Comité Rules del Senado, 12 de marzo de 2026
2025-2026 Regular Session · 450 CAP · 32 min
Esta es una transcripción automática del video de la Asamblea General, hecha por un modelo de reconocimiento de voz. No es un registro oficial y puede entender mal palabras, nombres y números. No se identifica a quienes hablan. El video es el registro: cada marca de tiempo enlaza al momento en que se reproduce.
El video es de la Asamblea General y se reproduce desde su canal de Vimeo. Seleccione cualquier tiempo de abajo para reproducir ese momento. Ver en el canal de Vimeo de la Asamblea General
Resumen
Escrito por un modelo de IA (gpt-6.1-sol) a partir de la transcripción. No forma parte del registro, y el video es lo que se dijo.
El comité pasó por unanimidad HB 445 de su comité permanente al calendario general del Comité de Reglas, luego escuchó presentaciones y revisó proyectos de ley pendientes de consideración por el pleno. Las discusiones incluyeron reembolsos de impuestos, tasas judiciales y elecciones judiciales, reembolsos por capacitación policial, abono de tiempo en libertad condicional y protecciones para animales en recintos. El comité aprobó por unanimidad un calendario del pleno que contenía SR 697, SR 698, HB 521, HB 535, HB 983, HB 1000 y HB 1196. El presidente pospuso la consideración de HB 1020 hasta el lunes porque un texto sustitutivo no estaba listo. Las otras medidas revisadas no se incluyeron en el calendario del pleno aprobado.
Proyectos de ley tratados (16)
Cada relato abarca el tramo de la reunión que indica. El número del proyecto de ley se dice en ese tramo, salvo cuando era el único proyecto en la agenda de un comité.
HB 445. Ad valorem tax; language required to be included in notices of current assessment; revise
Desde 0:07:46 · turnos 8 a 12
El presidente describió HB 445 como una ayuda para las apelaciones sobre impuestos a la propiedad y dijo que el comité ya había escuchado testimonios. El presidente dijo que no se habían realizado los cambios considerados anteriormente. El comité permanente aprobó por unanimidad pasar el proyecto de ley al calendario general del Comité de Reglas.
HR 251. Local government; probate judges shall be elected in nonpartisan elections; provide - CA
Desde 0:08:35 · turnos 16 a 48
El patrocinador dijo que HR 251 propondría una enmienda constitucional que exigiría elecciones no partidistas para todos los jueces de sucesiones, sujeta a la aprobación de los votantes. Un miembro del comité preguntó por qué no se incluía a otros jueces. El patrocinador dijo que las elecciones judiciales partidistas restantes correspondían a 53 jueces de sucesiones de un total de más de 1,600 jueces en todo el estado. El presidente explicó que la legislación local permite actualmente que las jurisdicciones elijan elecciones no partidistas y que la propuesta extendería el cambio a todo el estado. No hubo votación.
HB 61. Motor vehicles; issuance of separate license plates for hearses and ambulances; provide
Desde 0:10:57 · turnos 50 a 327
El presentador solicitó que se considerara HB 61, y lo describió como una medida de reforma sobre ocupantes ilegales. Un miembro del comité preguntó si su texto había cambiado desde la audiencia del Comité de Seguridad Pública y planteó inquietudes sobre disposiciones relativas a los alguaciles, los agentes de alguacil fuera de servicio y los agentes judiciales, incluidos los plazos y las cuestiones constitucionales. El presentador dijo que no se habían realizado cambios desde esa audiencia y que la Sheriffs' Association había dado su conformidad con la medida. El miembro y el presentador acordaron hablar de las inquietudes fuera de la reunión. Más tarde, el presidente confirmó que el proyecto de ley ya se había tratado. No hubo votación.
HB 549. Peace officers; extend time frame for which reimbursement of total training expenses by a subsequent employer may be sought
Desde 0:11:03 · turnos 51 a 107
El presentador dijo que HB 549 exigiría que una agencia que contratara a un policía recién capacitado reembolsara a la agencia que pagó la capacitación. El presentador describió inicialmente un período de seis meses. Cuando un miembro preguntó cuánto tiempo tendría que permanecer un agente antes de que dejara de exigirse el reembolso, otro miembro del comité repitió inicialmente seis meses y luego corrigió la respuesta a tres años. El presentador también dijo que el plazo comenzaría después de que se completara la capacitación y se autorizara al agente a prestar servicio. No hubo votación.
HB 165. Income tax credit; business enterprises for leased motor vehicles; repeal and reserve
Desde 0:14:17 · turnos 113 a 152
Un presentador identificó inicialmente HB 165 como una medida sobre cortejos fúnebres que exigiría a los conductores ceder el paso a los cortejos encabezados por las fuerzas del orden, con una excepción que permitiría a los conductores de camiones no apartarse de la carretera cuando no fuera seguro hacerlo. Después de una discusión sobre la identidad del proyecto de ley, un senador aclaró que HB 165 se refería a viviendas prefabricadas. El senador dijo que aclararía que una exención existente del 90% del impuesto sobre las ventas también se aplica a los impuestos locales sobre las ventas, que no tendría impacto fiscal estatal y que no había suscitado oposición en el comité. No hubo votación.
