House Ways & Means Committee, February 18, 2026

Transcript

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1. 0:16:23

   I don't see Petrea. Do you want to just pack them in the end?

2. 0:17:39

   Good morning, everybody. I think that's about time.

3. 0:17:45

   Appreciate everybody being here this morning.

4. 0:17:54

   Uh, we're gonna go ahead and call the meeting to order. Uh, Chairman Corbett, would you mind opening us up in a word of prayer, please, sir? A- absolutely. Y'all bow with me. Dear Lord, we just come before you this morning, Lord, just we can know Jesus know how. We just wanna ask that you just, uh, be with us today, Lord. Uh, you know, thank you for the many blessings you bestow upon us each and every day. Ask you just lead, guide, and direct us as we make decisions that affect this state, that all things we do be pleased in thy sight. And all things we ask in Jesus' name. Amen.

5. 0:18:24

   Amen. Thank you so much, Chairman. Um, how's everybody doing this morning? Good. Good. All right. Well, thanks for being here. Um, we're gonna go a little bit out of order this morning. I know we have some people that, that need to get back to committee. Um, Chairman Petrea, are you ready? I am. All right. And you just bounced in here.

6. 0:18:48

   Right on time. HB 1085. If you'll just share your, um, LC number, and I'll turn the floor over to you, sir. Thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank you for... Excuse me. Thank you for allowing me to go so swiftly. I'm in the, my committee is meeting as we speak, and we have an important measure there. Thank you for allowing me to run over. This is Substitute House Bill 1085, LC 44, 3459S. 3459S.

7. 0:19:21

   You good? Yes, sir. All right. You may proceed. All right, Mr. Chairman, this, uh, this, um, bill is simply what we believe is the most efficient and the most expeditious way to attack the real crisis that we have in our timber industry across this state. Everyone on this body is well aware that, uh, we have been, uh, for a long time, number one in timber, number one in, uh, in pulp, and, uh, agriculture's our largest industry.

8. 0:19:52

   Forestry is the largest, uh, sector of that industry, and we've had just this cascading effect of mill losses across this state. And by the way, meanwhile, we have new mills being built in other states, and you'll understand why important that is as we go through this measure. As we've tried to, uh, discover the, the best way to, uh, turn this around, we have found, uh, that the, the best path is to make existing tax credits, okay, existing job tax credits and investment tax credits.

9. 0:20:29

   As you go through this document, sections one and section two speak to job tax credits, and sections three, four, and five speak to investment tax credits. They already exist, and you'll see that language in there. That is existing law. What we're doing here is making those tax credit that, credits that currently exist expressly for forestry manufacturing transferable. So what we're really doing is making them transferable expressly for the forestry industry.

10. 0:21:04

    Now famously, we all know how this issue, making tax credits transferable, have impacted the film industry. And, uh, the, the success there is, uh, known to all. Well, long before the film industry, and long before so much of the industry that we have in this state, uh, forestry built Georgia. I mean, I'm a Savannah boy, and, uh, if it weren't for, if it weren't for paper mills, and Chairman Stevens knows well, who grew up there on the west side, if it weren't for the paper industry, we wouldn't be there.

11. 0:21:41

    And so, um, we have got to do something to fix these, uh, this, this multitude of losses. There's a lot of new innovation coming. There's a lot of interest in Georgia. We are the wood basket of the country. We've got the supply, but we've got a problem right now with demand, and we believe this is the fastest, most efficient way to fix that. Mr. Chairman, if you'd like me to go through section by section, I'm glad to do that, sir. Well, I, I, I know you've had two subcommittee hearings, and you've been very, very thorough with your presentations.

12. 0:22:14

    Um, let, let me ask first, you know, what is the will of the committee? Move to pass. I second. I have a motion and a second. Uh, further discussion, is that- That's right. Representative Frye.

13. 0:22:32

    Thank you, Mr. Chair. Um, representative, is this a... Just a question. I've been going through this. Would this apply to the acquisition of the mills that are cur- were currently vacated by the Koch brothers and moved to Alabama? I think there's three of them that they own that shut down. So this would, these tax credits apply to potentially encouraging an- another outside entity to acquire those locations to get those mills back up and running.

