About The Banks County news. (Homer, Banks County, Ga.) 1968-current | View Entire Issue (Jan. 2, 2012)
PACE 2A THE BANKS COUNTY NEWS WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 2, 201 3 STATE HOUSE Gasaway looks ahead to session With his first legislative ses sion coming up, newly-elected District 28 State Representative Dan Gasaway, who resides in Banks County, answered ques tions from The Banks County News on what is ahead. Question: What are some of the biggest leg islative issues coming up this session? Answer: The primary job of the General Assembly is to create a state budget (allocate collected tax revenue) for the upcoming fiscal year. This process will be very challeng ing because Georgia revenue collections continue to be substantially below pre-reces sion levels. Just as many of us continue to deal with our own unprecedented financial struggles, so does our state. Between 1939 and 2001, there were only two times that Georgia collected less rev enue in a year as compared to the previous year. However, between 2002 and 2010, there have been five times that Georgia has collected less rev enue. Georgia’s financial con dition will influence the debate on big issues such as the Hospital Provider Fee renewal (you may hear it referred to as the “Bed Tax”) as well as the funding of transportation projects for the regions that did not pass the T-SPLOST referen dum. A decision also will be made on extending the bond ing authority for the Georgia World Congress Center, in order to allow a public/private financing proposal for a new stadium in downtown Atlanta. Fortunately, according to state and national econo mists, Georgia’s economy is becoming more stable. In fact, many economists see Georgia as a national leader in future economic growth. However, Georgia’s future annual eco nomic growth is projected to be around two percent. I am concerned that this low rate of growth will make our econom ic recovery feel very lethargic. Q: What do you see ahead as far as health care? What are your thoughts on health care issues? A: Governor Deal has said that Georgia will not set up healthcare exchanges as part of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (Obamacare). The governor made this decision, partly, because there are too many unanswered questions. At a recent legislative conference, a nationally recognized expert on Obamacare referenced a 27-page “memorandum of understanding” she had just received from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. The speaker said this memo substantially changed her understanding of how the healthcare exchanges would be set up. The experts are unsure about the details in this new health care law. 1 believe the governor made the right decision to proceed cautiously. Q: Do you expect eth ics legislation to come up? What are your thoughts on this? A: Ethics legislation will be a topic during the 2013 General Assembly. Speaker Ralston recently appointed a special committee to study ethics. This committee includes a broad cross-section of Georgia State House members, and it was charged with examining ethics-related policy in Georgia and in other states. The com mittee’s job is to bring some specific proposals for debate, early on in the upcoming ses sion. I believe the public’s trust in government is very low. This distrust extends beyond the General Assembly to govern ment on all levels, including the judicial branch. Some of this distrust is well deserved. In Georgia, we’ve had judges resigning on a too regular basis in order to avoid disciplinary proceedings, as well as county commissioners involved in bribery scandals and question able land purchases. One spe cific proposal being discussed is to create a state-wide grand jury to investigate questionable land purchases by govern ments. My hope is that the reforms that are adopted are comprehensive in scope and cover government at all levels and across the entire state. Q: Thoughts on gun con trol? A: The tragic December event in Connecticut put gun related issues in the fore front of peoples’ minds. Our hearts hurt for those families involved. Inevitably, this trag edy will continue to generate discussion about what we do to prevent this from happening again, while at the same time, protecting 2nd Amendment rights. I do not believe gun control is the answer. Q: Any local legislation planned? A: The Banks County Board of Commissioners is plan ning to create a Banks County Elections Board. State Senator Wilkinson and I look forward to proposing this legislation and seeing it signed by the Governor. Q: Anything you would like to add? A: I look forward to repre senting the people of House District 28. My primary focus while in Atlanta will be to build relationships which will help us bring economic growth to our area. Improving our eco nomic prospects is my number one goal. AUSBURN HONORED Retiring Banks County Tax Commissioner Margaret Ausburn (right) was honored on Thursday evening with a reception held at the Farm Bureau building in Homer. A large group turned out to wish Ausburn well on her retirement at the end of this month. Here Laurell Ward congratulates Ausburn. Photos by Sharon Hogan PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE Banks County’s past tax commissioner Joleen Ferguson (center) joined