Crossover Day: Anti-ACA, medical pot, abortion restriction bills survive

• Clay Duda/CL File

Every year at the Gold Dome, Crossover Day remains a pivotal moment for state lawmakers. The 30th day of the legislative session represents the final day that a proposed bill must pass either the Georgia Senate or House Representatives to have a shot at landing on the governor’s desk for approval.

To move a bill forward, some legislators will go to great lengths to argue for their measures. Or bend over backward to try and resurrect a boneheaded policy. It’s a day where ridiculous, mind-boggling laws somehow see the light of the day and pass. This year was no different.

Although the state Senate reasonably wrapped up the people’s business around dinnertime, the state House of Representatives worked past 11 p.m. to determine which pieces of legislation would remain alive for the legislative session’s final 10 days. Both chambers discussed a combination of good, bad, and bizarre pieces of legislation. Here are the highlights from yesterday’s chaos:

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Medical marijuana moves ahead (H.B. 885): The state House passed what’s been referred to as a “medical marijuana” bill, but which deals more specifically with cannabis oil. Some state lawmakers, even those who support the heavily regulated law that could help people battling cancer and children suffering from seizures, expressed hesitation about the bill. (At least one state rep went to great lengths to stress it wouldn’t be used for “hippie reasons.”) Those concerns could be worked out in the state Senate, where the measure now heads.

General Assembly to get a say on Medicaid expansion (H.B. 990): State reps signed off on a bill that effectively strips Gov. Nathan Deal of his sole authority on Medicaid expansion, a federal program that, if passed, could provide more than 400,000 uninsured Georgia residents access to health care. Deal, who currently opposes Medicaid expansion, worked with the bill’s sponsors to craft the legislation. Supporters of the measure claim that lawmakers should play a part in the choice because it would affect Georgia’s budget. Critics argue that the H.B. 990 creates unnecessary barriers to expanding the program and question the authors’ political motives.

Abortion coverage would be denied for state insurance policy holders (S.B. 98): Senate Democrats lined up in force to lambast the election-year legislation sponsored by state Sen. Judson Hill, R-Marietta. State Sen. Vincent Fort, D-Atlanta, scolded upper chamber Republicans pushing the bill for becoming the “womb police.” And state Sen. Nan Orrock, D-Atlanta, raised the issue of what might happen under the bill to victims of sexual assault. She also shared her own experience of being a victim in 5th grade at the hands of a school administrator.

Obamacare ban for state employees (H.B. 707): State reps decidedly passed a measure that bans state employees, agencies, and schools from implementing the Affordable Care Act. The bill would also grant Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens the power to take action against those who violate the law.

Civil Forfeiture stalls yet again (H.B. 1): Legislation sponsored by state Rep. Wendell Willard, R-Sandy Springs, that would overhaul Georgia’s civil forfeiture laws? The Georgia Sheriff’s Association lobbied to stop the bill, which would have tightened up the laws dealing with how law enforcement officials handle the cars, cash, and other assets they seize.

Drug testing for food stamps, Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) stays alive (H.B. 772): A controversial proposal passed through the House that would require men and women who receive either food stamps or welfare benefits to undergo drug testing if a “reasonable suspicion of drug use” is found. When state Rep. Greg Morris, R-Vidalia, who authored the legislation, was asked to define reason, he replied from the well: “If you roll up to a Zippie Mart® at 3 a.m. with hubcaps missing, wearing sunglasses, buy three frozen burritos ... there’s reasonable suspicion you’re high.”

Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. and Ten Commandments monument proposals gain approval (H.B. 1080 and H.B. 702): Two different bills that would bring statues to the Gold Dome received thumbs up from state reps. The first piece of legislation, which has bipartisan support, calls for a MLK monument to be erected on the Georgia State Capitol’s grounds. Another measure comes from Morris and would bring a large granite shrine featuring the Ten Commandments as well as preambles from the U.S. and Georgia constitutions. It’s unclear if either would replace the recently removed statue of former Georgia politician and white supremacist Thomas Watson in front of the Gold Dome’s main steps.

Bill to prohibit undocumented immigrants brought to US as children from getting drivers licenses gets spiked (S.B. 404): A proposal that would deny driver’s licenses to undocumented immigrants who were covered by the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program died in the lower chamber, despite an effort by state Sen. Bill Heath, R-Bremen, to tack the language to another piece of legislation.