14. 0:23:10

    Yeah. Representative Frye, my understanding is that would absolutely qualify. Okay. Any, you know, a- as it relates to the, the current statutory framework for whatever the in- investment credits are there, and that sounds like that would be consistent with that. So the acquisition of existing property would in, would be included in that? 'Cause I'm just looking at a way we can get those mills back up and running. I believe that to be true, but my friends with the Forestry Commission, uh, with the Forestry Association are here. Is your understanding as well?

15. 0:23:36

    New investment, but that could, that could be purchasing a mill. So-

16. 0:23:40

    So-

17. 0:23:40

    Right

18. 0:23:40

    ... new investment would qualify as, would, uh, uh, excuse me, a purchase of an existing facility, would that be qualified as new investment? I just want clarification on that, 'cause those are, that's our big, a big problem that we have right there is getting the word-

19. 0:23:55

    It is a big product. Now, I will say this. So that mill, I just alluded to the Savannah mill. That mill, uh, my granddaddy was a pipe fitter there his whole career, and, uh, it's 90 years old now. It's, uh... So, um, some of these mills are so old that, uh, that's part of the problem and is that, um, y- what they really want is new mills. And so I don't know, uh, I don't know whether that would be the chosen path by industry.

20. 0:24:20

    That's-

21. 0:24:20

    We'd love to see somebody move back into that, what was, what used to be Union Bag, and then became Union Camp.

22. 0:24:26

    Right.

23. 0:24:27

    And then became International Paper. We'd love to see somebody move back in there, but what they may prefer is to go to a new site. But, um-

24. 0:24:32

    Okay

25. 0:24:33

    ... but, um, unless there's, you know... I'm not an expert in these kind of tax affairs, but, uh, my hope would be that that would be, uh, that would qualify as well to your question.

26. 0:24:43

    Thank you.

27. 0:24:44

    You know, we're talking about a financing mechanism essentially, so.

28. 0:24:48

    Right.

29. 0:24:48

    Um, I don't see any... Did you want... I don't see any further questions. Uh, we, uh, we have a motion and a second. Any further discussion on that? Hearing none, all those in favor, please signify by stating, "Aye." Aye. Those opposed, like sign. Thank you, Chairman.

30. 0:25:05

    Thank you, Chairman. I'm gonna run straight back.

31. 0:25:07

    Yeah.

32. 0:25:07

    Thank you.

33. 0:25:08

    All right. Um.

34. 0:25:10

    Okay.

35. 0:25:10

    Chairman Martin. HB 962. Are you, you ready, Mr. Chairman?

36. 0:25:16

    Yes, sir.

37. 0:25:21

    Floor is yours.

38. 0:25:22

    M- m- Mr. Chairman, we, we have, uh, HB 962 as, as it was introduced. This bill does two things, um, to, to encourage college savings. We've had, uh, um, a lot of work around, uh, and we've heard a lot about, uh, student debt. This gives the, um, individuals and their families, uh, the opportunity to, uh, save for college and, and save for other educational expenses. In section one of the bill, uh, there's an arbitrary $235,000 cap that can be in a, a account. Once, uh, an account would reach that balance, you, you can't contribute anymore in the, into the Georgia plan.

39. 0:25:56

    Uh, you could other state plans, which leads us to section two, that if you... And, and we're removing that cap and allowing that cap to be set by the board. The board is currently chaired by the governor of the State of Georgia. Section two of the bill, uh, seeks to reach parity so that families can decide where they best, uh, want to invest their money for college. Right now, you only get a state tax deduction against your income tax in Georgia, Georgia citizens, if you invest in the Georgia plan. This gives, uh, our taxpayers the ability to get that deduction and choose the best-of-breed p- plan.

40. 0:26:27

    By the way, the Georgia plan is a very good plan. It's in the top 10 recognized nationally. But sometimes that doesn't fit each and every family, so this just gives folks a, a choice, and we're encouraging people to save, um, for college. It's that simple.

41. 0:26:44

    Any questions, uh, for the author? I don't see any. What's the will of the committee? Motion. We have a motion. Second. And a second. Uh, any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor of passage, please signify by stating, "Aye." Aye. Those opposed, like sign. All right. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman. Bill passes. Um, HB 376. Chairman Hilton. What number are you, sir? 11.

42. 0:27:10

    Uh, number 11.

43. 0:27:11

    I got you. I'll turn the floor over to you.