retiring tax commis sioners Margaret Ausburn (left) and newly- elected tax commissioner Becky Carlan on Thursday at the retirement reception honoring Ausburn, who has served as tax commissioner for the past 24 years. Ferguson served 12 years as Banks County Tax Commissioner prior to Ausburn. WISHING HER WELL Banks County Board of Commissioners Chairman Milton Dalton (left) and his wife Melba (right) turned out on Thursday evening to wish retiring Banks County Tax Commissioner Margaret Ausburn (center) well on her retirement at the end of this month. Dalton will also be retiring at the end of December. POSING WITH FAMILY Margaret Ausburn (right) stands with her sister and nieces. Shown with Ausburn (from left) are: Heather Dunson, niece; Angie Campbell, niece; Jane Dunson, sister; and Kassie Suggs, niece. STATE SENATE Wilkinson sees challenges ahead in legislative session BY MARK BEARDSLEY The state senator who rep resent Banks County as the 2013 legislative session nears see challenges for the General Assembly in funding increased health care costs in the wake of passage of the Affordable Care Act. Sen. John Wilkinson (R-Toccoa) represents Banks County, as well as two precincts in Hall County, Habersham, Rabun, Towns, Stephens and Franklin counties and eight Jackson County precincts in the northeast half of the county — including all of Commerce. A former program manager for the Department of Education, he was elected to the Senate in a special election in 2011. When reapportionment took place, Wilkinson lost all of Hart County and the only precinct he had in White County. DFACS expense report presented The Banks County Department of Family and Children Services board held its monthly meet ing on Dec. 19 and director Kenny Jarvis presented the monthly county expense report for November, totaling $3,366. The November office of fam ily independence report showed four temporary assistance for needy families applications, 76 food stamp applications and 41 Medicaid applications. Jarvis reported seven child protective service referrals in and six CPS assessments. $2,586 has been spent for the year on CPS service. No children entered foster care in November and 15 total are now in legal custody; $17,105 has been spent on placement services. Wilkinson expects the Affordable Care Act to have a “big” impact on the budget in terms of the state’s costs for Medicaid and Medicare. “The big issue is the assess ment on hospital beds,” he said. “That comes up to be renewed this year.” The fee was implemented during the administration of Gov. Sonny Perdue. The state levies a per-bed fee against hos pitals and leverages that to get federal funding. “We charge a fee, the federal government matches it, but if that assessment is not renewed, we’ll have to come up with $400 million,” said Wilkinson. What the legislature will do, he added, is difficult to say. “Where the challenge is, some people view that as a tax,” he noted, which can be fatal for a revenue stream in Georgia. “It’s something that has been in place already and we actually get two federal dol lars for every state dollar. It’s a good deal for the state.” GUN CONTROL Following the mass shoot ing at Sandy Hook Elementary School, the legislator expects to see talk about gun control. Wilkinson is in no hurry to see new gun-related legislation. “Any time you have a hor rific incident, there are always suggestions that come up,” he said. “I think it’s wise not to have a knee-jerk reaction. It’s better to look at the big picture, how we deal with mental health and with all the factors that impact an incident like (the Sandy Hook shootings).” As for leadership changes in the legislature, the recent overhaul of the Senate leader ship will return a lot of power to Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle that was stripped off two years ago. “We’ve got a new president pro tern, a new majority leader and a new caucus chairman,” Wilkinson observed. Last year Cagle was kept off the Committee on Appointments. This year he chairs it. “That is a big change,” said Wilkinson. On other subjects, Wilkinson expects to see changes in eth ics policies, if not through state law that affects all lawmakers, then through the Senate Rules Committee, which would cover just members of the Senate. Georgia voters sided over whelmingly with ethics reform on referenda held separately by the two parties during the General Primary Election July 31. Wilkinson pointed out that he was ahead of the curve on ethics legislation. “I was one of six that signed the ethics reform legislation last year,” he said. He also pre dicted that Senate leaders will use the Rules Committee to establish a limit on the dollar amount of gifts Senators can accept, setting it at $100. Banks-Jackson Risk Reduction DUI SCHOOL 706-336-6777 DEFENSIVE DRIVING 1728 North Broad Street, Commerce, State Certified 5010 and 2007 Next DUI Class begins on January 12,2013 Next Defensive Driving Class will be held on Jan. 5, 2013 In Memory Dec. 27,1932 - May 7,1954 Killed by a drunk driver HAZEL Get the local school, chinch, sports and other community news dclimcd to your home each week! Just clip the coupon below to begin saving today over the newstand price! ! Name ! Address. 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