 150, and it's a return to work bill for, uh, for teachers. Um, this bill passed our Senate Education Committee 100%. Why is this bill important? If we don't have fully prepared certified educators in the classroom, our students will not succeed. I wanna read two quotes that really become profound to me about education and teaching.

149. 1:05:51

     Hold on one second, Senator. Hold on. Could everybody... Could we have everybody's attention while the senator's presenting the bill on the well, please? Yeah, yeah. Everybody's attention.

150. 1:06:01

     The quotes are, "Georgia cannot deliver on its commitment to students without a strong teacher workforce." The next one is very profound. "Educators are the only workforce whose performance determines the quality and size of future workforces." I am assured that every senator has received a phone call or a text from a retired teacher or soon-to-be-retired teacher concerning this bill This bill is a, this bill, we currently are a bill that expires, uh, House Bill 385 that expires June 30th of '26.

151. 1:06:36

     We worked very diligently and hard with the, uh, Dr. Jody Barrow with Professional Standards Commission and, um, the T- TRS executive director, the retired Buster Evans, and now Jason Branch on this bill.

152. 1:06:55

     You listened and we reacted. The Senate identified literacy or illiteracy as a real problem in Georgia when we shared with you the percentage of students in third and fifth grade in your Senate district that were not reading on grade level. We heard you, y'all reacted, and we got numerous bills addressing that. Per, per, uh, Dr. Jody, Jody Barrow, executive director of Professional Standards Commission, the number of classrooms in Georgia that do not have a fully prepared certified educator in the classroom, and let me read them all to you.

153. 1:07:33

     In December of '23, there were over 6,000 vacancies in Georgia. In December of '24, 5,300 vacancies in Georgia. In December of '25, 5,358 vacancies. And yes, one of our senators on our education committee said, asked me a question, could we tell him what district that related to, or what school district? And yes, we can. Um, professional standards are working on those numbers for me.

154. 1:08:04

     So you can tell we got a real tragedy in Georgia for not having, not having fully, um, certified teachers in classrooms. Let me give you a personal example that I can, I can share with you. Evans County, which is one of my counties in my district, Claxton Elementary School, per, uh, Dr. Brad Anderson, on September 1st of 2025, there was six classes in K through tw- K through five without a fully prepared certified educator in the classroom.

155. 1:08:39

     Kindergarten had one class. First grade had one class. Second grade had one class. Third grade had two classes. And fifth grade had one class. The tragedy, that's a tragedy in itself, 'cause the high- the, the highest degreed person in that classroom was a high, had a high school diploma, according to Dr. Anderson. As of January 26th, 2026, still at Claxton Elementary School in Claxton, Georgia, there were three vacancies out of those six that had not been filled.

156. 1:09:13

     Now, senators, let me ask you this. How would you like your child or grandchild to be in one of those classrooms that does not have a fully prepared and certified teacher? Do you think your child or grandchild, when they move to the next grade level, is gonna b- be fully prepared for that? No, they're not. That's the purpose of this bill. We've got to address that problem, and I'll tell you and just say, this, this bill's got a sunset in it, and we're working very closely with the college and universities in Georgia to make sure that they're going, they are teaching on the science of reading, and they're teaching our students how to be teachers that teach our students.

157. 1:09:56

     Let me tell you the key provisions of this bill.

158. 1:10:02

     TRS, Teacher Retirement System in Georgia, tells me now that the average person retires in the school system at 25 years. Now, that doesn't mean that they get full retirement. They do not, as some of our senators have asked me. They really don't get full retirement till 30 years, but because of wanting to get out, maybe, maybe raising children or something like that, who knows? But the average retirement now is people, is at 25 years. So this, th- this bill, a teacher can return to work after teaching 25 years and retiring, but now there's a one-year waiting period.

159. 1:10:37

     They have to stay out of it, stay out of school for one year. However, they can come back and do that 49% that all of us are aware of, okay? So they will receive their retirement and receive the salary for teaching in the classroom. Let me, let me stop there and read to you something I forgot. But so this, this letter, this email came from a Ms. Robin Thompson, and I don't know where she lives, but she said, "I'm writing to express my concern, my, express my strong support to Georgia Senate Bill 150.

160. 1:11:08

     As a veteran educator, I see firsthand the severe teacher shortage facing Georgia. With more than 5,000 teaching vacancies statewide, districts are struggling to staff classrooms. In my own county, schools have been forced to hire teachers from other countries to fill the gap. While we value all educators, this has created challenges for students due to language barriers and differences in instructional experience, especially at the elementary level." So this bill only applies to the public school system and applies to K through 12.