44. 0:27:15

    Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'll be reading from, uh, LC560574S. House Bill 376 expands on an existing program that's very successful, uh, and incentivizes preservationists to, uh, rehab and, and bring back to life old historic properties across our state. Uh, the, the program is essentially sunsetted today because all of the credits are spoken for. So this would, uh, uh, expe- expand the cap, uh, on line 51 from 30 to 60 million, uh, and then also provides additional incentive, uh, on lines 32 to 36 for our, uh, folks in rural counties.

45. 0:27:55

    I believe we've passed this out, uh, last year in very similar form.

46. 0:28:00

    Yes, sir.

47. 0:28:00

    A number of bills. And, um, actually, I don't know if she's here, but my delegation mate, Dr. Jones, is very interested in this one as well. But thank you, Chairman.

48. 0:28:10

    Yes, sir.

49. 0:28:10

    Uh, I don't see any questions. What's the will of the committee? Motion to second. I have a motion to second. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor of passage, please signify by stating, "Aye." Aye. And those opposed, like sign. All right. Thank you very much. Um, HB 874. Representative Huddleston.

50. 0:28:39

    Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, today on 874, I'll be working off LC443451S. Uh, thank y'all for allowing me to come back before y'all again. This bill, um, as we've stated before, is basically known as the Georgia Taxpayers Privacy Protection Act. Uh, this piece of legislation is aimed to enhancing taxpayer privacy on property tax records. The bill would prohibit the disclosure of taxpayer telephone numbers when property tax records are sold, transferred, or shared with third parties.

51. 0:29:11

    Under this proposal, anyone who inappropriately discloses a taxpayer's phone number could face civil penalties for violating the law. The intent of this personal protection contact information from being publicly exposed or misused while still allowing government agencies to use the data internally for tax administration. Basically, this is a bill, like you said, just, uh, giving privacy protection of phone numbers that's being, that's, you know, being, uh, shared with third parties, uh- you know, for like I said, sole transfer, that type thing.

52. 0:29:42

    And, and basically there, you know, I feel that we see a lot of this in, in every day that, that we have these, uh, phone calls and texts that's coming. So that's the bill, Mr. Chairman, and I'll answer any questions.

53. 0:29:52

    Thank you, Representative. Uh, I think you have a question here, Chairman Hilton.

54. 0:29:56

    Representative, will this reduce the number of spam calls that I get on a daily basis?

55. 0:30:01

    That's, that's the intent.

56. 0:30:02

    Great bill.

57. 0:30:02

    Basically, like I said, and, and fraudulent and spam and just nuisance phone calls, that's correct.

58. 0:30:06

    Thank you.

59. 0:30:06

    And, and like I said, uh, you gotta think in more things it's more digitally available being transferred this day and time. This has been, uh, to me is knowing that it's already occurring, it would be more of a proactive approach. At least we're getting start to, to alleviate some of those.

60. 0:30:19

    Great bill. Thank you.

61. 0:30:24

    I don't see any further questions. I heard a due pass. We have a motion and a second. Is there any further discussion? Seeing none, all those in favor of passage please signify by stating I.

62. 0:30:34

    I.

63. 0:30:34

    Those opposed like sign. Bill passes. Thank you, Representative.

64. 0:30:37

    Thank y'all very much.

65. 0:30:38

    Yes, sir.

66. 0:30:41

    That's your first Ways and Means bill?

67. 0:30:43

    Yes, sir.

68. 0:30:43

    Oh, congratulations.

69. 0:30:45

    Yes, sir.

70. 0:30:45

    Yeah.

71. 0:30:45

    Like I said, it's, uh, been very interesting. Thank y'all very much. Hopefully it's made me a better legislator. Thank y'all.

72. 0:30:54

    All right. Um, I know, uh, we're gonna go with HB1159, um, Leader Gamble.

73. 0:31:06

    You here? Okay.

74. 0:31:10

    Oh. Good morning, Chairman, members of the committee. It's good to be with y'all this morning. I have, uh, House Bill 1159, which is, uh, part of the governor's legislative package this year dealing with the Farmers Bridge Assistance Program tax deduction. Uh, and just in essence what this bill does is it would provide farmers with an income tax deduction equal to any payments received as income through the Farmers Bridge Assistance Program. This is very similar to last year's Hurricane Helene relief package, Senate Bill 203, which exempted federal disaster relief payments from state income tax.