HB 1000. Income tax; one-time tax credit for individual taxpayers who filed income tax returns for the 2024 and 2025 taxable years; provide
Desde 0:16:57 · turnos 155 a 380
El patrocinador dijo que HB 1000 proporcionaría $1.17 mil millones en reembolsos de impuestos, siguiendo el enfoque de leyes anteriores sobre reembolsos. El patrocinador describió pagos de $250 para quienes presentan declaraciones individuales, $375 para jefes de hogar y $500 para parejas casadas que presentan una declaración conjunta. Cuando se le preguntó cuándo se podría esperar un reembolso, el patrocinador dijo que los contribuyentes tendrían que presentar una declaración y reconoció que primero debía aprobarse el proyecto de ley. Más tarde, el comité incluyó por unanimidad el proyecto de ley en el calendario del pleno.
HB 999. Magistrate courts; collecting sums and fees authorized by law; revise provisions
Desde 0:18:15 · turnos 167 a 183
El patrocinador dijo que HB 999 permitiría a los tribunales de magistrados cobrar tasas adicionales autorizadas por legislación local. El patrocinador dijo que la solicitud de un juez de una tasa para tecnología motivó la propuesta, después de que la asesoría jurídica legislativa indicara que la ley vigente no contemplaba esas tasas adicionales, pese a su uso en algunos tribunales. El patrocinador también describió una corrección a una ley anterior sobre elecciones judiciales: se había redactado una disposición derogatoria para derogar toda la ley en lugar de solo su sección sobre jueces de sucesiones. El patrocinador dijo que el proyecto de ley corregiría ese problema de redacción. No hubo preguntas sustantivas ni votación.
HB 1196. Crimes; offense of criminal trespass involving a wild animal; provide
Desde 0:20:04 · turnos 196 a 380
El presentador del Senado de Georgia dijo que HB 1196 crearía delitos y sanciones por la entrada no autorizada en recintos de animales y la interferencia con animales silvestres, y protegería a los animales y a sus cuidadores en instalaciones como zoológicos y santuarios. El presentador citó casos de acoso en Zoo Atlanta, incluido un incidente en el que se arrojó un animal de peluche a un recinto. Cuando se le preguntó si el proyecto de ley afectaría a la pesca, el presentador dijo que no. Otro miembro preguntó cómo se definían los animales silvestres; el presentador describió animales que se encuentran actualmente o se han encontrado históricamente en estado silvestre y también se refirió a animales domésticos y ganado mantenidos en la agroindustria. Un miembro cuestionó cómo se relacionaba la propuesta con la ley vigente sobre entrada ilícita en propiedad ajena. Otro miembro señaló que se mencionaban los acuarios en la presentación, pero no en el proyecto de ley. El presentador dijo que una enmienda sería aceptable si faltaba la cobertura de los acuarios, pero no se presentó ninguna enmienda. Más tarde, el comité incluyó por unanimidad el proyecto de ley en el calendario del pleno.
SR 610. Senate Study Committee on Improving and Increasing Recycling; create
Desde 0:27:08 · turno 318
Al revisar las medidas disponibles, el presidente identificó SR 610 como una propuesta para crear un comité de estudio sobre reciclaje. No hubo más discusión ni votación, y no se incluyó en el calendario del pleno aprobado.
SR 697. Colbert, Jason; recognize
Desde 0:26:57 · turnos 318 a 380
El presidente propuso colocar SR 697 en el calendario del pleno del lunes junto con otra resolución de reconocimiento. El presidente describió las resoluciones como homenajes a personas, pero no se dio ninguna explicación adicional sobre esta resolución. El comité aprobó por unanimidad el calendario que la contenía.
SR 698. Mirzakulova, Dr. Ekaterina; recognize
Desde 0:26:58 · turnos 318 a 380
El presidente propuso colocar SR 698 en el calendario del pleno del lunes junto con otra resolución de reconocimiento. El presidente describió las resoluciones como homenajes a personas, pero no se dio ninguna explicación adicional sobre esta resolución. El comité aprobó por unanimidad el calendario que la contenía.
HB 1020. Judicial Retirement System; payment of monthly retirement benefits for creditable service as a district attorney at the age of 65 years; provide
Desde 0:27:29 · turnos 321 a 324
Un representante se ofreció a responder preguntas de seguimiento sobre HB 1020 y dijo que se estaba elaborando una enmienda. El presidente dijo que un texto sustitutivo no estaba listo y pospuso la consideración hasta el lunes. El presidente también dijo que el proyecto de ley había sido remitido del pleno al comité permanente ese mismo día. No se explicaron ni se votaron cambios sustantivos.
HB 485. Official Code of Georgia Annotated; various provisions enacted prior to 2013 which are contingent upon funding and which remain unfunded; repeal
Desde 0:28:02 · turno 328
El presidente revisó HB 485 y dijo que su presentador había comparecido varias veces anteriormente. No hubo explicación de sus disposiciones, más discusión ni votación, y no se incluyó en el calendario del pleno aprobado.