161. 1:11:45

     Let me tell you the courses that, that these teachers can come back and teach, which is very important. ELA, English Language Arts, Science, Social Studies, Special Education, and Math, and now we've added Career Technical Agricultural Education, CTAE, which the senator from the 8th has asked us several questions about. It's very exciting because his wife is head of that in their school system. Hey, Senator, hold on one second.

162. 1:12:16

     L- ladies and gentlemen in the chamber, we're gonna have to bring it down a notch. Okay. We can't hear. If you gotta have a conversation, go to the ante room- Thank you ... if you're a senator. So we need- Thank you, Mr. Chair ... Paige to give, give the attention to the senator in the well, please. But in order to come back, if they're teaching, teaching English Language Arts or an academic content, they've gotta have a current, uh, dyslexia, uh, or reading endorsement, or they can demonstrate specific training and skills in the science of reading, but, and approved by the Professional Standards Commission.

163. 1:12:52

     Many of y'all, y'all have asked me, "What's the cost of this?" These teachers are replacing teachers that are no longer there, so there's no cost to the TRS system. We had an actual study done. There's no cost to the, to the system. We also know that if this bill works the way that we want it to work, and the college and universities are doing what they need to do, we've got a sunset in this bill of June the 30th of 2034. And hopefully by that time, we would've, we would've made a tremendous dent on these te- on having teachers in the classroom.

164. 1:13:25

     So by that time, we should have solved the teacher, teacher shortage problem. So Senators, I would really, I think our students, our students, uh, across rural Georgia will really appreciate you voting for this bill. And, um, Mr. President, at that point, point in time, I'll take any questions.

165. 1:13:47

     Yes, sir. Yes, sir.

166. 1:13:48

     You do have a few f- questions, Senator. Recognize the senator from the 33rd for a question. No question. Recognize the senator from the 26th for a question.

167. 1:14:04

     Thank you. Oh.

168. 1:14:05

     Okay.

169. 1:14:06

     Hmm, that was bad. You, you don't have to tell me.

170. 1:14:10

     No.

171. 1:14:11

     Thank you, Mr. President. Gentleman, you.

172. 1:14:13

     Yes, sir, I did.

173. 1:14:15

     Are you telling me that if the school system has a vacancy for a particular teacher, that they can't get a retired teacher to go in who's certified to teach that class? I thought it, it had something to do with TRSA. They don't have to... The school system doesn't have to pay money into the retirement system for them, but they pay them. Are you telling me they can't do that now?

174. 1:14:47

     What I'm telling you, Senator, is that the, that teacher can come back, but that teacher comes back at a 49%, and can, so they teach less than half-time and, as opposed to this bill allows them to come back full-time.

175. 1:15:02

     So you saying they can't come in and be hired as full-time?

176. 1:15:06

     Sir?

177. 1:15:06

     Are you saying that they cannot be hired as full-time teachers after they retired by, in, in the system?

178. 1:15:13

     No. No, sir. Under the current law, they cannot be hired as a full-time teacher. They've got to be hired at 49%.

179. 1:15:21

     And that, that's what the importance of this bill is. And again, people, this, this bill has a sunset provision that if we get it all worked out and y'all support this bill, the, the college and universities are work- working very hard. If you recall, the Council on Literacy and, and House Bill 538 brought back the science of reading into the classroom. And consequently, we're working very closely with the college and universities to get, you know, make it more attractive. And you'll see several more bills in the nex- in the next few days addressing teacher shortage in Georgia.

180. 1:15:55

     You have a question from senator from the 19th? Hmm. He wants to speak in the well. Senator from the 21st? Senator from the 21st? Is this our new senator that's absent right now, Senator?

181. 1:16:13

     Oh, he's gone.

182. 1:16:14

     Yeah. I hope his t- I hope his town in here today.

183. 1:16:18

     Mr. President, I'm gonna yield the well.

184. 1:16:21

     All right.

185. 1:16:21

     Thank you.

186. 1:16:21

     Sounds good.

187. 1:16:22

     Thank you, sir.

188. 1:16:22

     Thank you.

189. 1:16:25

     Senator from the 39th, for what point, what... Senator from the 39th, for what purpose do you rise?

190. 1:16:32

     This is the point in time to do it. You wanna recognize your friends?

