ATLANTA (AP) – Georgia’s 2020 legislative session opened Monday, bringing a flurry of activity back to the state Capitol. As lawmakers returned, they saw quick movement on legislation seeking to protect consumers from unexpected medical bills and tighten sales tax collection by online businesses. They also heard Gov. Brian Kemp outline his agenda in the annual State of the State address.
Here is a look at some of the action under the gold dome during the opening week:
STATE OF THE STATE
Kemp delivered his second annual State of the State address Thursday and forecast several of his legislative priorities for the year. Chief among them is delivering a pay raise of $2,000 for public school teachers at an estimated total cost of more than $380 million. It’s part two of a campaign promise to raise teacher pay by $5,000, after Kemp was able to secure a $3,000 raise last year. Kemp also said he wants to make adoptions easier and reform medical billing practices. Kemp is proposing an increase to the adoption tax credit from $2,000 to $6,000 and lowering the minimum age for a person to adopt a child from 25 to 21.
Recently retired Republican U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson attended the address and was recognized by Kemp as “one of Georgia’s finest.” Kemp announced the creation of a faculty position at the University of Georgia to research treatments for Parkinson’s disease. Isakson’s diagnosis with Parkinson’s contributed to his decision to retire.