'Bed tax' approved after hospitals drop opposition
At the beginning of the month,
several Georgia hospital organizations announced
their decision to support Gov. Perdue's proposal for a
tax increase to offset the state's Medicaid deficit. For
two years, the health care community and most
legislators have opposed the governor's "bed tax"
proposal.
The hospital leaders who changed their positions
apparently decided the tax increase was the lesser of
two evils
when compared to the governor's other
recommendation of a 10.25 percent decrease in
Medicaid reimbursements and reinstatement of the
sales tax on nonprofit hospitals. The cigarette tax,
which was another alternative, never got out of
committee. On March 26, the
House approved HB 307, which would implement a
1.45 percent fee (reduced from the governor's original
1.6 percent proposal). The bill passed the
Senate on April 1, but with several amendments.
House Speaker David Ralston has indicated that the
amendments are unacceptable.
Tax Reform Council: The House voted 111-55
to approve legislation that would create a "tax reform
council" made up largely of Republican officials,
including the current governor, and business interest
representatives to review and recommend changes to
the state's tax code. There would be no
representatives on the council for consumers or other
Georgians without "connections," even though its
decisions would impact them the most. Under HB 1405, the recommendations for tax
law changes would go straight to the House and
Senate floors for a vote, without legislative committees
having a chance to review or amend them. I voted
against this bill.
Other Legislation: With only seven days
remaining in the 2010 session, House members
dealt with a lengthy legislative agenda on cross-over
day.
Other measures that were approved and sent to the
Senate for its consideration included:
HB 938, which would make texting while
driving illegal for drivers of all ages.
HB 1019, which would allow citizens
who live in areas affected by natural disasters to have
their state documents, such as marriage and hunting
licenses, replaced at no charge within 60 days of the
disaster in which they were lost.
HB 1020 and HR 1203, which would allow school
systems to use education special purpose local
option sales tax (E-SPLOST) revenue for maintenance
and operation expenses or to reduce property taxes.
Currently, E-SPLOST money can only be used for
construction projects. As a constitutional amendment,
HR 1203 still needs two-thirds approval by the Senate
and must be approved by the voters in November.
HB 1023, which would give a small tax
credit to businesses that hire unemployed workers.
The legislation would also reduce the state capital
gains tax if the state has $1 billion in reserves. The
fiscal note attached to this legislation indicated that it
would have a negative impact on revenue. I voted
against this bill.
HB 1055, which would raise more than
80 fees charged by various agencies, bringing in an
estimated $96 million in increased revenues. These
increases would affect a variety of services and
permits ranging from court filings to business
licenses to specialty car tags to fireworks displays.
HB 1059, which would allow yard
trimmings to be sorted for recycling at licensed
landfills. Currently these clippings to to separate
landfills. I voted against this bill.
HB 1069, which would provide an
income tax credit of up to $2,500 for the purchase of
water- or energy-efficient equipment for new
construction and retrofitting projects.
HB 1184, which would allow Georgians
to purchase health insurance across state lines.
Amendments to protect coverage presently required in
Georgia policies were defeated. I voted against this
bill.
HB 1196, which would prohibit local
governments from enacting building codes that
require the installation of fire sprinklers in single-
family residences or residential buildings with no
more than two dwelling units.
HB 1199, which would allow the
Department of Natural Resources to create a non-
profit corporation to assist in funding parks
programs.
HB 1233, which would authorize the
Public Service Commission to charge utilities for fees
paid to expert witnesses in rate cases.
HB 1242, which would subject state
Transportation Board members to the same ethics
disclosure rules as legislators.
Merger Rejected: After a lengthy
debate, House members voted to soundly reject a
proposal by Gov. Perdue that would have merged the
state Department of Corrections and the Board of
Pardons & Paroles. HB 1030 was defeated by a vote of 100
in opposition to 59 in favor. I voted against this bill.
With only seven legislative days left, the House still
has not received a proposed budget or a
transportation bill. Hopefully, House members will
see some progress on both this week.