191. 1:16:37

     Yes. I... Thank you, Mr. President. This is completely unrelated to SB 150, but I just wanted to acknowledge a couple of people in the gallery from Jack and Jill of America who are here, and that is an organization, a mothers organization, particularly for Black children, that was started in 1938. I am a member of the organization myself, the only active Jack and Jill mom in the entire general assembly. And we've got chi- lots of youn- young people here who are learning what it means to l- have their government work, including my page, Bryce Blake.

192. 1:17:14

     Thank you.

193. 1:17:15

     Why don't we... Everybody with Jack and Jill, stand up and be recognized. Give yourself a round of applause. So

194. 1:17:31

     So very nice to have all those wonderful, wonderful young people and their mentors, and thank you, Senator, for recognizing them. So

195. 1:17:42

     recognize the senator from the 19th. Speak to the bill.

196. 1:17:44

     Next.

197. 1:17:47

     Next. We'll get you. We'll get you in a second. We'll get you in a second. Thank you, Mr. President, members of the Senate. Senate Bill 150, let's talk about it for a second. It allows someone to retire after 25 years of service, and they can come back and work full-time. That means if you started working at 22, you're gonna be able to retire at 47, draw f- your retirement at whatever the early number that would be, and then still come back and work full-time. I am focused with you on trying to alleviate the issue we have with not having teachers in the classroom.

198. 1:18:21

     I purport to you, though, I don't know that this helps if it doesn't instead cause a, an issue where we actually lead people to retire earlier. And if they do, we need to be able to address this in the future So I just wanna put a flag on this point. I'm, I'm willing to walk with you today and, and try this point, but I also wanna say that if we come back in two years, three years, four years, and we realize that folks are retiring at 25 and creating and making that situation worse, we, we need to be willing to re-address that then.

199. 1:18:53

     The other point I wanna bring up is this: we have several buckets of retirees. Teachers fall into TRS, employees fall into ERS. TRS requires a 3% raise on retirement every single year. ERS does not. So when we take and allow another benefit that, that is for one program, TRS, while it may be good-natured and it may be good in the end, I wanna show you and remind you that we're further causing the wedge and divide to develop between our employees who fall into the bucket of ERS, who are not guaranteed that 3% every year on retirement.

200. 1:19:32

     While I'm willing to go with this t- with you today, and I trust that the senator from the fourth, and I know he's done a really good job on this, this work, if I'm not here in a few years and you are, I hope we will revisit this and make sure it's having the intended consequence and not further, um, causing the divide, not only between teachers in the classroom, but also between our two systems. Thank you, Mr. President, I'll yield for questions or yield the floor.

201. 1:19:55

     You do have one question, Senator. Recognize the senator from the 36th.

202. 1:20:00

     Thank you, Mr. President. Does the senator yield?

203. 1:20:02

     Yes, ma'am.

204. 1:20:03

     Um, isn't it true you, you mentioned the employee retirement system. We're getting a little feedback on the mic, but you're, you've mentioned as, as in it true the employ- uh, the, uh, em- r- retirement system for the non-teaching-

205. 1:20:16

     Right

206. 1:20:16

     ... uh, state employees, and the fact that it was the l- l- act of the legislature and the, the, i- i- i- in, in removing the 3% cost of living from a long-established practice for those employees. Isn't that true?

207. 1:20:33

     It, it, I don't know, I don't think it was legislation that did that, Senator. It is legislation that created a 3% raise for TRS, though. And if it was legislation that removed it, it also would've been legislative that created it.

208. 1:20:43

     Well, but would you agree if you further, you for further questions, that it was the, it was the, the result, uh, of decisions made, uh, in the, u- uh, i- in, uh, the wake of the Great Recession that state em- uh, employee retirees do, have not gotten a cost of living, a 3% cost of living in 17 years. You would agree with that, is that right?

209. 1:21:08

     That, that's not fact.

210. 1:21:09

     Okay.

211. 1:21:09

     Well, they have received a cost of living increase, but you are correct-

212. 1:21:11

     A, a 3% cost of living was what I spent

213. 1:21:13

     ... You, you are correct that they've not received the cost of living increase that is received in the TRS program, which is why we may even actually be saying the same thing here, where that divide becomes worse when we continue to pivot to one group over the other of state employees.

214. 1:21:30

     Uh, thank you for the flags you've raised. Uh, it's, it's true, I believe, that we passed this unanimously in our committee, isn't that right?

215. 1:21:38

     Uh, I'm not on that committee, but you may have.

216. 1:21:41

     Thank you for, uh, yielding.

217. 1:21:44

     You do have one more question, Senator. Recognize the senator from the 27th.

218. 1:21:48

     Thank you, Mr. President. Chairman, do you yield?

