FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – March 19, 2010

Contact: Sen. Tim Golden, 404-656-7580 or tim.golden@senate.ga.gov

Golden legislation aimed at protecting small business

By Sen. Tim Golden

This week, I introduced legislation that would establish a state commission to review the health insurance benefit and provider mandates that Georgia's small businesses are required to offer their employees. SB 509 would provide a process for taking a closer look at these mandate proposals in the future and the impact they would have on Georgia businesses and their employees and advising the governor and General Assembly as to their findings.

Under my proposal, the 14-member Special Advisory Commission on Mandated Health Insurance Benefits would include representatives from the medical, business and insurance communities and the general public. The commission would work with the Department of Insurance to collect data and assess the impact of mandated benefits and providers, including costs to employers and insurers, effectiveness of treatment, costs savings in the health care system and other factors.

Thirty states have similar commissions, and this proposal is based on a Virginia law which has worked successfully. The legislation calls for the commission to evaluate existing mandated benefits and providers and report its findings to the General Assembly by Dec. 31, 2011, and conduct a similar assessment of all health insurance mandates proposed in the future.

Members of the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) have listed health insurance as their No. 1 problem every year since 1986. On average, small businesses pay 18 percent more for health insurance coverage than large businesses. The insurance mandate proposals regularly considered by Georgia lawmakers, applying only to small group and individual plans, further increases the costs that small businesses must pay to provide insurance. Many individuals and small businesses simply cannot obtain affordable coverage, which results in increased costs to Georgia taxpayers under the Medicaid or Peach Care for Kids programs.

Georgia Chamber of Commerce President and CEO George Israel said of the situation, "Even a 1 percent increase in health care costs can impact an employer's decision to offer this important benefit to their employees and drive even more Georgians onto the rolls of the uninsured. Insurance mandates add costs that our state's businesses simply cannot afford." The legislation has the support of a wide range of business groups including the NFIB and the Georgia Chamber of Commerce, among others.

SB 509, which has bipartisan support, was referred to the Senate Insurance & Labor Committee for its consideration.

Senate Chaplain: On Thursday, I was pleased to host the Rev. Mike Lyons, pastor of Leesburg United Methodist Church, as the Senate's Chaplain of the Day. Rev. Lyons, who previously served in Senate District 8 as pastor of Park Avenue United Methodist Church in Valdosta and Lake Park United Methodist Church, opened Thursday's session with a devotional message and prayer. He was joined at the Capitol by his son Jonathan, who served as a Senate page.

State of the Judiciary: Chief Justice Carol Hunstein of the Supreme Court of Georgia addresses a joint legislative session on Tuesday, reminding lawmakers of the serious consequences that deep funding cuts in the court system are having on public safety and business in our state. The chief justice said judicial budget cuts have contributed to a considerable backlog of criminal and civil cases in Superior Courts around the state. She quoted the Wall Street Journal as recently reporting, "The wheels of justice in Georgia are grinding more slowly each day."

This week, the Senate approved several legislative measures and sent them to the House of Representatives for its consideration, including:

SB 299, which would overhaul the "zero tolerance" policies and give principals and school systems more discretion in how they handle disciplinary cases.
SB 321, which would enable private developers to build reservoirs.
SB 360, which would make texting while driving illegal and impose a $150 fine.
SB 364, which would increase enforcement and penalties on criminal offenses occurring at massage parlors and spas.
SB 397, which would create a statewide "Blue Alert" system to help track down criminals who have killed or assaulted a law enforcement officer.
SB 427, which would establish the Georgia Foundation for Public Education, which would solicit and accept financial contribution to support educational excellence in Georgia schools.

Cross-over Day: Thursday, March 25, will be the 30th legislative day of the 2010 session of the General Assembly. This is known as "cross-over day" because it is the final day for the Senate to pass legislation in time for it to be considered by the House of Representatives during this session, and vice versa. Because this is the second session of a two-year term, legislation that has not been approved by either house by Thursday will be considered dead.

Sen. Tim Golden represents District 8 (Brooks, Cook, Lowndes and Thomas counties) in the Georgia State Senate. Contact him at 121-A State Capitol, Atlanta, Ga. 30334; by phone at 404-656-7580 or by e-mail at tim.golden@senate.ga.gov.