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Legislative roundup for March 12-19
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Staff Report
Updated: Mar 21, 2018, 4:28 PM
Published: Mar 21, 2018, 4:29 PM

(Editor’s note: This is a look at recent action in the Georgia Legislature and how Bryan County’s legislators voted. It was compiled by Correspondent Corey Barnes.)

Retirement policies for public employees

The House on March 13 approved, 167-2, Senate Bill 333 which concerns deferred compensation plans. The governing authority of a municipality may pay costs or fees association with an employee’s participation in a deferred compensation plan. Sen. Ben Watson sponsored the bill in the Senate. The bill moves on to Gov. Nathan Deal and will become law if signed.

Voting yes: Jesse Petrea, Ron Stephens, Jan Tankersley.

Reclassifying Marijuana Resolution

The House on March 15 adopted, 158-5, House Resolution 1363 which urges the United States Congress to amend the Controlled Substances Act of 1970 to reclassify marijuana as a Schedule II drug so its medical benefits may be researched. As an alternate, the resolution encourages the passage of the Marijuana Effective Drug Study Act (MEDS Act).

Voting yes: Stephens, Tankersley.

Not voting: Petrea.

HOPE Grants & Scholarships

The House on March 15 approved, 158-0, Senate Bill 82 which concerned eligibility for HOPE scholarships and grants. Members of the Georgia National Guard or members of a reserve component of the armed forces of the United States located in Georgia may be classified as a legal resident of Georgia and be eligible for HOPE scholarships and grants. The bill moves on to Gov. Deal’s desk for consideration.

Voting yes: Petrea, Stephens, Tankersley.

Penalties for Medicaid Fraud

The House on March 15 approved, 152-5, Senate Bill 321 which related to civil penalties for false or fraudulent Medicaid claims. The bill increases the civil penalties imposed to allow the state to recover the maximum penalty authorized by federal law. The bill moves on to Gov. Deal’s desk for consideration.

Voting yes: Petrea, Stephens, Tankersley.

Lottery Anonymity

The House on March 19 approved, 173-1, Senate Bill 331 related to lottery prize winners. If an individual wins awards of $250,000 or greater and submits a written request then the corporation shall keep all information regarding the winner confidential. The bill moves on to Gov. Deal’s desk for consideration.

Voting yes: Petrea, Stephens, Tankersley

Designating Facilities for Newborns

The Senate on March 14 approved, 48-0, House Bill 513 which concerns developing standards for a sign that the Department of Human Services would post to any medical facility, fire station, or police station to inform the public that the facility is an authorized location to leave a newborn child. A mother may leave her newborn child at these locations and avoid criminal prosecution. The bill moves on to Gov. Deal’s desk for consideration.

Voting yes: Ben Watson.

Controlled Substances

The Senate on March 14 approved, 48-0, House Bill 830 related to controlled substances. The bill adds numerous medications to the Schedule I and Schedule II lists. Ron Stephens co-sponsored the bill in the House. The bill moves on to Gov. Deal’s desk for consideration.

Voting yes: Watson.

Continuing Enrollment

The Senate on March 19 approved, 54-1, House Bill 852 related to enrollment in a public school. A local board of education may allow a student who has been enrolled in a public school for more than half a year to continue attending that school even if his or her family moves during the year. The parent will be responsible for costs of transportation, and the arrangement will only be allowed if the student has no chronic disciplinary or attendance problems. The bill moves on to Gov. Deal’s desk for consideration.

Voting yes: Watson

If you want to read about other bills facing the General Assembly please visit http://www.legis.ga.gov/Legislation/en-US/VoteList.aspx?Chamber=2

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Later yall, its been fun
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Ted O'Neil
Updated: May 23, 2018, 6:03 PM
Published: May 23, 2018, 6:05 PM

This is among the last pieces I’ll ever write for the Bryan County News.

Friday is my last day with the paper, and come June 1 I’m headed back to my native Michigan.

I moved here in 2015 from the Great Lake State due to my wife’s job. It’s amicable, but she has since moved on to a different life in a different state, and it’s time for me to do the same.

My son Thomas, an RHHS grad as of Saturday, also is headed back to Michigan to play basketball for a small school near Ann Arbor called Concordia University. My daughter, Erin, is in law school at University of Toledo. She had already begun her college volleyball career at Lourdes University in Ohio when we moved down here and had no desire to leave the Midwest.

With both of them and the rest of my family up north, there’s no reason for me to stay here. I haven’t missed winter one bit, but I’m sure I won’t miss the sand gnats, either.

Shortly after we arrived here in 2015, I got a job in communications with a certain art school in Savannah for a few short months. It was both personally and professionally toxic and I’ll leave it at that.

In March 2016 I signed on with the Bryan County News as assistant editor and I’ve loved every minute of it. My “first” newspaper career, in the late 80s and early 90s, was great. But when I left it to work in politics and later with a free-market think tank, I never pictured myself as an ink-stained wretch again.

Like they say, never say never.

During my time here at the News, I’ve covered everything that came along. That’s one big difference between working for a weekly as opposed to a daily paper. Reporters at a daily paper have a “beat” to cover. At a weekly paper like this, you cover … life. Sports, features, government meetings, crime, fundraisers, parades, festivals, successes, failures and everything in between. Oh, and hurricanes. Two of them. I’ll take a winter blizzard over that any day.

Along the way I’ve met a lot of great people. Volunteers, business owners, pastors, students, athletes, teachers, coaches, co-workers, first responders, veterans, soldiers and yes, even some politicians.

And I learned that the same adrenalin rush from covering “breaking news” that I experienced right out of college is still just as exciting nearly 30 years later.

With as much as I’ve written about the population increase and traffic problems, at least for a few short minutes my departure means there will be one less vehicle clogging up local roads. At least until I pass three or four moving vans headed this way as I get on northbound I-95.

The hub-bub over growth here can be humorous, unintentional and ironic all at once. We often get comments on our Facebook page that go something like this: “I’ve lived here for (usually less than five years) and the growth is out of control! We need a moratorium on new construction.”

It’s like people who move into phase I of “Walden Woods” subdivision after all the trees are cleared out and then complain about trees being cut down for phase II.

Bryan County will always hold a special place in my heart and I definitely plan on visiting again someday. My hope is that my boss, Jeff Whitten (one of the best I’ve ever had), will let me continue to be part of the Pembroke Mafia Football League from afar. If the Corleone family could expand to Vegas, there’s no reason the PMFL can’t expand to Michigan.

But the main reason I want to return someday is about that traffic issue. After all, I’ll need to see it with my own eyes before I’ll believe that Highway 144 actually got widened.

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