219. 1:21:50

     Yes, sir.

220. 1:21:51

     Can you walk me through, as you understand the bill, essentially, are we creating an incentive unintentionally here to re- to allow people to retire at 25, year 25, come back at year 27, essentially double-dip in the system?

221. 1:22:03

     Well, the, Senator, we may, and that's what I'm highlighting for our colleagues, is that I realize we have a situation with shortages in the classroom. So I'm willing to support this and move forward, but I want someone to put a flag in it, put a pin in it, so that we evaluate it in two years, three years, whatever the timeframe needs to be, 'cause if we've not closed that gap, if we've actually unintentionally made that gap worse, we need to realize what code section we changed when we did that.

222. 1:22:29

     Do you further yield?

223. 1:22:30

     Yes, sir.

224. 1:22:31

     Would it, in your opinion, would it be a good idea for our friend, the bill sponsor, to perhaps, uh, when this goes to the House, to put some reporting language in here, uh, that reports back to the future chairman of the House Education Committee so we can keep an eye on that?

225. 1:22:44

     If, if that's needed, I'd ... Clearly every senator here in this body can bring an amendment too. But again, I wanna highlight that for our colleagues, that we don't wanna make this worse, and we also don't wanna make the divide between our ERS system and our TRS system, uh, more ... Uh, the chasm's there enough that we need to make it deeper.

226. 1:23:05

     You do have one more question, Senator. Recognize the senator from the 46th.

227. 1:23:09

     Thank you, Mr. President. Will the senator yield?

228. 1:23:11

     Yes, sir.

229. 1:23:12

     In your role as Appropriations Chairman, have you given any thought to what impact this might have on the actuarial soundness of the Teacher Retirement System? If new teachers begin retiring earlier and drawing their retirement, is that something we've accounted for, or is that a potential hole we're about to blow in their retirement system?

230. 1:23:33

     Well, the, there's actually, if you look on the back, there's an auditor's certification that this does not affect the TRS system as it's drafted right now. My point to you would be, let's watch that, because we also were told that one tax credit we passed several years ago would cost the state 37 million, and it's now costing over 700 million. That's the data center tax credit. So while we have this data that we're working with the best information we have today, for those of you in this room who plan to be here longer, we need to flag this and watch it for the future, just to make sure we're having the intended result.

231. 1:24:06

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman.

232. 1:24:08

     Uh, Mr. President, thank you for all the questions. I'll yield the floor.

233. 1:24:12

     Senator's yielded.

234. 1:24:29

     Does any other senator wish to speak for or against the measure? Senator from the fourth, would you like to close, or you waive? Come on.

235. 1:24:44

     Thank y'all, thank y'all for the questions all on, on the bill. One thing that, uh, uh, came up about the, um, the cost and all, every, on finance committee, every, every bill that we have has a fiscal note, and all we have to go by is what that fiscal note says. And we received a fiscal note on this bill, Senate Bill 150, and the fiscal note said that it was no cost, zero cost to the TRS system. Now, we can't, we can't say 10 years from now what it costs it, but, but the people that we rely on for the fiscal notes said there's no cost to the TRS system on this.

236. 1:25:24

     Also, think about this too. If you're in the military, or, and I think some of y'all may, may have have, there's different levels of retirement in that. So just don't hold it against people just 'cause they're retiring at 25. They're already the average, average retirement age of a person in Georgia teaching is for 25 years. Thank you. Please vote yes on this bill. Vote for our students so we'll have qualified teachers in the classroom teaching our students how to read and how to do math and how to understand social studies and how to understand the civics system of the world.

237. 1:25:58

     Thank you. I yield the word. All right. Senator has yielded.

238. 1:26:09

     Does any other senator wish to speak for or against the measure? Hold on, senator. I'm gon- I'm gonna get to you, I promise you. Senator from the 41st, do you have something on, on this topic? Uh, unanimous consent. I'm ask for unanimous consent to excuse the senator from the 22nd. Okay. Without objection, the senator from the 22nd is excused. Chair hears none. Is there objection to the previous question being ordered? Chair hears none. The previous question is ordered. Question is on the adoption of the committee substitute. Is there objection to the adoption of the committee substitute? Hearing none, the committee substitute is adopted.

239. 1:26:40

     Is there objection to agreeing to the report of committee, which is favorable to the passage of the bill? The chair hears none. The report of committee is agreed to. Is there objections to the main question being ordered? Chair hears none. The main question is ordered. Question is on the passage of the bill by substitute. All those in favor vote yay. All opposed nay. Secretary, unlock the machine.

