Across Georgia

House leader puts off sludge bill for study

ATLANTA --- Legislation that would have imposed restrictions on companies seeking permits to apply sewage sludge to land as a fertilizer has gotten bogged down in the current session.

House Bill 238 would make companies prove they have funds for any required cleanup. The bill's author, Rep. Tommy Benton, R-Jefferson, said Thursday that the head of the House Natural Resources Committee, Rep. Lynn Smith, R-Newnan, wants to hold the bill for more study and consider it next year.

"She said it was too controversial and there were some things she would like to add to the bill that would make it better," he said.

The main opposition has come from companies that don't want to have to purchase an insurance bond or deposit the cash in reserves, Mr. Benton said.

The University of Georgia is embroiled in a federal lawsuit over sludge damage at two Augusta area dairy farms because the farmers blame faulty research from UGA.

The city of Augusta settled a suit over the matter with one farmer and lost another suit because it was the source of the sludge, which was found to contain toxins responsible for killing the farmers' cows.

Senate passes budget that relies on stimulus

ATLANTA--- The Georgia Senate approved an $18.9 billion midyear budget Thursday that relies on hundreds of millions of dollars in federal stimulus money to help offset a huge budget shortfall.

Despite cutting about $2 billion in spending, state lawmakers scraped together $428 million to pay for the Homeowner Tax Relief Grant. Those grants total about $200 to $300 in property tax relief per household.

But homeowners aren't likely to see the tax break again next year. It will be tied in the future to the state's economic performance, and Georgia isn't expected to emerge from its recession-driven fiscal crisis anytime soon.

The budget contains about $40,000 for more food safety inspectors sought after a nationwide salmonella outbreak was traced to products made at a south Georgia peanut plant.

The Senate's budget must now be reconciled with the House's plan.

Embryo implantation bill faces more study

ATLANTA --- A Georgia measure that would place first-in-the-nation restrictions on the number of embryos fertility doctors may implant likely won't pass this year after it was shipped to a subcommittee Thursday for more study.

The bill was inspired by the birth of octuplets in California. It would restrict the number of fertilized embryos a woman could create and implant through in-vitro treatments.

Several key state lawmakers said they supported the thinking behind the legislation but that it needed more study to avoid legal challenges.