HB 521. Local government; deannexation of certain properties; revise procedures
Desde 0:28:12 · turnos 328 a 380
El presidente dijo que el comité había escuchado anteriormente al presentador de HB 521. No se explicaron disposiciones en esta reunión. Más tarde, un miembro del comité solicitó que se colocara en el calendario del pleno, y el comité aprobó por unanimidad el calendario que lo contenía.
HB 535. Penal institutions; credit for time served regarding probation revocation sentencing; provide
Desde 0:28:19 · turnos 328 a 380
El presentador del Senado de Georgia dijo que HB 535 otorgaría un abono por el tiempo de reclusión mientras una persona detenida por una infracción de la libertad condicional espera que se resuelva el asunto. Un miembro del comité preguntó si el abono se aplicaría a un cargo adicional o solo a la condena existente. El presentador dijo que el proyecto de ley se aplicaba solo a la condena que se cumplía en libertad condicional, aunque se podrían abordar otros abonos mediante un acuerdo de declaración de culpabilidad. Más tarde, el comité incluyó por unanimidad el proyecto de ley en el calendario del pleno.
HB 983. Conservation and natural resources; prescribed burning for silviculture purposes is exempt from certain burning notice and permit requirements; clarify
Desde 0:29:06 · turnos 342 a 380
El presidente identificó HB 983 como un proyecto de ley relacionado con el sector forestal e invitó a hacer preguntas; no se hizo ninguna. Luego, un miembro del comité solicitó que se colocara en el calendario del pleno. No se explicaron disposiciones, y el comité aprobó por unanimidad el calendario que lo contenía.
Transcripción
381 turnos. Seleccione un tiempo para reproducir ese momento del video.
- 0:05:44
We're officially in Rules Standing Committee. What's the date today? March 12th, 2026, in the year of our Lord. Senator Still, would you lead us in a word of prayer?
- 0:06:05
Heavenly Father, thank you for protecting, uh, our friends and our families as we are away doing the work for the people of Georgia. Pray that, uh, we make great decisions today. Prepare us for Monday and, uh, keep everyone safe over the weekend. In Your name we pray. Amen.
- 0:06:21
Amen. All right. I've got some very special guests here today. Uh, I've got the Noonan Youths- Noonan Youth Council here. Y'all please stand up. These are leaders in, uh, back in Noonan around various schools, and- ... they come up to see how our government works, and they d- they're gonna be great leaders back in, back in my hometown one day. Well, actually, you already are. So thank y'all for being here, and Jamie, thank you for all you do.
- 0:06:52
Um, okay.
- 0:06:54
They're gonna run for Senate.
- 0:06:55
Maybe, maybe. 25, what is that, about seven more years for some of you. You can have it now if you want it. All right, we've got one bill in standing committee I would like to move out. This bill actually made it to the floor last year and then just didn't get called up, so it got sent back to the committee it came out of, which I believe we had made some ch- we were gonna make some changes on it, which is why it came here, b- and we ended up not making those changes. So, um, we have heard testimony on it.
- 0:07:30
Um, you know, it's, it, it essentially helps with the appeal process on property taxes and whatnot. So-
- 0:07:38
So moved.
- 0:07:40
Is it... All right, let's roll with it. I got a motion and a second. I'm sorry, this is HB 445.
- 0:07:46
Thank you.
- 0:07:47
This is in standing committee, so I would just like to get it to the, um, general rules calendar. So I've got a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? All right, hearing none, all in favor say aye.
- 0:07:59
Aye.
- 0:07:59
All opposed say nay. Motion carries unanimous. All right, thank y'all. We're gonna adjourn from standing, and we're gonna start with our general rules committee. All right, we'll just go in order of the line there. Representative New.
- 0:08:25
Every day is a new day.
- 0:08:27
Every day is a new day. Thank you, sir.
- 0:08:29
I love it.
- 0:08:29
Appreciate you, Chairman and members. I appreciate the opportunity to speak to you today about House Resolution 251, LC473339. This resolution proposes an amendment to change the constitution that would ensure all probate judges are elected in nonpartisan elections. It also includes a plan for this change to be approved or rejected by the citizens of Georgia by putting it on the ballot for them to decide.
- 0:08:54
Oh, there it is. Okay.
- 0:08:56
That's the bill. Thank you, sir.
- 0:08:58
All right. Are there any questions? Senator Rhett?
- 0:09:02
No, I'll let, I'll let him go first.
- 0:09:04
Who? Oh, Senator Ginn, go ahead.
- 0:09:07
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Representative New, I, I understand the judicial side with the probate judges, but there are other judges, I think, that run partisan. W- w- why would you not include all of them?
- 0:09:19
So these are the only judges now that run partisan. There's 53 out of 1,600 judges in Georgia that have to run partisan. These are the last ones, sir.
- 0:09:29
Thank you.