240. 1:28:01

     On the passage of the bill, the ayes are 48, the nays are one. This bill, having received a requisite constitutional majority, is therefore passed by substitute.

241. 1:28:31

     I don't want... I'm going out of order a little bit, but that's what you do for your hometown folks here. So, uh, behind me I have, uh, Jackson. We, it's today here at the Capitol, we have Jackson-Butts County Day, and, uh, I've got the leadership from the City of Jackson, from City Coun- Councilman Don Cook, to Mike, to County Commissioner Mike Wilson, to Rick, you're not Butts County, but

242. 1:28:53

     I'm kidding. He represents them well. To, to, uh, Commissioner Russ Crumbley, our mayor, uh, Carlos Duffy, and then the commissioner, uh, Joe Brown, and, uh, and Brad, Brad, uh, Johnson here is our county manager. And, uh, and, uh, and I just want to tell you, oh, Chief too. I'm sorry, Chief. Uh, so, I'm sorry. I, in fact, our mayor here, Carlos right here, when we were growing up, his nickname was Scoot. So I had to say, "Well, I can't call you Scoot anymore. I gotta call you the, I gotta call you Carlos here." So, but, uh, at any rate, this, we got great leadership, uh, at the local level at Jackson and Butts County there, and they work very well together.

243. 1:29:34

     Very proud to be there. I've, uh, I'm a six-generation Butts Countian, and I will just sh- tell you this. Uh, these guys right here, because of their, uh, how, how much they've worked together, in the very near future, Butts County is going to be the first and only county that has zero homestead exemption taxes on property. Zero on property. I don't know, I don't know where y'all are from, but where I'm from, everybody's jumping up and down about that. So, uh, but, uh, so I want to thank them for their leadership.

244. 1:30:06

     Let's give them a big round of applause here.

245. 1:31:02

     Now recognize the senator from the 17th. For what purpose do you rise? Mr. President.

246. 1:31:13

     I rise today, point of order, Mr. President. I rise today to recognize the great city of McDonough upon their first annual McDonough Day at the Georgia State Capitol, and we're delighted to have them here in the Georgia State Senate. Let's give them a big hand. The city of Mc- thank you. The city at McDonough was founded in 1823 and named for a naval officer, Commodore Thomas McDonough.

247. 1:31:43

     Since its inc- incorporation, the City of McDonough has embodied the principle of local self-governance, civic engagement, and responsible stewardship, reflecting the determination and vision of the citizens. And the success of the City of McDonough is due in large measure to the dedicated service of its mayor, city council, past and present, city staff, volunteers, business leaders, and engaged residents who have worked collectively to advance the city's growth and prosperity.

248. 1:32:18

     And we have them with us today. If you would raise your hand and standing with me is the senator from the, uh, 42nd and the senator from the 10th. Uh, and we have with us the mayor. Mayor Vonner, please raise your hand. Council Members Blue, Burt, Thomas, Payton, and Reeves, would you all raise your hand so they can see the wonderful City of McDonough, Georgia. Thank you, Mr.

249. 1:32:48

     President.

250. 1:32:51

     Thank you, Senator, and, uh, good to see the leadership of McDonough here. Y'all my neighbors down in middle Georgia, and, uh, glad to have the new mayor and the city council members here as well. So, uh, great to have you and, uh, look forward to working with you guys all. All right. Thank you, Senator. And this brings me to my second point. Always be here for the points of personal privilege. So,

251. 1:33:17

     all right. Here we go. Secretary, read the caption.

252. 1:33:24

     Senate Bill 411 by Senator Still of the 48th and others. A bill to be entitled an act to amend article, uh, to amend Title 43 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to professions and businesses so as to provide for dry needling to be performed by certain licensed individuals, to provide for definitions, to restrict certain pro- representations and advertisements related to the performance of dry needling, to provide for education and training requirements for occupational therapists to perform dry needling, to provide for disciplinary action, to provide for training requirements for acupuncturists, to provide for related matters, to provide for an effective date, to repeal conflicting laws, and for other purposes.

253. 1:33:57

     Mr. President, a Senate committee on Health and Human Services offers the following substitute to Senate Bill 411, a bill to be entitled an act to amend Title 43 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to professions and businesses to as- to provide for dry needling to be performed by certain licensed professionals, to provide for definitions, to restrict certain representations and advertisements related to the performance of dry needling, and for other purposes. Mr. President, that completes the order.

