Legislative Report #5 of the 2006 Georgia General Assembly

Monday (March 13th) will mark the 30th legislative day.  This is the day that the bills must cross over in order to remain active.  For example, Senate bills must cross over to the House and vice versa.  However, there is still a chance that bills that have not crossed over by then may be attached to other bills that have already crossed over.

Currently, the conference committee report for the FY06 supplemental budget has yet to be adopted.  Meanwhile, the House Appropriations Committee voted the FY07 General Budget out of committee.  This appropriations bill will have to cross over by Monday as well.  The Senate Appropriations Criminal Justice Subcommittee will be meeting on the FY07 budget on Friday.  The House is appropriating a little over $27 million to the Standards Council.

Regarding our bills, the Legislative General Oversight Committee (LOC) of the Standards Council, chaired by Rep. Mack Crawford, met last Tuesday (February 28th) to discuss the revised Determination of Indigence standard and the Death Penalty Performance Standard.  They were unable to determine whether to move forward with these two standards through the ratification process.

The Senate Judiciary Committee met on Thursday (March 2nd) regarding these bills [SB 503 (the master bill containing both substantive and technical changes to the Indigent Defense Act of 2003), SR 793 (Removal of a Circuit Public Defender for Cause standard), SR 954 (Criminal Defense Performance standard), and SR 955 (Juvenile Defense Performance standard)].  All of these bills passed out of the Committee unanimously.  However, certain changes were made to the original SB 503.  Specifically, the Committee codified the percentages for determining indigence.  For misdemeanor offenses, local ordinance violations, probation violations, and juvenile offenses, the person requesting indigent defense services has to earn less than 125% of the federal poverty level.  For felony offenses, the person requesting indigent defense services has to earn less than 150% of the federal poverty level.  In the case of a juvenile, the determination will be based on the parents’ income.  No person earning more than 150% of the federal poverty level is entitled to indigent defense representation.

These bills are now in the Senate Rules Committee, chaired by Sen. Don Balfour.

Rep. John Lunsford has introduced HB 1431 which is an attempt to limit the counties’ indigent defense costs.

New criminal justice bills that have been introduced so far are as follows:

House Bills

HB 1396: This bill provides that any child over 14 that violates curfew can be held in custody up to 72 hours.

HB 1407: This bill adds vehicular homicide to the list of “7 deadly” crimes in which children between 13-17 may be prosecuted and incarcerated as adults.

HB 1418: This bill creates the Georgia Methamphetamine Offender Registry, requiring people convicted of certain methamphetamine offenses to register with the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.

HB 1421: This bill requires speedy trial demands to be filed separately from any other pleading or document and requires the presence of the defendant at every calendar call in order for the speedy trial demand remain in effect.
                                                                       
HB 1431: This bill changes for which services the local governments can contract with the circuit public defenders.  It also prohibits the requiring of the local governments from appropriating additional funds to cover the cost of indigent defense.  Finally, it prohibits the circuit public defenders from refusing to provide representation.

HB 1439: This bill provides for the crime of unlawful confiscation of legally owned and carried
firearms.

HB 1454: This bill provides that the state will not tax as income compensation for wrongful convictions.

HB 1465: This bill provides for forfeiture proceedings for motor vehicles used in the commission of certain sexual offenses against victims under 14.

HB 1482: This bill provides that the general public shall be allowed to attend juvenile proceedings with certain exceptions.

HB 1497: This bill provides requirements and penalties for owners of vicious dogs.

HB 1500: This bill creates different standards and penalties for certain felonies in juvenile proceedings and amends provisions relating to competency evaluations and waiver of counsel in juvenile proceedings.

HB 1512: This bill creates offense of unlawful conduct during 911 calls.

Senate Bills

SB 583: This bill requires the State’s consent before the defendant can waive his or her right to trial by jury in a criminal case.

SB 598: This bill provides for certain requirements before a registered sex offender can enter a school or day-care center.

SB 600: This bill calls for a moratorium on Georgia's death penalty.

SB 606: This bill creates criminal offense of disorderly conduct at funerals, memorials or funeral proceedings.

SB 631: This bill repeals provisions regarding the distribution and definition of obscene material, and provides for the criminal offense of distribution of obscene material.



SR 954: This bill ratifies the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council’s Performance Standards for Criminal Defense Representation in Indigent Criminal Cases.

SR 955: This bill ratifies the Georgia Public Defender Standards Council’s Performance Standards for Juvenile Defense Representation in Indigent Delinquency and Unruly Cases.

SR 1030: This bill is a resolution creating the Georgia Capital Punishment Study Commission to study the death penalty in Georgia.