Nathanael Mooney, Campus Carrier staff writer
The legislative session of the Georgia General Assembly has ended, with many controversial bills passed that are now awaiting Governor Brian Kemp’s signature. With the assembly over, legislators will likely turn their focus onto reelection as all seats are on this year’s ballot.
House Bill 1105 passed and will require local law enforcement to assist federal agents in enforcing immigration law. The bill also lays out penalties to sheriffs who do not properly identify the immigration status of inmates. Associate Professor of Political Science and International Affairs Eric Sands was worried about potential ramifications of this law.
“The thing that concerns me is that it makes illegal immigrants fearful of the police,” Sands said. “I think we want to be clear: No matter who you are in the United States, if you need help, you can go to public services and get that help.”
Senate Bill 351 will require social media companies to seek parental permission from users under 16 years old. Under this bill, social media will be banned on public school computers and internet. According to Sands, the bill has a realistic chance of being overturned, because the Supreme Court tends to act aggressively towards laws that concern the First Amendment guarantee of free speech. Associate Professor of Political Science Michael Bailey raised concerns from an educator’s perspective.
“I don’t know what counts as social media, but a couple times a semester I show a YouTube video of a candidate or something involved with politics and if that’s considered social media, that’d be banned,” Bailey said.
Senate Bill 362 bars companies from voluntarily recognizing unions without a formal secret-ballot election. Georgia has a small union presence so an anti-union bill is not surprising.
“If you have a group of employees that want a union it shouldn’t matter whether the vote is open or closed,” Sands said. “They should just be able to say they want a union and the company has to recognize it. It’s pretty transparent what they are trying to do, but I don’t see it as much of a hurdle.”
Many bills did not receive the votes needed to become law. Other issues did not have any bills addressing them. According to Sands, it is likely that some hot button issues, such as abortion, were left off of the agenda to avoid riling up voters in an election year.
One of the bills that did not pass, House Bill 104, would have banned transgender girls from participating in sports with those who are assigned female at birth. It also would have banned sex education in fifth grade and under and required a system of notifying parents whenever a child obtains something from a school library.
“It could be that one particular item brought [the bill] down,” Bailey said. “My guess is they lumped together too much.”
Senate Bill 386 and Senate Resolution 579 would have legalized online sports betting. Those in favor claimed that taxes on sports betting could be a new source of revenue for the state, while those who oppose the bill claimed sports gambling’s harmful side effects outweigh the benefits. Sands was surprised at the bill’s failure considering that Georgia is a state with lotteries.
“I think it’s only a matter of time,” Sands said. “I think we will eventually [legalize] it.”
The most important bill for environmentalists was the unsuccessful Senate Bill 132, which would have placed a three year pause on future mining permits in the Okefenokee Swamp. Twin Pines Minerals received permits to expand their titanium mining within three miles of Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge earlier in March.
Many conservation groups and environmental experts are outspoken critics of the plan for mining. Senior and environmental studies major Marcelene Leverett was worried about the implications of this decision and how it may affect future rulings.
“A lot of things, especially in the court, act on precedent and it will negatively affect [the swamp],” Leverett said.
Despite the public resistance, Twin Pines Minerals says that the mining will not result in any ecological damage.
Governor Brian Kemp has 40 days after the session ends to sign or veto the bills that passed both houses. The impact these new laws will have on Georgia remains to be seen.