As reported previously, the Georgia House and Senate gaveled out on April 3rd with many issues unresolved but the constitutionally required FY10 budget complete. Any bills that did not pass this year are still alive for consideration during the 2010 legislative session. 
 
A number of education bills passed on the last day of session -- many of which allow schools flexibility to help them deal with budget gaps and fiscal uncertainty. One of these bills, HB 193, allows school districts to adjust their calendars to meet the equivalent of 180 days of instruction. For example, schools could be in session for fewer, but longer, days in order to save money on transportation and utilities. This could have major implications for afterschool programs and providers (see next article for more information).

 

Senator Eric Johnson's universal voucher bill received a lot of press but ultimately died in the Senate Rules Committee. He managed to include interdistrict public school choice language in Representative Alisha Morgan's intradistrict choice bill but that language was stripped out before final passage of Morgan's bill. Another bill receiving plenty of attention this session was SB 84, the school board governance bill developed in response to the accreditation issues in Clayton County Schools. One piece of SB 84 related to nepotism passed the legislature as an amendment to a moving bill, but to many people's surprise, SB 84 ultimately failed to receive final passage this session.

Also of interest to afterschool advocates is the passage of HB 228 -- the reorganization of the Department of Human Resources. The final bill establishes a Department of Human Services, a Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities, and a Department of Community Health. Afterschool Services and the Childcare and Parent Services program remain in the Division of Family and Children Services under the newly named Department of Human Services.

 

The Governor has until May 13 to sign or veto all bills that passed on Sine Die. If he does not act on a bill it automatically becomes law. A complete list of relevant bills can be found at the bottom of this update. For an overview of how afterschool fared in the 2010 budget, see our April 6th legislative update.