254. 1:34:51

     All right. Let's, uh, uh, Mr. Doorkeeper, secure the, secure the chamber right now, except for people going out for a second, 'cause it's getting a little loud in here, and we just have one more bill to go and, and then we'll be done. But we do need to give the senators their due attention when they're in the well. So I recognize the senator from the 48th to speak to the measure.

255. 1:35:27

     Thank you, Mr. President. This will likely not be the most controversial bill that we discuss this legislative session, but it is critically important to a small group of practitioners in the healthcare field, specifically the differences between dry needling and acupuncture. Uh, recently, the senator from the 13th asked if this was a sticky bill, and I would say, uh, that in some respects it certainly is.

256. 1:35:58

     Or as the senator from the 29th said, "Is this the same as when I was stabbed by an ice pick?" And I would say, "No, this is not quite the same as being stabbed by an ice pick." Um, although depending on whether or not, uh, the current Mrs. Robertson did that or not is up for debate. Uh, but this bill brings PTs and OTs on the same page in the act of dry needling. It clarifies language on the difference between dry needling practice and acupuncture in traditional Chinese medicine.

257. 1:36:32

     It allows, if you'll look at the, uh, the green document, the substitute, lines 38 through 40, uh, discusses private cause of action. That was put in there with the input of some friends that wanted to make sure that we had clarifying language there. And I believe that this, after many, many months of compromised language in all these different groups and, uh, being given the final approval by the Georgia Medical Association, ensures that our physicians, our physical therapists, our occupational therapists, and our acupuncturists are all on the same page and understand who does what by how much training and what they have to do.

258. 1:37:13

     And with that, I'm happy to answer any questions.

259. 1:37:21

     You do have a couple questions, Senator. Recognize the senator from the 41st.

260. 1:37:26

     Thank you, Mr. President. Uh, Senator, do you yield?

261. 1:37:28

     Absolutely.

262. 1:37:29

     Um, I think I heard this correctly, but I just want to make sure. Um, last year there were a lot of people who came and really rallied against this bill, were very concerned, um, particularly people who practice from Chinese or, um, Eastern medicines. And so, uh-

263. 1:37:46

     Is it true that all of that has been resolved and I am not going to have a whole bunch of angry little, um, y- folks coming to my office complaining about this? Is that not true? That is absolutely true, Senator. And furthermore, they were, uh, integral in the drafting of this legislation. Thank you so much. Recognize the senator from the 14th. Thank you, Mr. President. Senator yield? Absolutely. Uh, Senator, isn't it true that you've worked hard on the definition of dry needling to make sure that you exclude senator questions of bill sponsors in the well 'cause I don't wanna get a permit?

264. 1:38:23

     Uh, I believe, uh, Senator, that if your, uh, concern is whether or not the majority of practitioners of acupuncture and dry needling live in the 48th Senate district, you would be correct. I don't know how many live in the 14th, but they certainly, many of them reside in the 48th. Always answering the question that matters, not necessarily the one that was asked. Thank you, Senator.

265. 1:38:46

     You have no more ques- questions, Senator. Thank you, Mr. President. I yield the floor.

266. 1:38:53

     Does any other senator wish to speak for or against the measure?

267. 1:39:03

     Question is on the adoption of the committee substitute. Is there objections to the adoption of the committee substitute? Hearing none, the committee substitute is adopted. Is there objection to agreeing to the reporter committee, which is favorable to the passes of the bill? Chair hears none, the reporter committee is agreed to. Is there objection to the main question being ordered? Chair hears none, the main question is ordered. Question is on the passes of the bill by substitute. All those in favor of vote yay. All opposed nay. Secretary, unlock the machine.

268. 1:40:41

     On the passes of the bill, the yays are 49, the nays are two. This bill having received requisite constitutional majority is therefore passed by substitute.

269. 1:41:01

     Recognize the senator from the 46th. Thank you, Mr. President. I move the Senate agree to the House substitute to SB 170 as amended by amendment one. Secretary, read the caption.

270. 1:41:30

     Senate Bill 170 by Senators Jackson of the 41st and others. A bill to be entitled an act to amend Chapter 12 of Title 50 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to commissions and other agencies so as to create the Georgia Interagency Council for the Homeless. To provide for the purpose, membership, and duties of such council. To provide for reporting of activities. To provide for compensation. To provide for legislative findings and for other purposes.

271. 1:41:55

     The House offers the following substitute to SB 170. A bill to be entitled an act to amend Chapter 2 of Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to the Department of Community Health so as to provide for a grant program for the purpose of providing funding to certain rural hospitals for acquiring or installing backup generators to ensure continuity of operation during a state of emergency. To provide that the department shall consult with the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency in establishing grant criteria. To provide for the department to establish grant amounts. To provide for definitions. To provide for related matters. To provide for an effective date. To repeal conflicting laws and for other purposes.

