Any Georgia Senate or House bill that made the cut on Wednesday, "crossover day," continues to be considered for advancement into law. The notorious HB 1, to provide that prenatal murder shall be unlawful in all events, was one of seven specifically and significantly attacking women's health rights.
The good news is that Bobby Franklin's HB 1 did not advance. Stacey Abrams (D-84), Georgia's House minority leader, has noted that "[It] has been proposed to no effect in previous years, [and had] virtually no chance of passing."
Abrams continued, "The bad news is that while many of us have been spending precious time and energy pondering it, abortion opponents in Georgia have been cooking up other bizarre bills, some of which now have far better chances of succeeding than Franklin’s."
Turns out Abrams was right. As noted this morning in an article in the Savannah Morning News, "The Senate had another contentious battle over a bill that would allow a woman to sue her abortion provider if she was not properly informed prior to the procedure. State law includes requirements such as providing a pregnant woman with an image of an ultrasound or letting her hear the fetus’ heartbeat."
A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Chapter 1 of Title 51 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to general provisions regarding torts, so as to provide for liability for violations of laws relating to abortion; to provide for definitions; to provide for the wrongful death of an unborn child; to provide for immunity under certain circumstances; to provide for witness testimony and evidence; to provide for related matters; to provide for an effective date and applicability; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
SB 210
The legislation passed 36-16 after more than 90 minutes of debate.
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Also not crossed over:
A BILL to be entitled an Act to enact the "Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act" and regulate the performance of abortions in conformity therewith; to amend Code Section 16-12-141, relating to when abortion is legal, so as to make a conforming amendment and provide that any abortion not in conformity with the Act shall constitute a criminal offense; to amend Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to health, so as to enact the Act as a part of said title; to define terms; to state legislative findings; to require a determination of gestational age prior to abortion; to prohibit abortion after a certain gestational age; to provide for exceptions under certain circumstances; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
SB 209
A BILL to be entitled an Act to enact the "Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act" and regulate the performance of abortions in conformity therewith; to amend Code Section 16-12-141, relating to when abortion is legal, so as to make a conforming amendment and provide that any abortion not in conformity with the Act shall constitute a criminal offense; to amend Title 31 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to health, so as to enact the Act as a part of said title; to define terms; to state legislative findings; to require a determination of gestational age prior to abortion; to prohibit abortion after a certain gestational age; to provide for other related matters; to provide for an effective date and applicability of certain provisions; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
HB 89
A BILL to be entitled an Act to provide a short title; to provide for legislative findings and purposes; to amend Article 1 of Chapter 24 of Title 33 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to insurance generally, so as to opt out of funding certain abortions through certain qualified health plans; to provide for certain exceptions; to provide for a right of intervention in certain lawsuits; to provide an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
SB 4
A BILL to be entitled an Act to provide a short title; to provide for legislative findings and purposes; to amend Article 1 of Chapter 24 of Title 33 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to insurance generally, so as to opt out of funding certain abortions through certain qualified health plans; to provide for certain exceptions; to provide for a right of intervention in certain lawsuits; to provide an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
SB 29
A BILL to be entitled an Act to amend Article 3 of Chapter 11 of Title 15 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to parental notification, so as to provide for maintenance of forensic samples from abortions performed on children under 16 years of age; to provide for civil cause of action under certain circumstances; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
SB 165
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The article lists a few other noteworthy crossovers:
Teacher seniority
The Senate also voted 36-14 to prohibit teachers’ seniority from determining whether or not they are laid off from Georgia school districts.
Sentencing laws
House lawmakers also moved to create a 10-member commission to study overhauling Georgia’s tough sentencing laws and also to authorize the secretary of state to set the date for Georgia’s presidential primary before the second Tuesday in June.
DNA collection
The Senate moved to broaden the collection of DNA, approving it 39-13 to require law enforcement to take samples from suspects arrested on felony charge. Samples would be collected after a judge has determined there is probable cause that the suspect is guilty of the crime. If the suspect is found not guilty, the state would be required to get rid of the DNA.
School vouchers
The Senate tabled a bill that would have expanded Georgia’s school voucher program to include military families and foster care children, the second time the measure has failed in as many years.
Health care reform
The House also delivered a rebuke to President Barack Obama and his federal health reform law, voting 108-63 to allow Georgia to create alliances with other states on health care.
The House sent another bill that would have set up health exchanges back to the Rules Committee, scuttling its chances of passing this session. The exchanges are required by the federal health law.
And special props for:
Sunday Alcohol Sales
After looking like it was killed by the Christian Coalition, in fact, the measure to allow localities to decide on allowing sales has passed and looks likely to be signed by Governor Deal. Here's to getting gubmint out of our lives!
Complete listing of crossed-over House bills
Complete listings of Senate bills have not yet been posted, but will appear on this page. As soon as I see it posted, I'll update the link.
On a personal note, there's more cut and paste in this diary than I normally like to do, but I wanted to get the results out as quickly as I could.