Legislative Priorities

Senate Platform 2010
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Economic Development:

I believe Georgia and particularly the Southern Crescent posses a wealth of potential for Economic Development. We have the infrastructures and workforces necessary to attract quality businesses to our state and community. I plan to continue to work with the Georgia Department of Economic Development as well as our local governments and Clayton and Henry counties’ Chambers of Commerce and Development Authorities to bring Industry and Organizations to our communities which provide high paying jobs and opportunities to our residents. As our national economy struggles to regain its glory days, we must be diligent in our local efforts to generate sustainable revenue sources and provide stability to our struggling and declining tax bases. While we are experiencing tremendous growth in new residents, in most cases our tax digest remains at the same or declining levels. This places extreme stress on our ability to provide the services and increased levels of infrastructure required to provide to our citizens and guests the quality of life they so deserve and expect. We must encourage homeownership and revive our Housing Industry--the driving force behind economic recovery. I will build on my working relationships already established with the Senate, House and Federal-Level Leadership to ensure Clayton and Henry counties receive our fair share of Federal and State Funded Projects and funds through the Appropriations process. I will also work to decrease and eliminate State and Federal unfunded mandates. Additionally, I will work to increase awareness and support of Tourism and the Arts as important entities vital to Economic Development, Education, and Viability in Clayton and Henry counties.

Education:

I believe nothing could be more important to our national security and ability to compete globally than the education of our children and our international status as an educated society. We must insist on reform as it relates to the delivery of 21st Century education. We can not continue to utilize 20th century methods and methodologies to educate our youth and society and expect to compete in an ever-changing and evolving world. While funding education should be a top priority, delivering a quality product and improvements on results is equally as important. Our expectation for educational output must be met, but we must also meet that same level of expectation with unprecedented compensation and support for those who deliver the results expected. I believe the State should give our local school districts and leaders the flexibilities necessary to deliver a quality product, but with that flexibility there must be an increased level of local accountability. I plan to introduce legislation directed at improving our educational systems and student achievement while providing equal opportunity and access to a quality education to every child regardless of the social economic status of his/her parents.


Transportation Funding:

Adequate, immediate, and sustainable funding for a Statewide/Regional Comprehensive Transportation Plan is a MUST. The plan must be local government friendly with the necessary flexibility for local governing authorities to utilize a fair share of intake revenues for various modes of local transit including operating and maintenance requirements. We made a step in the right direction with HB 1218 (HB 277), the Governor’s 2010 Transportation Act. While I do not agree with every aspect of the Bill, nevertheless I am proud and honored to be a Co-Sponsor on the original version of the Transportation Legislation along with the House Leadership. I also had the opportunity to serve on the Transportation Sub-Committee for Transportation Funding, which allowed me to participate directly in the process and gain an invaluable understanding of the dynamics including politics, power, and personalities involved around the transportation funding issue. If Georgia is truly serious about fixing our transportation problems, we must also be aggressive in acquiring Federal Grants and Aid and move toward building/rebuilding our relationships in Washington.

Transportation:

As a member of the House Transportation Committee for the last 4 years, I helped to write and pass significant transportation legislation targeted toward “Moving Georgia” forward in relieving our commute gridlock and travel time. After spending a number of years in Europe and utilizing the Interconnected Transit Systems including commuter rail, light, and high speed rail and public-private operated bus systems and services, I know Georgia can do more when it comes to transportation. We must find “ways and means” to move people in and around our counties and cities.

Tax Reform:

Bringing Tax Reform to Georgia’s antiquated and outdated tax code is a priority for me in the Senate. We must find ways and means to revise our tax policies which allow 2% of our tax payers to carry 98% of the tax burden. We must seriously look at a balance between property and consumer taxes in order to ensure all residents are contributing their fair share to the general fund. We must insist on documented and verifiable results regarding benefits to our economic posture from those who receive tax credits, eliminations, and exemptions. We must also work to ensure an efficient process is adopted to aggressively and timely collect on taxes due the state through business transactions. According to various tax experts and policy sources, Georgia has an annual estimated $500,000- $ 1,000,000,000 dollars in uncollected tax receipts.

Veterans Affairs:

I plan to work with State and Federal Veterans Affairs departments to ensure our veterans and their families are shown our sincere appreciation as a grateful nation and state for the sacrifices they have made and continue to make to afford us to be a great nation. We must ensure that accurate levels of funding are supported though the appropriations process to fund our military. My priorities are to: 1) urge Congress to improve on Program of Loans for Education and Home Ownership for Veterans, 2) to protect and build more veteran retirement homes, and 3) to guarantee veterans’ jobs and assistance when returning from tours of duty in combat zones. We must eliminate the bureaucracy and suspicions associated with veterans seeking assistance and benefits for service connected/related injuries and illnesses. We must be more aggressive in providing care to those who are suffering with mental instabilities, post-traumatic stress disorder, and traumatic brain injury resulting from military duty. We are currently using our Military Reserves and National Guard personnel in unprecented numbers and war zones; therefore, we must care for them and their families in unprecedented ways. We must aggressively seek to decrease the growing numbers of homeless veterans in the State of Georgia. Finally, we must provide tuition-free education for dependent children of service men and women killed in combat and dependants of disabled veterans who received severely debilitating injuries during combat.


Georgia General Assembly
www.legis.state.ga.us

Clayton County's Website
www.co.clayton.ga.us

Clayton County Public Schools Website
www.clayton.k12.ga.us