Legislative Update

This year's session seemed back to normal for the first time since the pandemic began in 2020. The halls were full of visiting groups, lobbyists, members of the public, and our beloved young pages. Bills were heard in committee every afternoon, and many moved to the Senate floor.

For the first time, we had a calendar for the entire session, and our last day (Sine Die) was March 29. "Crossover Day," which is the last day a bill can pass out of one chamber in order to move to the other chamber, was March 6.

In terms of the budget process, we were in a good economic position to fund the priorities of our state (such as education and health care), as well as return money to taxpayers. We worked on many bills related to public safety including several about crime, gang activity, and human trafficking. Other hot topics related to sports betting, infrastructure, electric vehicles, and tax credits.

I had the honor of chairing the new Children and Families committee, which worked on a number of bills about foster care and adoption. I also serve as vice chair of Health and Human Services and secretary of Insurance as well as Appropriations and Veterans/Military and Homeland Security.

I worked to move many bills through the process, including two that have moved out of the Senate at the time of this writing: SB21 regarding the Veteran Service Foundation Board and SB23, which addresses removing a group of inactive commissions and boards from our state law.

Other bills I sponsored that are still in committee at the time of this writing: SB19 deals passport fees being taken by superior court clerks, requiring disclosure and creating a formula; SB20 has to do with insurance network adequacy; SB22 is a public safety bill that requires testing, labeling, and an age restriction on hemp products; SB122 is an election integrity bill dealing with ballot access and chain of custody; and SB155 relates to cruelty to K-9 officers.

All senators and representatives can file bills that are important to them. We had many new legislators and new leadership in both chambers, so it took a while for things to get moving, but the pace continued to pick up all the way to the end.

If you have questions about specific bills, please feel free to contact me at 
This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or 404-656-3932.