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Legislative Update: Day 38

Good afternoon partners, 

Tomorrow will mark Legislative Day 38. With only two more legislative days of the session for this year, here are two important notices to remember: 

  • Bills that are not passed by their respectively assigned committees by Thursday, March 23rd are likely ineligible for passage this year. It’s important to remember though that bills can be amended at any time before session ends on Wednesday, March 29. 
  • Bills that do not become law this year are still viable for passage next year, during the second year of the biennial session. 

Bills We Oppose 

  • SB 44 was passed by the House of Representatives yesterday, over the objections of the community and criminal legal reform advocates. Sponsored by Sen. Bo Hatchett on behalf of Governor Kemp, SB 44 imposes mandatory minimums for gang offenses, punishing children who are charged under an overbroad gang statute, and enhances penalties for recruitment of minors or people with disabilities into gangs. The bill was also changed to include language from SB 100, Governor Kemp’s mandatory cash bail bill, which would mandate cash bail for anyone who has had a bench warrant issued for their arrest for failure to appear for any offense, not including traffic violations, in the last five years. The Senate must agree to the changes made by the House before it can be sent to the Governor’s desk for his signature. 
  • SB 63, sponsored by Sen. Randy Robertson, mandates cash bail for more than 30 additional offenses, including many misdemeanors, and prohibits own recognizance bonds for anyone with a felony conviction in the last seven years. The bill was passed by the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee and is eligible for debate on the House floor, pending consideration of the House Rules Committee.
  • SB 12, sponsored by Sen. John Albers, imposes mandatory minimums for subsequent felonies involving abuse of a disabled adult, elder person, or minor; increases penalties for possession of a firearm by a person with a felony conviction; and expands venue options for gang cases. The bill was heard but not voted on by the House Judiciary Non-Civil Hong Subcommittee. The language of both SB11 and SB12, however, was substituted into HB 301 and was passed by the Senate Public Safety Committee and is eligible for debate on the Senate floor, pending consideration of the Senate Rules Committee.  
  • SB 92, sponsored by Sen. Randy Robertson, creates the Prosecutor Oversight Commission. The bill was passed by the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee today and is eligible for debate on the House floor, pending consideration of the House Rules Committee.  
  • SB 68, sponsored by Sen. Rick Williams, adds dogfighting to the list of predicate offenses for the purposes of RICO. The bill was passed by the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee and is eligible for debate on the House floor, pending consideration of the House Rules Committee.  
  • SB 36, sponsored by Sen. Randy Robertson increases the penalties for pimping and pandering. The bill was amended to also include language from House Bill 446, that refers to modifying the offenses of criminal damage to property in the first degree and drive-by shooting, and to allow for the restrict the possession of firearms at private events that sells alcohol. The bill was passed by the House Judiciary Committee and is eligible for debate on the House floor, pending consideration of the House Rules Committee.  
  • HB 500, sponsored by Rep. Deborah Silcox, creates the offense of arson of a law enforcement vehicle. The bill was passed by the Senate Judiciary Committee yesterday and is eligible for debate on the Senate floor, pending consideration of the Senate Rules Committee. 
  • HB 505, sponsored by Rep. Mike Cheokas, enhances the offense of riot from a misdemeanor to a felony. The bill was heard yesterday by the Senate Judiciary Committee, but after testimony from SCHR, GACDL, and the ACLU of Georgia raising the many concerns with this proposal, the chairman did not call the bill for a vote.  

Bills We Support 

  • HB 126, sponsored by Rep. Tyler Paul Smith and brought forth by the Georgia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, improves procedure related to out-of-time motions for new trial and appeals in criminal cases. The Senate Judiciary Committee passed HB 126 last week and has been scheduled for a vote tomorrow on the Senate floor. 
  • SB 157, sponsored by Sen. Brian Strickland and brought forth by the Georgia Justice Project, creates a preclearance process in the licensing of individuals with criminal records who make an application to or are investigated by certain occupational licensing boards and commissions. This bill was substituted in committee to include language from HB 334, which was sponsored by Rep. Tyler Paul Smith. The bill was passed by the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee Monday, March 20th and is eligible for debate on the House floor, pending consideration of the House Rules Committee.  
  • SB 272, sponsored by Sen. John Kennedy, reestablishes the Criminal Case Data Exchange Board, which is responsible for reviewing the feasibility of a system to track and analyze criminal history data related to recidivism, criminal plea agreements, immunity defenses, and post-adjudication proceedings. The bill was passed by the House Judiciary Non-Civil Committee Monday, March 20th and is eligible for debate on the House floor, pending consideration of the House Rules Committee. 