75. 0:31:50

    This legislation ensures that farmers receive the full amount of these funds and can use them for their intended purposes. They do apply to row crops. Uh, yesterday, uh, mistakenly said corns. Uh, did not mean, uh, anything other than corn. Uh, but, uh, barley, uh, chickpeas, cotton, lentils, oats, peanuts, peas, rice, sorghum, soybeans, wheat, canola, carambola, flax, mustard, rapeseed, uh, s- safflower, sesame, and sunflower.

76. 0:32:24

    But also specialty crops have now been added to this as well, which include fruits, vegetables, and tree nuts. And so I am happy to explain more about this Federal Bridge Assistance Program and what it does, but Chairman, I know we've been through subcommittee twice, uh, and I'm happy to answer any questions. But that is in essence what we're trying to do with House Bill 1159.

77. 0:32:47

    Thank you, Leader, uh, Gamble. I have a question, uh, Chairman Williamson.

78. 0:32:51

    Uh, thank you, Mr. Chairman. Um, f- floor leader, c- can you, uh, tell me what rapeseed is?

79. 0:32:58

    I'm gonna struggle a little bit there, Chairman. But, uh-

80. 0:33:00

    Does it have anything to do with music?

81. 0:33:00

    I'm gonna let you enlighten me.

82. 0:33:01

    Does that have anything to do with music, rapeseed?

83. 0:33:03

    It, it does not. Rapeseed, uh, yeah.

84. 0:33:06

    You said, oh, so rapeseed.

85. 0:33:07

    Yeah, yeah.

86. 0:33:07

    You're talking about canola. Okay.

87. 0:33:08

    Yeah, that's right. Yes, sir.

88. 0:33:09

    I just wanna make sure we were talking about the same-

89. 0:33:11

    Yes

90. 0:33:12

    ... item.

91. 0:33:12

    And I, I won't go back to what I said yesterday about being from Cartersville, but sometimes- ... I do struggle-

92. 0:33:18

    There's nothing wrong with Cartersville schools

93. 0:33:18

    ... with my pronunciation. That's right. That's right.

94. 0:33:21

    Nothing wrong with it.

95. 0:33:24

    We, we, for- fortunate we have a number of very astute and, um, uh, outstanding farmers represented, you know, throughout this capital. So I'm sure there's plenty of help around if you need it, so.

96. 0:33:37

    That's right. That's right.

97. 0:33:37

    Um, what's the will of the committee?

98. 0:33:39

    Move to pass.

99. 0:33:40

    I have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all in favor of passage please signify by stating I.

100. 0:33:46

     I.

101. 0:33:47

     Those opposed like sign. All right, thank you.

102. 0:33:49

     Thank you.

103. 0:33:50

     Mr. Speaker.

104. 0:33:50

     Appreciate it.

105. 0:33:55

     Uh, Representative Richardson. Hey, there you are. You're right, right in the front. You have

106. 0:34:06

     HR1178 and HB1156, sir.

107. 0:34:13

     Yes, sir. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, I'd like to go with the, um, HR1178 first, LC473826. Um,

108. 0:34:26

     the constitution amendment Georgia L, uh, 1999 page t- 1275, uh, which added section 2A to this paragraph, was approved by a majority of voters voting in a general election held in November 7th, 2000, in 2000. The state used this fund for many years, and what we're doing is, uh, asking to remove the cap of $18,000 and codifying that this could be used as a local, uh, bill to, uh, fund tax relief.

109. 0:35:06

     Very simply, you're just, you're gonna let the locals do the same thing the state's able to do as far as homestead taxpayer relief?

110. 0:35:12

     Yes, sir.

111. 0:35:13

     All right. Uh, page 23. Uh, Representative Cannon?

112. 0:35:18

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Just wanna, uh, commend Columbia County for this. This is good work.

113. 0:35:22

     Thank you.

114. 0:35:23

     Thank you very much.

115. 0:35:24

     Thanks.

116. 0:35:26

     I don't see any further questions. Um-

117. 0:35:29

     Move to pass.

118. 0:35:30

     We have a motion and a second on the resolution. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor please signify by stating I.

119. 0:35:38

     I.

120. 0:35:38

     Those opposed like sign.

