Tuesday, February 11, 2025 - Day 15
Archive of previous Legislative Alerts for this session

Senate Education Committee hears from TRS and PSC

Members of the Senate Education and Youth Committee met today after 5 p.m. to hear presentations from Buster Evans, executive director of the Teachers Retirement System (TRS), and Jody Barrow, executive secretary of the Professional Standards Committee (PSC).

Barrow, appointed to his position in December by Gov. Brian Kemp, succeeded former PSC secretary Matt Arthur, who has retired. Barrow served as deputy director of the Georgia School Superintendents Association (GSSA) after forty years in public education as a teacher, assistant principal, principal, and school superintendent.

Senate committee hears testimony on "phone-free" schools

The Senate Children and Families Committee heard presentations concerning "phone-free schools" and the use by students of cell phones during the school day.

Among the presenters was Dr. Grant Rivera, superintendent of the Marietta school system. Rivera told the committee that the average student spends an hour-an-a-half during each school day on their phones. Marietta locks up students' phone during the day, and Rivera reported a demonstrable improvement in school discipline. No action was taken today on related and proposed legislation.

Voucher bill expands private school tuition discounts

State Sen. Shawn Still, R-Johns Creek, has filed a bill, SB 124, that would expand the taxpayer-funded, private school tuition subsidy bill, which passed last year and which launches later this year. The bill eliminates the one-year residency and local attendance zone requirements to qualify for the voucher for students of active-duty military personnel.

MEANWHILE, Sen. Freddie Powell Sims, D-Dawson, has introduced SB 134, to repeal the voucher law that passed last session.

Another voucher bill would expand
tax credits for donors to private schools

HB 328 would raise the current taxpayer-underwritten tax break for donors to private schools from $120 million to $200 million a year. Rep. Kasey Carpenter, R-Gainesville, is the lead sponsor.

Senate passes bill to ban gender-affirming health care

The state Senate this morning passed legislation, SB 39 that would prohibit the use of state funds to cover gender-affirming care, including hormone therapy and sex reassignment surgery, for individuals enrolled in state-funded health plans or receiving public assistance. The bill also bans state-owned health care facilities and state-employed providers from offering gender-affirming care.

Senate to vote on immigration bill that could impact public schools

The Senate Public Safety Committee passed SB 21 yesterday, which could expose school districts to lawsuits if they fail to cooperate with federal immigration officials or the police. The bill has been calendared for a vote of the full Senate tomorrow.

Proposed law would slightly expand law allowing retired educators to return to classrooms in high-demand subject areas

In 2022, the Georgia General Assembly passed and the governor signed a bill to address teacher shortages, HB 385. That bill became law and allowed classroom teachers, after one year in retirement and 30 years of service, to return to the classroom in subject area that was hard for schools to attract teachers while drawing TRS benefits. The bill was a good bill but severely limited the number of retired educators who qualified. Currently about 400 retired retires are enrolled in the program.

State Rep. Bethany Ballard, R-Warner Robins, has filed HB 372, which appears to eliminate the role of RESAs (Georgia Regional Education Service Agencies in identifying "in-demand" subject area. Instead, Ballard's bill names curriculum specialities as "in the area of mathematics, special education, reading, writing, or English language arts, provided that such beneficiary in the area of reading, writing, or English language arts holds a current dyslexia or reading endorsement approved by the Professional Standards Commission (PSC)."

New bills would help fund schools with a QBE "poverty" weight

Sen. Jason Esteves, D-Atlanta, and Rep. Phil Olaleye, D-Atlanta, have filed legislation to provide additional funding for schools for students living in poverty, SB 128 and HB 245. These bills have two Republican co-sponsors.

A "student living in poverty" is defined as "a student enrolled in a public school who meets one or more of the following criteria:

(A) Lives in a family unit directly certified to be receiving Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) benefits;

(B) Lives in a family unit directly certified to be receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) benefits;

(C) Is a student in foster care; or

(D) Is a student without stable housing."

Next Legislation Contact Team (LCT) meeting is Feb. 13

GAE members: Join us Thursday, February 13, at 6:30 p.m. for a discussion on the the current legislative session.

Next Legislative Update: Wednesday, February 12

100 Crescent Center Pkwy, Suite 500 | Tucker, GA 30084 US

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