ATLANTA --- Gov. Sonny Perdue on Wednesday approved a $21.1 billion budget that boosts salaries for state employees and funnels money into new reservoirs for the drought-stricken state.
Mr. Perdue also signed dozens of bills on what is his final day to consider legislation passed this session, including one that critics say could boost auto insurance rates in the state.
Seventeen bills were vetoed, down from the 41 he rejected last year.
Mr. Perdue also left his mark on the budget. He cut $14.2 million in spending from the plan for the fiscal year set to start July 1, cutting funds for things such as the Brain and Spinal Injury Trust Fund and the tourism program of the National Infantry Museum at Fort Benning.
The Paulding County Airport -- in House Speaker Glenn Richardson's backyard -- also lost $4 million to Mr. Perdue's veto pen. Mr. Perdue and Mr. Richardson, both Republicans, have feuded.
The governor also stripped another $22 million in bond projects.
Among Mr. Perdue's vetoes was a measure that would have boosted judges and district attorneys pay by 5 percent. The governor said he was concerned that lawmakers were raising judicial salaries without addressing the "well above-market retirement benefits."
Judges haven't had a raise -- aside from cost-of-living increases -- in nine years.
"We're very disappointed," said Gerald Edenfield, the president of the State Bar of Georgia, which had originally pressed for a 20 percent increase. "I thought at 5 percent, it wouldn't be vetoed."
GOVERNOR'S FINAL SAY
BILLS HE SIGNED
- A gun bill that allows Georgians with concealed carry permits to bring their weapons into restaurants with alcohol, parks and mass transit.
- A bill that would effectively deregulate the auto insurance industry, allow insurers to change rates without applying to the state insurance commissioner to do so.
- Legislation reviving limits on where sex offenders can live and work.
- A bill toughening penalties for dogfighting. The measure makes it a crime to attend a dog fight or breed the animals for fighting. It also becomes illegal to possess a dog with the intent to fight the animal.
- A consumer-friendly bill allowing Georgians to freeze their credit reports to thwart identity theft. The measure puts a $3 cap on the fees that the three major credit reporting agencies can charge.
- The Water Conservation and Drought Relief Act of 2008, which brings state agencies together to streamline the reservoir approval process.
- A bill banning automated political phone calls, known as "robo-calls." The measure would require that a live person be on the line to get permission before launching into a political pitch.
BILLS HE VETOED
- A bill that would allow some of Georgia's worst traffic violators to take defensive driving courses online instead of in person.
- A measure aimed at illegal immigrants that would have allowed police to impound the vehicle of any person caught driving without a valid driver's license.
- A plan that would require Georgia to participate in the Interstate Compact on Educational Opportunity for Military Children, which aims to make transfers easier for military kids. Mr. Perdue said he's concerned that it could subject the state to a lawsuit.
icon.
