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2025 Session

The Capitol Express

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The 2025 General Assembly Session Convened on January 13, 2025



On Monday, January 13, 2025, the Georgia House of Representatives convened for the first day of the 2025 legislative session, marking the start of a new biennium, the 158th for the Georgia General Assembly. 


The first order of business involved all 180 House members taking the Oath of Office, which Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Michael Boggs administered. Following the swearing-in, our next order of business was the election of the Speaker of the House and Speaker Pro Tempore.


The House re-elected Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) and Speaker Pro Tempore Jan Jones (R-Milton) to their respective positions.


On Thursday, Governor Kemp outlined his top agenda items for the upcoming year in the State of the State address. The House will hold Joint Budget Meetings from January 21 to 23, 2025, and return to the Floor on January 27, 2025.


Please be sure to look out for future updates regarding your government at work. My sincere thanks for your interaction. I hope you enjoy this volume of the Capitol Express and that you will continue to engage. I value your time and will do my best to respond.


We receive hundreds of emails daily while attending Floor Sessions and serving on multiple committees, so if you live in House District 49, please place HD49 in the subject line to assist us in responding.


You may also contact me at ChuckMartin@house.ga.gov or my office phone number at (404) 656-5164.


Thank you for allowing me to serve as your representative for House District 49.


Yours in Service,

Chairman, House Higher Education

House District 49


Please get in touch with us via email at chuck.martin@house.ga.gov or follow our session with Rep. Chuck Martin at the Capitol.


I am sending this update because you have requested to be on our list, have contacted our office requesting information or have been recommended as someone interested in their state government. Hopefully, you will find these weekly updates informative; thank you for allowing me to serve and please share the newsletter with our neighbors.

Capitol Office Information

2025 Legislative Session Week 1

State of the State

- Governor Brian Kemp


On Thursday, January 16, the House and Senate members gathered for a joint session in the House Chamber to hear Governor Brian Kemp deliver his annual State of the State Address. This address allowed the governor to present his assessment of the State's current condition and outline his legislative priorities for the year ahead, which include increased funding for school safety and security, the need for tort reform legislation, expanding access to healthcare in rural areas and increased support for Georgia's Department of Corrections. You can watch a video archive of the governor's address here, and I will highlight some of the points for his address.

 

Governor Kemp began his State of the State address by reflecting on the impact and destruction left in the wake of Hurricane Helene last September. Georgia Power reported that Hurricane Helene was the worst storm in Georgia's history, resulting in 34 Georgians who lost their lives during the storm. The governor shared some heroic stories of first responders and neighbors who risked their lives to help those in need. In response to this devastation, the state prioritized funding for hard-hit areas and repurposed $100 million to the Georgia Development Authority to support the farming and timber industries. Although Georgians are still grieving and rebuilding from Helene, the legislature remains focused on prioritizing support for our resilient state's hardest-hit regions and communities.


In his address, Gov. Kemp also emphasized that while communities directly affected by Hurricane Helene still need substantial disaster relief, all Georgians, regardless of location, also need long-term solutions to offset rising costs and inflation. He noted that Georgia families have struggled in recent years. Still, despite record inflation, Georgia succeeded through tax cuts, gas tax suspensions, a 2024 homeowner tax relief grant, and an income tax cut that saved taxpayers more than $7.6 billion. Building on previous tax cuts, he proposed an additional reduction in the state income tax rate from 5.39 percent to 5.19 percent during his address. This move would save Georgians an expected $7.5 billion over the next decade.


Also, in his address, Gov. Kemp underscored his administration's ongoing efforts to address rising insurance costs, particularly for small businesses, and the need for tort reform. He highlighted the passage of House Bill 1114, the Data Analysis for Tort Reform Act, which was signed into law last summer and enables Georgia's Insurance Commissioner to gather data and propose reforms to stabilize insurance costs, expand consumer choices, and prevent carriers from leaving Georgia. The governor pointed out that some small businesses have seen their insurance premiums increase by as much as 100 percent, threatening their operations. To combat this, he announced that one of his top priorities this session is passing comprehensive tort reform legislation to limit civil lawsuits while allowing Georgians access to a fair system.


Lastly, we reflected on the tragic shooting that occurred at Apalachee High School, honoring the victims and their families, as well as the heroes who prevented the incident from becoming an even greater tragedy. Responding Sergeant Chase Boyd, Deputy Brandon King, and Sheriff Jud Smith joined us in the gallery at the governor's address, and we applauded their brave actions that day. Several caregivers who provided mental health services in the critical days following the events at Apalachee High School also joined in the gallery. In response, Gov. Kemp mentioned the $294 million allocated to school safety thus far and noted that his budget proposal includes an additional $159 million to bolster those efforts during this session



Watch the State of the State Address, click here.


Bills from Week 1


No bills were voted on during Week 1 as committees met to begin moving legislation forward.


Committee Schedules


House Committees are beginning to meet, and once again, I serve on nine committees in addition to leading House Higher Education. Full committee schedules are available online by clicking here.

From the Higher Education Committee

I will again focus on renewing the the Georgia College Completion Grant featured in the 2024 AJC Legislative Session Preview, click here, this year the bill number is HB 38. Renewing the grant this year is imperative since failing to do so would sunset a most cost effective method of assisting outstanding Georgians complete a degree or certification to accel along with Georgia's economy.


The committee meets next on Wednesday, January 29th, to set the stage for our work this year and to hear a report on the College Completion Grant.


To review bills in the Higher Education Committee, click here and then click Assigned Legislation.

Committee Assignments
ChuckRyan

New committee assignments have been released and I have been re-appointed to lead Higher Education in addition to serving on seven additional standing committees. These are my committees for 2025-2026:



Click on the links above or here to find the schedules of these committees and each committee's online streaming links. 


To follow the General Assembly virtually, click here...

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