- 0:09:29
Thank you for the question.
- 0:09:34
I think it's more than that, isn't it?
- 0:09:36
There's over 1,600 judges-
- 0:09:39
Oh, gotcha
- 0:09:39
... Su- superior,
- 0:09:43
et cetera.
- 0:09:43
'Cause currently we allow, it's up to the local-
- 0:09:47
Correct
- 0:09:47
... um, to the local jurisdiction whether they wanna do partisan or not, which they can do through local legislation. So Representative New's attempting to, um, just go ahead and let's make it statewide. 'Cause I believe, if I remember correctly, I think there's only about five probate judges left. Is that right?
- 0:10:09
There are 53 probate judges left in Georgia.
- 0:10:11
That are partisan?
- 0:10:12
That are partisan, yes, sir.
- 0:10:13
All right, I'm sorry. I don't know where I got five. Maybe out of that 53, so... Yeah, that's right.
- 0:10:21
You knew, you knew five of them was
- 0:10:23
I, I c- I can only read one number at a time. All right. Any other questions?
- 0:10:30
Make them all, uh, partisan?
- 0:10:32
Correct.
- 0:10:34
If citizens-
- 0:10:35
If the citizens should decide.
- 0:10:38
Local preference.
- 0:10:40
Everybody understand?
- 0:10:43
Yeah. One person-
- 0:10:44
All right. Thank you.
- 0:10:46
Thank you, sir.
- 0:10:48
Representative Sebaugh, come on.
- 0:10:52
Thank you, Chairman. Uh, I'm back for the third time r- requesting your consideration on House Bill 61, the Squatter Reform Act. Happy to answer any questions on that.
- 0:11:02
All right. You got HB 549 as well.
- 0:11:05
I do.
- 0:11:06
Why don't you go and go through that?
- 0:11:08
HB 549 is a Police Officer, uh, Reimbursement Act, Training Reimbursement Act. It's a bill that will, uh, reimburse, uh, departments that, uh, train officers and then they leave within six months after training. The department receiving that officer would be responsible for re- reimbursing the training expenses to the training department.
- 0:11:32
Okay. Does anybody got any questions? Senator Robertson.
- 0:11:37
Thank you. Representative Sebaugh, on, uh, HB 61, the bill that was heard in, I think, Public Safety, right?
- 0:11:43
Yes, sir.
- 0:11:44
On this side, has it, has any of the language been altered in that bill? Any changes been made to that bill since then that you're aware of or any changes forthcoming?
- 0:11:52
Not since.
- 0:11:53
Uh, none have been made.
- 0:11:55
Okay. I just had some... There's, there's a little bit of language in there where it talks about the sheriffs and off-duty sheriff's deputies and others. I think, uh, yeah, the constables are mentioned in there.
- 0:12:06
Mm-hmm.
- 0:12:08
And, um, I'll, I'll get with you offline and have some conversation about that.
- 0:12:11
Okay. Yeah.
- 0:12:11
Little, little concern I've got as far as timeframes and some constitutional curiosities-
- 0:12:18
Okay
- 0:12:18
... I'll get with you on.
- 0:12:19
We did, uh, we did talk with the Sheriffs Association on that, and, um, they were in agreement with it, but I'm happy to talk to you about it.
- 0:12:27
Thank you. I appreciate that.
- 0:12:27
Yes, sir.
- 0:12:28
All right. You got another question from Senator Anderson?
- 0:12:30
Um, the House Bill 549, I know you made example six months. But, uh-
- 0:12:39
Yes, that's correct
- 0:12:40
... what if when it was to... How long can they be there where the, the department would not have to pay?
- 0:12:49
So this i- this covers, um, officers that complete their training-
- 0:12:55
I understand
- 0:12:55
... the post-training and that kind of stuff. So as soon as they complete that training and are released to duty, that's when the clock would start.
- 0:13:05
Okay.
- 0:13:06
He didn't say how long, though.
- 0:13:08
Senator Robertson, you're recognized.
- 0:13:09
I think-
- 0:13:10
I think he can help you out
- 0:13:10
... I think to the Chairman's question, he's saying how long do they have to be employed with that agency for that agency so they, before they could leave without the agency having to pay that training? Uh, it's six months.
- 0:13:22
So-
- 0:13:23
It's currently-
- 0:13:23
... they just do six months, and they're out the door then
- 0:13:25
... it's currently... I'm sorry. It's three years.
- 0:13:28
That's what I... Yeah.
- 0:13:28
Three years.
- 0:13:29
Yeah. It's three years.
- 0:13:30
Yeah.
- 0:13:30
Yeah. Too much. Yeah.
- 0:13:31
Questions.
- 0:13:31
I apologize.
- 0:13:33
Once you finally got to it.
- 0:13:34
Finally got it.
- 0:13:35
Yeah. All right.
- 0:13:37
So it's three years. Is it three years?
- 0:13:40
I'm not sure. I think he said three.
- 0:13:42
Three.
- 0:13:45
I think so.
- 0:13:45
Y'all get three? Did everybody get three? I heard three.