121. 0:35:40

     All right. Thank you very much. You want to move on to 1156? Yes, sir. Uh, HB 1156, LC473906. Uh, this, uh, in section one, it does, uh, it takes a, a local voter referendum to start and to stop this program. Uh, once the fund is initiated, the local government shall appropriate funds unless their revenues collected fall below their budget. Um, local government spreads the funds between the homesteads.

122. 0:36:12

     Uh, credits issued cannot exceed the amount that the homestead incentive, uh, adjustment in the fund. Uh, section two defines how the fund is operated. Enabling legislation's well thought, thought out. Thank you. Yes. R- r- any, uh, any questions for the author? Do pass. Do pass. Motion do pass and a second. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor, please signify by stating aye. Aye. Those opposed, like sign. All right. Thank you, r- representative.

123. 0:36:43

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I appreciate you, uh, saying that what this can do for local communities, uh- Yes, sir. Yes, sir. Thank you for bringing the legislation. Thank you. Um, lastly, we have a substitute for SB 59. Um, Whip Burchett, uh, I think we have an amendment for you as well, so.

124. 0:37:09

     Yeah. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And yes, uh, I think we do have an amendment. Um, but, um, thank you, committee members. Uh, what we have before you is a substitute for Senate Bill 59, and this, uh, committee, in i- its wisdom, last year, uh, helped out South Georgia significantly by allowing for the reforestation tax credit. We mirrored the language from Hurricane Michael with a $200 million, uh, cap, um, because we only had somewhere around 80% subscription to that $200 million.

125. 0:37:44

     Well, with, uh, Hurricane Helene, we had a subscription of $241 million, and the legislation allowed for proration. And so in conversations with my colleagues, uh, in South Georgia, and, uh, the chairman, we, we, um, are asking this committee to approve, um, the limit to $250 million so that everyone that applied for the tax credit can be made whole. And that's, what you have before you is just a renewal of this reforestation tax credit to allow these farmers that were impacted by Hurricane Helene to be able to replant their crop and then offset that with some of the loss that they found, uh, from the hurricane.

126. 0:38:25

     A- and I believe the application deadline was, uh, somewhat of a, a constraint, and I know that DOR has worked with us, but we, we, we lapsed and, you know, without maybe the notification that some were expecting, so. Yes, sir. You, you, you're exactly right. You know, these folks that were, uh, working through, you know, rebuilding their homes and re- building their farms, uh, they did not, uh, get all of their applications in, so we are opening that application back up with a hard stop at 250 million, and no, um, w- we're not, we're not going to...

127. 0:38:59

     It's first come, first served basis, so with the, the, with the new, uh, amount. W- uh, I know we have an amendment. I don't see any questions. What's the will of the committee? Move to do pass. Second. We have a motion and a second. Uh, and in further discussion, uh, I'll recognize Vice Chairman Kelley. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, appreciate the whip, um, bringing the, bringing the legislation. I know this is something that was important to y'all.

128. 0:39:30

     I just want to make sure that we're clear about, uh, the timeline for how the department should, uh, when they should be in accepting the applications and how those, uh, awards are issued. So maybe Paul could help us, tell us exactly where to insert, but something along the lines of the Department of Revenue shall begin accepting applications for credits for any remaining amount under the aggregate limit of this program no later than July 31st, 2026, period.

129. 0:40:00

     Additionally, the department shall issue notices of award no more than 45 days following the submission of an application. Does that make sense, Paul? When would it open? Um, it does. I understand the intent. Um, Chairman, I'd like to just talk through a little bit of it, get a couple of questions answered in my mind, um, and then I'll, I'll try to phrase, uh, a motion, uh, that gives me some latitude to do what I need to do when I get back to the office and can delve into this with more spec- Yes, sir ... if necessary. But, um, so the way, and I believe I will be making amendments to lines 40 through 45 of LC443463S.

130. 0:40:41

     Uh, currently, that reads, "Tax credits allowed pursuant to this coast- code section shall be eligible to be claimed only by the taxpayer to which the commissioner issued a preapproval certificate." And then the new language states, "Provided, however, that such tax credits shall be eligible to be claimed without the issuance of a preapproval certificate by taxpayers whose applications are received by the commissioner on or after January 1, 2026, in order of receipt by the commissioner." Um, first of all, I will, I will be referring not to the department but to the commissioner because that's the way the existing language reads.