272. 1:42:27

     Mr. President. Keep reading. Mr. President, Cowsert of the 46th and others offers the following amendment. Amend the substitute SB 170 by inserting after funding on line 23 of the following, including but not limited to federal funding by replacing lines 29 through 31 with the following. And the Director of Agency Management and Homeland Security shall pr- only provide funding to those affected rural hospitals that do not have a backup generator as of the effective date of this act and have not received any federal assistance for the purpose of acquiring or installing a backup generator.

273. 1:42:58

     The department shall...

274. 1:43:02

     Okay. And Senator Cowsert of the 46th offers 1A. Mr. President, Senator Cowsert of the 46th offers 1A, offers the following amendment. Amend the amendment to the substitute SB 170 by inserting after line 8 the following, by replacing and on line 15 with the following, a nonprofit or not-for-profit. Mr. President, that completes the order.

275. 1:43:29

     Recognize the senator from the 46th. Speak to the measure.

276. 1:43:53

     Thank you, Mr. President, ladies and gentlemen of the Senate. Those watching at home, this is kind of a peek behind the curtains of what happens a lot of times on sine die in here. If you look in your notebook, you'll see our original Senate Bill 170 dealt with, uh, homeless people and how to administer grants and, uh, have a coun- emergency council for the homeless. It was a, a bipartisan measure sponsored by the senator from the 41st, and then also co-sponsored by the senator from the 29th and the 13th, and then finally the 39th.

277. 1:44:33

     So you had two Republicans, two Democrats, that were trying to create a council to help homelessness in the state. Well, that got hijacked a little bit on day 40, and by the time it came back to us from the House, it had nothing to do with homelessness, and it's now a bill to establish a grant for rural hospitals to have backup generators if they need them

278. 1:44:58

     And that's kind of how things fly around here. They call it making the sausage there at the end. If you're not watching closely, things that have no, uh, semblance of the original bill end up being before us for discussion. This was never vetted in committee in the Senate, and as far as I know, not in the House, and definitely not in the appropriation process. But it's still a good idea, and it is still a good bipartisan idea. We had in the first week, uh, the senator from the 41st move to agree with this House substitute because it's a good program.

279. 1:45:34

     A lot of questions had been raised that we didn't really get to flush out, um, before we had to vote that day, and it did not pass. It came very close. It had been raised in our caucus that there really were no hospitals that needed a backup generator. And we also forgot to mention the federal plan and the big beautiful bill, uh, that created a, a fund for rural health that we applied for grants from that and were awarded them.

280. 1:46:08

     The Rural Health Transformation Program, this is the request for proposals that's hundreds of pages thick. And our Department of Community Health then submitted a 64-page grant application specifically for rural health, and we call our program the GREAT Program, Georgia's Rural Enhancement and Transformation of Health Act. And lo and behold, we were awarded over $200 million per year for the next five years to direct towards rural health.

281. 1:46:45

     What my motion to agree as amended with the House bill just takes this into account. Still applies only to rural hospitals, which are s- counties of 50,000 or less, hospitals of less than 100 beds, so these are not large hospitals. And I simply put in there that this would be, grant would be only awarded if federal funds had not been applied for and received for the same purpose. Let's use the federal money from the big beautiful bill to pay for these generators as needed.

282. 1:47:21

     And it also limits it to only people that need generators as of the time this bill is signed. So this isn't a brand-new generator bill for every hospital in rural Georgia. It's the ones that need one that don't get funded through the federal government. And then if it's coming around now, Amendment 1A, it was brought up to me earlier this morning. This is intended for nonprofits or not-for-profit hospitals, those that are doing good for society, not that are in the business of making money, and that's all Amendment 1A does, is specify that the only appropriate applicants for this grant would be hospitals that are either nonprofit or not-for-profit.

283. 1:48:05

     And so I would ask for everybody in this body to now join together for this good cause and in our bipartisan spirit, and I tip my hat to the senator from the 45th, both, 41st, both for her original bill on homelessness and her attempt to bring this off the table, and let's try to move rural health forward in the transformation under the structure that we have. Uh, Mr. President, with that, I'll yield the will, but I'm happy to yield for any questions if there are any.

284. 1:48:33

     You, you do have one question, Senator. Recognize the senator from the 55th.

285. 1:48:39

     Will the distinguished gentleman yield?

286. 1:48:41

     Be glad to yield to you, Senator.