- 0:13:48
I think I still understood.
- 0:13:51
Students, youth council, did y'all hear three? All right. Not 53, three.
- 0:13:58
Senator Jackson said she heard six months.
- 0:14:03
All right. Let's move on.
- 0:14:04
Thank you.
- 0:14:05
Uh, Senator, uh, Representative Townsend.
- 0:14:08
Yes, sir.
- 0:14:08
Um-
- 0:14:08
I'm pinch-hitting today-
- 0:14:09
... from Franklin
- 0:14:10
... for Rhett, uh, Franklin. He, he lost a little bit of hair, but he could not be here, so I'm pinch-hitting for him. It's HB 165. It's the funeral procession bill. Basically, it requires, uh, drivers to yield at a funeral procession if, if lead, led by law enforcement. However, there is an exception. Tr- truck drivers must yield as well, but they, they're not required to pull off the road if doing so would be unsafe, and that is just of the bill.
- 0:14:35
What bill?
- 0:14:37
165. Representative Franklin.
- 0:14:38
It's, uh, Representative Leeman Franklin.
- 0:14:41
Leeman.
- 0:14:43
Hopefully I gave you the right number. I should have. I think it was changed. Let's see. It was HB 77 originally, and I think they changed it.
- 0:14:54
Just didn't change the title. We got a habit, bad habit of that. We're getting better, though. All right. Any other questions other than which bill are we on?
- 0:15:05
I come with Leeman.
- 0:15:08
And Russ Goodman is, uh, carrying the bill.
- 0:15:11
Ooh.
- 0:15:11
Oh, yeah.
- 0:15:12
Hopefully that's a good sign.
- 0:15:14
I felt-
- 0:15:14
It's a great bill
- 0:15:15
... I felt like you had a good shot there.
- 0:15:18
All right.
- 0:15:19
Good seeing you.
- 0:15:19
Thank you.
- 0:15:20
Thank you. Thank you.
- 0:15:23
That is not the right bill.
- 0:15:24
Yeah. All right. Hold on. Hold on. Hold on.
- 0:15:29
It used to be 77.
- 0:15:35
I thought it was actually on the right bill. It's on the general calendar.
- 0:15:40
Okay. All right.
- 0:15:42
Yeah. I was told 165.
- 0:15:43
Thank you. It's, that bill's still-
- 0:15:48
165
- 0:15:49
... to 165?
- 0:15:50
Yeah.
- 0:15:52
Yeah. Senator Hufstetler hijacked it.
- 0:15:55
Yeah, 77's on the green sheet, which means that it ain't quite made it here yet. It's close, though.
- 0:16:02
We're close.
- 0:16:03
One step closer.
- 0:16:04
165.
- 0:16:04
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
- 0:16:05
165, uh, Senator Hufstetler's gonna cover that.
- 0:16:08
This, this is Beth Camp's, uh, bill that we had passed out last year dealing with manufactured home. The current law gives a 90% sales tax exemption on manufactured homes, but historically the exemption, it wasn't clear on whether it went to local sales taxes or not. So this says that it does, that it will go to the local sales tax as well. Um, no fiscal impact on the state. I didn't hear any opposition in committee.
- 0:16:36
All right. Well, I want to commend Representative Townsend for at least trying, so.
- 0:16:41
Yes, sir.
- 0:16:42
We will notify- ... Representative Franklin you're fighting f- for his bill. All right. Representative Campbell.
- 0:16:50
What number?
- 0:16:51
Thanks for coming out.
- 0:16:53
Thank you, Chairman. It's good to be with y'all today. I've got, uh, House Bill 1000 on the back of your sheet. Um-
- 0:17:00
One that's actually on here
- 0:17:01
... one that's, uh, actually on there. Imagine that. So this is, uh, again, House Bill 1000. It's a repeat of three pieces of legislation that we've all actually done before. House Bill 1302 from 2022, House Bill 162 from 2023, and House Bill 112 from 2025. Uh, this is a tax refund for Georgians, uh, to the amount of $1.17 billion, and it will be given out in the form of $250 for an individual filer, $375 for a head of household, and 500 for those married filing jointly.
- 0:17:41
So that is what the bill is, and I'm happy to answer any questions.
- 0:17:46
Any question? No questions. Oh, Senator Rhett.
- 0:17:49
When can I expect my check?
- 0:17:51
You can expect your check as soon as you file your return for th- this year. Have to file a return, and you can't file less than-
- 0:17:58
You may want to wait till we get 1199 done, though
- 0:18:00
... Well, yeah, until we, yeah, pass the bill, too, so. Anyway, appreciate your consideration.
- 0:18:07
Thank you.
- 0:18:08
Thank you.
- 0:18:10
All right.
- 0:18:13
Afternoon, Mr. Chairman and members of the committee. I have House Bill 999.
- 0:18:16
999.
- 0:18:17
It's at the bottom of the first page, I believe, very bottom.
- 0:18:20
Representative Levert.
