The Georgia General Assembly completed our thirty-third legislative day of session on Wednesday, March 23rd. Officially, we are now over three fourths of the way through the session. With only seven days remaining, many bills still await consideration by the House. Now is the time that the House considers bills sponsored and passed by the other chamber. The end of the 2011 session is close, with the session set to end on April 14th.
In session for three days this week, legislation considered in the House this week was lighter than last week after our full agenda on Crossover Day. As stated above, the House is now considering Senate legislation and vice versa. This required shorter days of session and spending our time in committee meetings as the legislation sponsored by the Senate goes through the committees in the House.

On Monday, one House Resolution was passed. In Georgia, we want to encourage our teachers to become National Board Certified. Previously, when the state's incoming revenue was higher, we promoted this board certification by offering each teacher a 10% stipend for 10 years in their current salary. This was reduced and then eliminated when the state had to tighten its' budget. House Resolution 248 was passed 163 to 2 to express that the House is committed to restoring this funding as soon as the budget allows and will continue to encourage teachers to get this certification.
On Tuesday and Wednesday, much of the legislation passed related to local legislation, in addition to two House Resolutions. None of the local legislation affected our district. House Resolution 459 passed 159 to 7 and it expresses the support of the House for a recent ruling by the Professional Standards Commission relating to teacher certificate upgrades. This Commission issued a ruling stating that a teacher who gets upgrades for graduate degrees must pursue them in an area related to their teaching fields and that the degree must be from a credible institution. HR 491 was also passed (149 to 7) and it encourages the development of performance based coaching programs designed for principals and district administrators. With seven days left, expect legislation sponsored by the Senate to be considered and debated by the House as the bills make their way through the committee process.

The members of the General Assembly will continue our work at the State Capitol on Monday, March 28th for our thirty fourth day of session. I will continue to keep all of you informed throughout the 2011 legislative session. It is a honor to continue serving you in the Georgia General Assembly. Please do not hesitate to let me know your position or thoughts on issues that concern you. If you would like to reach me, please call me at (404) 656-7153 or write me at: State Rep. Jay Roberts, 218 CAP, State Capitol, Atlanta, GA 30334 or e-mail me at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.