287. 1:48:43

     Yes. On amendment one, uh, it says with respect to a hospital have not received any federal assistance, did you mean to have it that they have not received the federal assistance or they have not applied for that federal assistance?

288. 1:49:01

     I just meant that they had not received it. We don't want to double-dip, so to speak, and it goes on to say federal assistance for the purpose of acquiring or installing a backup generator. So if they've already received it, then let's don't issue a state grant for it as well.

289. 1:49:16

     And, and it, would the gentleman further yield?

290. 1:49:18

     Be glad to.

291. 1:49:19

     Is it not true that I am so proud of this body addressing, at least trying to address homelessness as we have to drive past people under bridges every single day even to come to this, uh, illustrious, magnificent building?

292. 1:49:35

     That is true, and I, I do hope that our body will address that through some other legislation this year that's more germane to the subject matter.

293. 1:49:43

     Thank you, sir.

294. 1:49:44

     Thank you.

295. 1:49:46

     Recognize the senator from the 41st.

296. 1:49:48

     Thank you, Mr. President. Senator, do you yield?

297. 1:49:50

     Happy to yield to you, Senator.

298. 1:49:52

     Isn't it true that I have great gratitude to you for picking up this bill to make sure that rural hospitals can get the things they need?

299. 1:49:58

     Yes, and, uh, it's a two-way street there, Senator. I have much respect and gratitude for your efforts in this, and, uh, I tip my hat. I should have asked you to co-sign this amendment because you got the ball rolling, and I wouldn't have been smart enough to bring this up without your, uh, initiative, your push along the way. Thank you.

300. 1:50:18

     You have no further questions, Senator.

301. 1:50:20

     Thank you. I yield the will.

302. 1:50:28

     Is any other senator wish to speak for or against the measure?

303. 1:50:33

     The question is on the adoption of amendment 1A and one. We're gonna take up amendment 1A first,

304. 1:50:44

     au- authored by the senator from the, the 1st year. Uh, is there objection to amendment 1A? Out of objection, amendment 1A

305. 1:50:56

     is adopted. Now the question is on amendment one, which is the underlying amendment, and we're gonna put that one on the board for, to be voted on. So, uh-

306. 1:51:08

     On amendment one, all those in favor of amendment one will vote yay. All opposed, nay. Secretary, unlock the machine.

307. 1:52:20

     On the motion to agree as amended, the yays are 50, the nays are zero, and this is passed.

308. 1:52:34

     Recognize a good doctor from the coast. Senator from the 1st. Thank you, Mr. President. Uh, pursuant to Senate Rule 7-1-10B, I give notice that on the next legislative day, I intend to move that the Senate consider House action on House Bill 54. Senator has moved to give notice. Secretary, read the caption.

309. 1:53:10

     House Bill 54 by Representative Clark of the 100th. A bill to be entitled an Act to amend Title 1631 and 43 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated relating to crimes and offenses, health and professions and businesses respectively, so as to provide advanced practice registered nurses and physician assistants to order home healthcare services to patients of licensed home health agencies, to provide for definitions, to provide for the approval of continuing education regarding death certificates for certain physician assistants by the Georgia Composite Medical Board and for certain advanced practice registered nurses by the Georgia Board of Nursing, to provide for related matters to repeal conflicting laws and for other purposes.

310. 1:53:43

     Mr. President, that completes the order.

311. 1:54:06

     Thank you for the notice, Senator.

312. 1:54:11

     Recognize the senator from the 31st, the majority leader. Mr. President, I move the Senate stand adjourned until 10:00 AM on Tuesday, February 10th. Senator has moved. Secretary, read the announcements. The Rules Committee will meet upon adjournment in room 450 of the Capitol. The Public Safety Committee has been canceled. The Health and Human Services Committee at 1:00 PM will meet in room 450 of the Capitol. The Appropriations Committee on Agriculture and Natural Resources Subcommittee will meet at 2:00 PM in room 307 of the CLOB. The Finance Committee will meet in mezzanine one at 3:00 PM.

313. 1:54:41

     The State and Local Government Operations Committee will meet in mezzanine one at 4:00 PM. The Judiciary Subcommittee will meet at 4:00 PM in room 450 of the Capitol. Mr. President, that completes the order.

314. 1:54:55

     Any other announcements? All right, hearing none, the majority leader has moved that we stand adjourned until 10:00 AM Tuesday morning, February 10th. All those in favor of the motion, signify by saying aye. Aye. All those opposed, no. No. The ayes clearly have it. Y'all have a good day.