- 0:18:20
This bill relates to magistrate courts, and it does two things. First, it provides that a magistrate court can collect additional fees other than what are specifically set out in statute if authorized by a local act of the General Assembly. The context in which this came and was presented to me is one of my judges wanted to collect a technology fee. Many courts already do. Legislative counsel opined that there, the statute currently does not contemplate additional fees by local act, so we're trying to amend the statute to cap- catch up with what is apparently the practice in a number of places.
- 0:18:52
And then there also is a second section which is related to the resolution that Representative New presented, and that's the resolution that calls the election on pro- whether probate judges would be nonpartisan. They're a constitutional officer, so there has to be a referendum to change the nature of their office. We had House, House Bill 426 last year which dealt with both magistrate and probate, and provided they would be nonpartisan, but had repealer in there for the probate judges. Well, the way the repealer section was drafted, it would repeal the entire bill, not just the section related to probate judges.
- 0:19:25
So we're, we're trying to sort of correct a typo, for lack of a better word.
- 0:19:30
Y'all following this?
- 0:19:31
Yes.
- 0:19:32
Okay.
- 0:19:33
It's exciting stuff, I know, Mr. Chairman, but it is important-
- 0:19:36
Good bill
- 0:19:36
... to our state's magistrate and probate court judges.
- 0:19:38
Good bill. Any questions? All right, no questions.
- 0:19:43
Thank you.
- 0:19:43
Thank you, Representative Levert.
- 0:19:44
Appreciate it.
- 0:19:45
Senator McNeel, what do we owe the pleasure?
- 0:19:47
Hey.
- 0:19:47
Welcome this morning.
- 0:19:49
Good afternoon, Mr. Chairman, members of my fellow-
- 0:19:51
Are you here to present a bill?
- 0:19:53
I am. I am here to present-
- 0:19:53
This is your first bill.
- 0:19:55
It is.
- 0:19:56
I thought you was in the Senate.
- 0:19:58
Yeah. What's, what's-
- 0:19:59
Still got my baby shoes on
- 0:20:00
... so your first bill's gonna be a... What's the bill number?
- 0:20:02
It's bill number 11- House Bill 1196.
- 0:20:06
So your first bill is gonna be a House bill.
- 0:20:08
That's it.
- 0:20:10
Wow. Wow.
- 0:20:13
It is.
- 0:20:14
That's-
- 0:20:14
Would you like to hear about it, Mr. Chairman?
- 0:20:16
I'm not sure how I feel about a senator's first bill being a House bill, but I guess we'll hear it.
- 0:20:22
All right. This, this House bill establishes specific criminal offenses and penalties for unauthorized entry into animal enclosures and interference with wild animals. This bill is intended to protect animals housed in facilities such as zoos, aquariums, safaris, sanctuaries, and other similar institutions, as well as protect the people responsible for their care. The legislation creates a new framework within Georgia law defining criminal trespass involving a wild animal, including definitions, degrees of the offense, and penalties.
- 0:20:52
And this bill, uh, was, uh, was presented to judiciary a few days ago, uh, by Representative Tyler Paul Smith. And Zoo Atlanta's had some issues with people throwing and harassing the animals over there, and what-
- 0:21:04
Which animals?
- 0:21:06
What's that?
- 0:21:06
Which animals?
- 0:21:06
Which animals?
- 0:21:07
The ones you probably
- 0:21:09
Oh, my.
- 0:21:09
Yeah. Perhaps some gorillas, monkeys, chimpanzees, um, and other species of the that I, I, I'm, uh, fully unaware of. But, um, the overall impact of House Bill 1196 is that it would strengthen protections for animals and animal facilities by creating specific criminal offenses for-
- 0:21:29
Are you reading the whole bill?
- 0:21:30
No, no, no, no, no, no.
- 0:21:32
You don't have to read the whole bill. Senator Kirkpatrick, you're recognized at this time. Yes. I... Is this gonna interfere q- with when I wanna go fishing?
- 0:21:38
This will not. This will not. No, ma'am.
- 0:21:40
At the zoo? Well, those are wild animals. Yeah.
- 0:21:43
Those are, those are, those are within-
- 0:21:44
The zoo
- 0:21:44
... sanctuaries and c- custody of people, um-
- 0:21:47
Do you fish at the zoo? No, not yet. Now, you're the reason- Not yet. You're the reason we got this flock up here. Oh, y'all stop. This isn't her first bill. This is Senator McNeel's first bill. All right.
- 0:22:02
Great.
- 0:22:02
Senator Albers, you're recognized.
- 0:22:04
Uh, thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate it then. Scratching my head on this one a little bit. Uh, Senator, um, can you define wild animal for this committee?
- 0:22:13
Yes. Um, any animal currently or historically found in the wild, but that, that definition would also include domestic animals and livestock, um-
- 0:22:23
Hmm. So domestic animals-
- 0:22:23
... kept in the normal course and scope of agribusiness.
- 0:22:27
Would this involve the practice of cow tipping?
- 0:22:31
This, this would, um-
- 0:22:33
Would that make it legal or illegal?
