I am among many legislators concerned over the movement by the leadership in both the state Senate and the House of Representatives toward reopening the issue of redistricting for the third time in the last four years.
The reapportionment of legislative and congressional district lines is required once per decade to reflect population changes in the state. However, because of a lawsuit, Georgia’s 2001 redistricting plan was overturned last year, and new state House and Senate districts were drawn up.
Now, emboldened by their control over both houses of the legislature and the Governor’s Office, some Republican leaders are pushing to rearrange the state’s 13 congressional districts as well. This is an unneeded partisan exercise, reportedly being pushed only by Republican congressmen who wish to strengthen their position in their own districts and Republican state legislators who might have an eye on running for Congress in a newly redrawn district.
While lawmakers should be spending our time focusing on important state issues like education and health care, it appears we are going to have to divert our attention to redistricting to satisfy ambitious politicians who cannot wait until the next census to assume more power. The citizens of Georgia will, of course, be the pawns in the process, enduring more confusion over who represents them in Congress.
The Senate approved midyear changes to the fiscal year 2005 budget. The revisions differed from the supplemental budget passed earlier by the House of Representatives, and a conference committee was appointed to iron out differences in the two plans.
The Senate’s version includes an added $105 million to help local school systems handle increases in student enrollment and an extra $7.6 million to provide more instructional services in public schools. However, no provision was made for the $190 million in cutbacks made last year in education funding. The revised budget also reduces state spending in several health care and human services programs.
The major difference in the Senate’s version is the removal of more than $20 million in bond funding that House budget writers put in to finance construction projects at several universities and technical schools.
By a 38-15 vote, the Senate agreed to accept changes made by the House of Representatives to comprehensive legislation aimed at reducing medical malpractice insurance premiums in Georgia. Later in the week, Gov. Sonny Perdue signed the bill into law.
I supported the legislation in its final form My overriding concern is the impact that rising malpractice premiums have had on access to health care in the Columbus area and throughout Georgia.
The major changes the House made to Senate Bill 3 were raising the limit on non-economic damages in malpractice cases to $350,000 against a single provider or up to $1.05 million against multiple defendants and raising the legal standards for a lawsuit against emergency room health care providers. The bill also includes provisions that eliminate joint and several liability, strengthen the regulations involving expert witness testimony and promote the fair settlement of cases before they go to trial.
These reforms are intended to improve the legal climate in Georgia so that the malpractice insurance market will be more competitive, and premiums will be reduced. MAG Mutual, the largest malpractice insurer in Georgia, has already pledged to roll back its premiums by 10 percent if the Georgia Supreme Court upholds the new law.
I went to the well of the Senate this week to urge my colleagues to support legislation I co-sponsored that would provide meaningful support to members of the Georgia National Guard, more than 4,000 of whom are serving in Iraq.
The legislative package, known as Historic Economic Relief for Our Exceptional Soldiers (HEROES), would create a state fund to help military families pay their household bills, as well as provide a state tax exemption, college tuition grants and life insurance coverage for Guard members. Providing this support is the least the people of Georgia can do in return for the sacrifices these heroes and their families are making for our nation.