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Crossover Day has come and gone in the General Assembly this year, with some bills making the deadline to remain eligible for passage in 2024 and others falling by the wayside.
Significant progress has been made on sports betting and reforming Georgia’s Certificate of Need (CON) law governing hospital construction.
Lawmakers have taken steps toward reining in state tax incentives that attract jobs but cost Georgia taxpayers, starting with the popular but expensive film tax credit. After years of inaction on tort reform, lawmakers have passed a bill aimed at a narrow aspect of the issue.
But there was no action before Crossover Day on private school vouchers, another priority of Gov. Brian Kemp and legislative Republicans that has failed to make it through the General Assembly for years. And legislation making sweeping changes to Georgia’s election laws also did not survive Crossover Day.
Last Tuesday’s 41-12 vote in the state Senate in favor of a constitutional amendment asking voters whether to legalize sports betting in Georgia represents the most progress legalized gambling has made in the General Assembly. Senators already had passed an “enabling” bill spelling out how sports betting would be operated in the Peach State.
Any lawmakers who might be wavering on sports betting could be convinced to support the constitutional amendment because it puts the question in the hands of Georgia voters.
“I trust the people of Georgia to make the right decision,” said Sen. Carden Summers, R-Cordele.
The most significant CON reform legislation in years also won passage in the state House of Representatives on Tuesday, billed as a compromise between doing nothing and repealing the law entirely.
The bill would accelerate the state’s review…
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