Big issues get bogged down on final day

ATLANTA --- The issues getting the most attention from legislative leaders and the media all session -- transportation, taxes, trauma and tort reform -- generally faced steep opposition and either didn't pass or were significantly watered down.

What did pass was a significantly reduced budget.

TRANSPORTATION: Lawmakers had vowed to pass a way for voters to approve a sales tax increase to fund more roadwork and mass transit, recognizing public displeasure over traffic congestion and aging roads. Similar promises last year resulted in a legislative wreck in the final hours of the session, and the top leaders said they were determined to avoid a repeat.

But that's what happened when the House and Senate couldn't agree in talks that again bogged down shortly before the midnight end of the 2009 session. The House wanted a statewide vote on a tax that would raise $25 billion in 10 years to address a specified list of projects. The Senate insisted voters would reject that and favored letting individual counties join with their neighbors to let voters boost taxes for projects identified locally.

What passed on the final day was a bill that takes some power away from the Transportation Department to determine which road projects to fund and gives part of it to the General Assembly and a bigger share to the governor. Lawmakers say redistributing the power will speed projects.

TAXES: Republicans favor cutting taxes as a way to spur job creation, and they said they would pass several bills to trim state revenues. They also wanted to provide relief to homeowners.

They eliminated the homeowner's tax relief grants the state makes to local governments that amount to $200-$300 per home. The grants will end after this fiscal year. A bill to double the homeowner's exemption failed.

A bill that sought to grant tax credits to people who buy homes in the next six months passed for $1,800, half the amount originally proposed. Attempts to end the corporate income tax and the annual property tax on cars also came up short.

TRAUMA CARE: Once again, the Legislature failed to create a regular funding source for the state's network of specialized trauma-care hospitals. A $1-per-pack increase in the cigarette tax never got out of committee, and Gov. Sonny Perdue's "super speeders" legislation to add $200 to speeding tickets for the cause also ran out of fuel.

TORT REFORM: Mr. Perdue opened the session with a speech to business leaders in which he announced he would champion bills to put limits on lawsuits. But his bill to grant immunity to makers of medical products was voted down in committee.

One bill that passed prevents people who sue from seeing company files until a judge has ruled the suit has merit. Another successful bill protects farmers from lawsuits by people who enter their land to buy produce, hunt or take hay rides.

Reach Walter Jones at (404) 589-8424 or walter.jones@morris.com.