131. 0:41:19

     Um, my next question is, so the way it reads now is applications received by the commissioner on or after January 1 of this year. The proposed language talks about the commissioner beginning to accept applications no later than July 31st of 2026. I, I just wanna make sure I understand the specifics of how that will work from the, the commissioner's perspective is-

132. 0:41:50

     Is it okay for someone to submit an application between January 1 and June 30, for example?

133. 0:41:57

     Yes.

134. 0:41:57

     Okay. Um, so shall begin accepting ... Would, should accepting be changed to processing or some other word, or is the, the, uh, desire of the committee to just leave that as accepting?

135. 0:42:12

     I think it'll lead to processing because it says in the second sentence that the department, or you can ... If you use additionally, the commissioner shall issue notices of award no more than 45 days following the submission of an application. So I think that would lead to the processing.

136. 0:42:30

     Okay, so accepting, accepting no later than July. It, it-

137. 0:42:37

     Let me, let me ... If you don't mind, Paul.

138. 0:42:38

     Yeah.

139. 0:42:39

     Uh, Joe with the Department of Revenue is here.

140. 0:42:41

     Okay.

141. 0:42:41

     I, I saw him stand up. Perhaps he can direct us a little bit here and make sure we give them the right tools.

142. 0:42:47

     Everything that, uh, Representative Kelley said is perfect. Accepting is the language we would prefer to go with there.

143. 0:42:52

     Okay.

144. 0:42:52

     Go on, Joe. Just keep going there.

145. 0:43:02

     It is resolved

146. 0:43:03

     I'll sit back down.

147. 0:43:06

     Does that, does that qualify for-

148. 0:43:07

     I, I believe so. Again, I just wanna make sure I have it clear in my head. Uh, line 62 of the bill, and this is in ... Well, 61 and 62, this is in the existing law, states, "Any tax credits allowed pursuant to this code section shall be claimed on or before December 31, 2030." So the way it would read is that the, the applications are received by the commissioner on or after January 1. The commissioner shall begin accepting them no later than July 31, and then upon acceptance, each applica- of each application, there's a four- 45-day deadline to, for the notice of award.

149. 0:43:50

     Did I state that correctly?

150. 0:43:52

     That's correct.

151. 0:43:53

     I'm getting a lot of nods here.

152. 0:43:54

     Okay. Okay. Then that, that is what I understand to be the intent, and I would ask that the motion provide, provide my office the flexibility to, to, to use a very formal legal word, tweak, uh, the vernacular and the structuring of the code style, non-substantive matters, and make any conforming changes I may determine are necessary.

153. 0:44:16

     Is everybody comfortable with the motion as, as stated?

154. 0:44:21

     Second.

155. 0:44:21

     All right, so we have a, a motion on the amendment and a second. Any further discussion?

156. 0:44:28

     You want to say something?

157. 0:44:29

     Oh, yeah.

158. 0:44:31

     So by doing this amendment, it's putting some people off until July-

159. 0:44:37

     No.

160. 0:44:37

     To get their benefits-

161. 0:44:38

     No.

162. 0:44:38

     No

163. 0:44:38

     ... or, or that's my question.

164. 0:44:39

     It just extends it, basically, is the, the intent is to extend it.

165. 0:44:43

     Or if they go ahead and apply, then it can happen within the 45 days, which would be before July.

166. 0:44:49

     They could receive their awards, if they did it tomorrow, the award would still have to be issued within 45 days of the acceptance of the application.

167. 0:44:59

     But applications are open till July.

168. 0:45:01

     July. I gotcha.

169. 0:45:02

     Yeah. I think it's just to expedite. All right, we have a, a motion and a second, and we're on further discussion on the amendment. Seeing none, all those in favor of, of the amendment, please signify by stating aye.

170. 0:45:16

     Aye.

171. 0:45:16

     Those opposed, like sign. All right, amendment passes, and, uh, now we have a motion and a second on the floor for, uh, SB 59 as amended. Um, is there any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor of passage, please signify by stating aye.

172. 0:45:34

     Aye.

173. 0:45:35

     Those opposed, like sign. All right, bill passes. Thank you very much.

174. 0:45:38

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman. And, uh, Representative O'Steen will be carry- carrying on the floor.

175. 0:45:42

     All right, very good. Thank you, Representative. Any further, anything further from the members of the committee?

176. 0:45:49

     Move to adjourn, Mr. Chairman.

177. 0:45:50

     All right, hearing none, we stand adjourned. Thank you.