- 0:22:35
Illegal.
- 0:22:35
Illegal.
- 0:22:36
Mm-hmm.
- 0:22:36
Illegal.
- 0:22:37
Yeah.
- 0:22:37
Okay. Um, it, now this is a, this is a House bill, right?
- 0:22:41
Correct.
- 0:22:41
And it references a zoo.
- 0:22:43
Yeah.
- 0:22:44
That is correct.
- 0:22:45
Do you find any connection between those two?
- 0:22:48
I, um, I'm too green to know the, the, the reference here.
- 0:22:52
All right. No further questions.
- 0:22:54
All right. Senator Robertson, you're recognized.
- 0:22:56
Thank you. Senator, do you practice criminal law?
- 0:22:59
I do not.
- 0:23:00
Obviously. Um- If someone leaves the door of their house open, and somebody walks in it without the intent to commit a felony, what would that charge be under Title 16?
- 0:23:11
Without the intent, that'd probably be a misdemeanor.
- 0:23:13
What would that misdemeanor be called?
- 0:23:15
Trespass.
- 0:23:16
Or would it be called criminal trespass?
- 0:23:19
Ooh. Um, that's a great question there, Senator Robertson.
- 0:23:24
That's right. So what I'm, what I'm wondering is, um-
- 0:23:28
Was that on the bar exam?
- 0:23:30
I d- I've never taken the bar.
- 0:23:32
Oh. Any lawyers?
- 0:23:33
Did y'all, y'all get that one right?
- 0:23:34
I spent, I spent plenty of time at a bar, but not that one. Um- But, um-
- 0:23:39
Hey, we got kids here
- 0:23:40
... so, ri- exactly.
- 0:23:42
Keep it clean. Keep it clean.
- 0:23:42
So can I ask you who is, uh, who are you carrying this bill for?
- 0:23:47
The monkeys. The monkeys and, uh, Senator-
- 0:23:51
The senator?
- 0:23:51
Or, uh, Representative Smith.
- 0:23:55
Okay.
- 0:23:55
He just called representatives. Tyler Paul Smith.
- 0:23:58
So you're carrying this for another attorney is what you're telling me?
- 0:24:00
That is correct.
- 0:24:01
Ooh. Thank you. I appreciate that.
- 0:24:03
Do either of y'all represent the zoo or a zoo?
- 0:24:06
Negative. No.
- 0:24:07
Okay. Just curious. Senator Anderson, you're recognized at this time.
- 0:24:11
Senator, a couple of question. One, one is- How many different wild animals are there?
- 0:24:19
Could you repeat that, please?
- 0:24:21
How many different wild animals are there?
- 0:24:25
I would have to defer to the zoologists on that one at Zoo Atlanta. I couldn't begin to know.
- 0:24:31
It's not in your bill?
- 0:24:33
We, no. We, we-
- 0:24:35
You might wanna find-
- 0:24:36
How many wildly-
- 0:24:37
Senator, you might wanna find the answer to that before it hits the floor.
- 0:24:40
Thank you, Chairman.
- 0:24:41
Just giving you a head's up.
- 0:24:42
Yes.
- 0:24:43
Trying to help you out.
- 0:24:43
Follow up, follow up-
- 0:24:45
Oh, wow
- 0:24:45
... one more question. In your right mind, Senator,
- 0:24:52
why did you choose a house bill to be your first bill?
- 0:24:56
Oh, get gone here.
- 0:24:57
This was assigned to me during judiciary, um, in, in reference to a stuffed animal thrown over the enclosure at a zoo, and apparently the, I don't know what, what primate it may have been. It may have been an orangutan, gorilla, chimpanzee, whatever it was.
- 0:25:15
In fairness to the senator-
- 0:25:16
Special bond
- 0:25:17
... he was, he didn't get sworn in until a couple days before crossover, so that's why his first bill is a house bill. So I do appreciate you jumping right in. Senator Still, quick question, then we're gonna move on.
- 0:25:27
Thank you, Chairman. Um, Senator, in your presentation you referenced aquariums, but in the bill I don't see that there. Um, are we targeting the Georgia Aquarium in this as well? And what types of foul behavior are happening to our whale sharks, dolphins, fish, and other things that are there?
- 0:25:45
That's where Senator Kirkpatrick's been fishing.
- 0:25:55
That's why I catch one every time. Throw some bait and one shows up.
- 0:25:55
The sharks are large.
- 0:25:55
You're about to recuse yourself.
- 0:25:57
The whales even bigger.
- 0:25:58
There's sharks around here.
- 0:25:59
But that's a fair question. And, uh, if it's not addressed, then we, I would be agreeable to an amendment for it.
- 0:26:04
Man, this is hard.
- 0:26:05
But I believe the rapping on the glass-
- 0:26:08
Yeah, it'd be hard to throw the food
- 0:26:09
... glass enclosure.
- 0:26:12
Sir, I think he's insulting this body right here by making his first bill a zoo/wild animal bill, a house bill, and then come present it in front of us.