Bill Tracking 

SCHR Actively* Supports 

Fighting Mass Incarceration 

  • HB 126 – Sponsor: Rep. Tyler Paul Smith – Improves procedure related to out-of-time motions for new trial and appeals in criminal cases – Status: Passed by Senate Judiciary  

Ending State-Sanctioned Violence 

  • SB 272 – Sponsor: Sen. John Kennedy – Reestablishes the Criminal Case Data Exchange Board, responsible for improving interagency reporting and sharing of data – Status: Passed by House Judiciary Non-civil 

Eliminating Barriers to Reentry 

  • SB 157 – Sponsor: Sen. Brian Strickland – Improves occupational licensing process – Passed by House Judiciary Non-Civil 

SCHR Actively* Opposes 

Exacerbating State-Sanctioned Violence 

  • SB 11 – Sponsor: Sen. John Albers – Authorizes the Georgia Bureau of Investigation to work independently or concurrently with other law enforcement with almost no limitation – Status: Passed by the Senate and assigned to House Public Safety 

Expanding Mass Incarceration 

  • SB 12 – Sponsor: Sen. John Albers – Imposes mandatory minimums for subsequent felonies involving abuse of a disabled adult, elder person; increases penalties for possession of a firearm by a person with a felony conviction; expands venue options for gang cases; revises various evidence rules – Status: Passed by the Senate and assigned to House Judiciary Non-Civil 
  • SB 44 – Sponsor: Sen. Bo Hatchett – Imposes mandatory minimums for gang offenses and enhanced penalties for recruitment of minors or people with disabilities – Status: Passed by the House and awaiting agreement by the Senate 
  • HB 188 – Sponsor: Rep. Steven Sainz – Mandates a sentence of life imprisonment or a term of imprisonment followed by probation for life for subsequent “sexual felony” convictions; permits termination of such lifetime probation after 10 years in limited circumstances – Status: Passed by Senate Public Safety 

Criminalizing Poverty 

  • SB 63 – Sponsor: Sen. Randy Robertson – Mandates cash bail for more than 30 additional offenses – Status: Passed by the Senate and House Judiciary Non-Civil 
  • SB 159 – Sponsor: Sen. Randy Robertson – Criminalizes bringing a cell phone behind the guard lines of a county or state penal institution – Status: Passed by House Public Safety 

Punishing Protesters 

  • HB 227 – Sponsor: Rep. Rob Leverett – Creates the offense of criminal interference with the function of critical infrastructure – Status: Passed by Senate Judiciary 
  • HB 500 – Sponsor: Rep. Deborah Silcox – Creates the offense of arson of a law enforcement vehicle – Status: Passed by Senate Judiciary 
  • HB 505 – Sponsor: Rep. Mike Cheokas – Enhances the offense of riot from a misdemeanor to a felony – Status: Passed by the House and assigned to Senate Judiciary 

SCHR Opposes & Is Monitoring 

  • SB 31 – Sponsor: Sen. Brandon Beach – Permits the Attorney General to be reimbursed by a district attorney for expenses associated with prosecutions brought by the AG because the DA failed to prosecute the case – Status: Passed by the Senate and House Judiciary Non-Civil 
  • SB 36 – Sponsor: Sen. Randy Robertson – Increases penalties for pimping and pandering – Status: Passed by the Senate and House Judiciary Non-Civil  
  • SB 62 – Sponsor: Sen. Carden Summers – Prohibits local governments from adopting a policy prohibiting or discouraging enforcement of any ordinance prohibiting public camping, with an exception for diversion programs; requires the state auditor to review homeless programs in the state – Status: Passed by House Governmental Affairs 
  • SB 68 – Sponsor: Sen. Rick Williams – Adds dogfighting to the list of predicate offenses for the purposes of RICO – Status: Passed by Senate House Judiciary Non-Civil 
  • SB 92 – Sponsor: Sen. Randy Robertson – Creates the Prosecutor Oversight Commission – Passed by Senate and House Judiciary Non-Civil 
  • HB 383 – Sponsor: Rep. Matt Reeves – Creates new offenses for aggravated assault and aggravated battery upon an emergency health worker or health care worker at a hospital – Status: Passed by Senate Judiciary Non-Civil  
  • HB 231 – Sponsor: Rep. Joseph Gullett – Creates the Prosecuting Attorneys Oversight Commission – Status: Passed by the House and assigned to Senate Judiciary  

SCHR Is Monitoring 

  • SB 155 – Sponsor: Sen. Kay Kirkpatrick – Restructures the offense of harming a law enforcement animal – Status: Passed by House Public Safety  
  • HB 147 – Sponsor: Rep. Will Wade – Requires the Professional Standards Commission to create a school safety and anti-gang endorsement for eligible personnel who elect to complete a training program for promoting and preserving safe schools and for identifying and deterring youth gangs; requires schools to conduct annual intruder alert drills – Status: Passed by the House and Senate and awaiting the governor’s signature 
  • HB 268 – Sponsor: Rep. John Corbett – Provides for a grant program, pending funding, to support law enforcement agencies in the prevention of motor vehicle theft – Status: Passed by the Senate and awaiting agreement from the House  
  • HB 364 – Sponsor: Rep. Scott Holcomb – Wrongful Conviction Compensation Act – Status: Passed by the House and assigned to Senate Appropriations 

*SCHR opposes all legislation that relies on enhancing penalties within and expanding the reach of the criminal legal system. Each session, however, we are forced to prioritize certain bills for our active legislative advocacy. These bills represent those on which our staff are actively engaged with legislators and community stakeholders. Other potentially harmful bills are noted in this updated as “SCHR Opposes & Is Monitoring.”