- 0:26:22
Well, we're gonna give him a pass. He just got here. All right, Senator, good job. Thank you.
- 0:26:27
Thank you.
- 0:26:27
I think you're gonna do great on the floor with it- ... should you make it that far.
- 0:26:31
This, this should be, uh, Pandora's box. Thank you.
- 0:26:35
All right, let's, uh... Senator Burns, you got your two resolutions.
- 0:26:42
I, I, I'm fearful of coming up here-
- 0:26:43
I'm gonna save you some time. Let's just go ahead and put those on the floor.
- 0:26:46
Thank you very much. Let's get them out of the way.
- 0:26:49
So- We need to honor those great Americans.
- 0:26:57
S- SR 697 and SR 698, we'll do those, what's the day? Thursday, Monday. Okay. Um, going back, starting, we got SR 610. Oh, did I get everybody? All right, SR 610, Senator Hatchett. That's his study committee on recycling.
- 0:27:20
Representative.
- 0:27:20
Representative Reeves, I'm sorry. Did you, you got, you got a bill?
- 0:27:27
I don't. I was just here to follow up on House Bill 1020 at the conclusion or if any follow-up's needed. I think there's an amendment in the works.
- 0:27:35
Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah. The, the sub w- isn't ready, so we're gonna, we're gonna take that up on Monday.
- 0:27:40
Thank you.
- 0:27:43
And he's referring to 1020 that was on the floor today and was referred to s- to standing committee. So we'll, we will take up that on Monday. Be prepared. Okay. Senator Still, HB 61. Did we already cover that?
- 0:27:58
Covered it.
- 0:27:58
We covered it. I'm sorry.
- 0:27:59
I covered it.
- 0:28:00
You're right. Uh, HB 485, we've heard from Representative Yoder multiple times on that. We should be good. HB 521, we've heard from Sen- uh, Representative Anderson on that. HB 535, that is Representative Smith, being carried by Senator Cowsert.
- 0:28:28
This just, uh, allows you to get credit for time served if you're picked up on a probation violation and take some time to have a, a disposition of that.
- 0:28:38
Okay.
- 0:28:39
Can I ask a quick question?
- 0:28:40
Sure.
- 0:28:41
Sure.
- 0:28:42
Question, Senator Orrock.
- 0:28:42
Is it, is it if you're picked up only on a VOP? If you're picked up on an additional charge, does it go toward that? Or is it-
- 0:28:48
Only-
- 0:28:48
... just on the existing charge you're on probation for?
- 0:28:51
Just the existing charge. I mean, you could take care of that in a plea bargain if you-
- 0:28:55
Right
- 0:28:56
... if you worked it out, but this only applies to the probated sentence.
- 0:28:58
Thank you, sir.
- 0:29:01
All right. Any other questions here? None. All right. HB 983 is Representative Hagens', I like to call the silviculture bill. Any questions? Good. And that's all of them. So let's pick a few.
- 0:29:20
I already got the two resolutions on. I'm gonna do, I've got two ding-dings.
- 0:29:25
Ooh, I got one.
- 0:29:27
So, and Senator Ginn, you know what? You got one, so we're gonna let you have your other one. Go for it.
- 0:29:34
Thank you. How about House Bill 983?
- 0:29:36
House Bill 983.
- 0:29:39
Bottom of the third page.
- 0:29:41
Silviculture. The silviculture bill.
- 0:29:44
Ooh, excited.
- 0:29:45
All right.
- 0:29:46
Something about a tree.
- 0:29:47
And then we're back, uh, the dean of the Senate.
- 0:29:50
Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
- 0:29:51
Senator Harbison.
- 0:29:52
Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'd like to have House Bill 521.
- 0:29:57
521.
- 0:30:05
Okay.
- 0:30:09
Senator Cowsert.
- 0:30:14
I'll go ahead and do House Bill 535.
- 0:30:17
Ooh.
- 0:30:18
For the Chairman.
- 0:30:21
Ooh.
- 0:30:21
Judy 97.
- 0:30:23
535.
- 0:30:23
Well, well.
- 0:30:26
Let's see. We've got one, two, three. Al- all right. Y- you can go ahead and do it now.
- 0:30:31
I'm gonna go with the monkey time.
- 0:30:33
Ooh.
- 0:30:33
Uh, 1196.
- 0:30:34
Ooh, monkey time.
- 0:30:36
Oh.
- 0:30:37
Like it. All right.
- 0:30:40
There we go.
- 0:30:42
So that's four, five. All right, and then I'm gonna add HB 1000. Ooh, that one gives me another pick.
- 0:30:53
But I'll save it. All right, so we've got SR 697, SR 698, HB 521, HB 535, HB 983, HB 1000, HB 1196.
- 0:31:09
So moved.
- 0:31:10
I've got a motion from my vice chairman. I got a second from Senator Ginn. Is there any further discussion? All in favor say, "Aye."
- 0:31:19
Aye.
- 0:31:19
All opposed say, "No." Motion carries unanimous. Get on to your committees. Meeting adjourned.