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Published Monday, January 03, 2011 in Local

Jobs, illegal immigration, HOPE money on agenda

By Sarah Fay Campbell

The Newnan Times-Herald

The budget will most assuredly be the biggest issue of the 2011 session of the Georgia General Assembly, but it definitely won't be the only one.

For State Sen. Mitch Seabaugh, R-Sharpsburg, the big three issues are jobs, illegal immigration and the HOPE scholarship.

Jobs is job one, of course.

"We are all very sensitive that we have to do everything we can at the state level to help promote the creation of jobs and also an environment that keeps jobs in Georgia," Seabaugh said.

Some of those things include development tax incentives and "changes to certain regulations that are prohibitive to business," he said.

Of course, "the government does not create jobs," Seabaugh said. "We can only influence the environment -- in which either jobs are created or we restrict jobs."

The federal government has a more direct impact on decisions by companies to create jobs, with uncertainty in regard to cap and trade, tax breaks, and the insurance mandates, Seabaugh said.

Regardless, "we have to do all that we can at the state level to be able to help industries to create jobs and keep jobs in Georgia," he said.

That includes working to support existing businesses, including small businesses.

"When you're talking about government regulation and tax incentives, we definitely have in mind the small business -- the business with five or 10 employees. Those are where the majority of jobs are, that is where the biggest opportunity for jobs creation is," Seabaugh said. "It's not just in attracting large companies. We understand that."

Perhaps there are things business owners have to spend time on dealing with state agencies when they could be using that time and effort to create new markets and opportunities, and expand their business, Seabaugh said.

"Some of the paperwork that small companies have to deal with" is quite onerous and "things like that are the types of things we need to cut out," Seabaugh said.

Seabaugh added that he wants to hear from constituents on things they feel help or harm job creation and growth.

The Special Committee on Tax Reform and Fairness for Georgians, appointed last year, will be making its recommendations soon. Those ideas "could have very significant impacts on job creation and our budget," he said.

The HOPE scholarship is a big concern this year because the program is starting to dip into its reserves to meet obligations. There already have been cuts to the book allowances, and there have been discussions of possibly raising the grade point average needed to qualify for HOPE, or slashing benefits in other ways.

Seabaugh said none of these problems would exist if the Georgia Lottery Corporation was doing what it is supposed to do.

He wants to make sure people understand that the Georgia Lottery Corporation is a separate legal entity, and the legislature doesn't vote on their budget or the corporation members and "we cannot tell them how to operate," Seabaugh said.

When the lottery was first created, Seabaugh said, a target was set that the lottery corporation should be putting 35 cents of every dollar it makes on HOPE.

"The lottery corporation has failed to hit those targets," Seabaugh said.

If HOPE was getting the 35 percent it is supposed to get, "we would not have the challenge we have with HOPE right now," Seabaugh said.

"We've got to work on, number one, finding ways to get the lottery corporation to do what they are supposed to do," he said.

Seabaugh said he has been working for three years on legislation to bring more accountability to the lottery corporation, but hasn't been able to get anything to the Senate floor for a vote.

"I think our new governor is going to be very supportive of working in this area, and I'm looking forward to working with the administration in strengthening HOPE for future generations," Seabaugh said.

Barring that, Seabaugh feels that, when the HOPE reserve gets down to a certain level, "then we need to have a trigger" whereby, whatever is brought in by HOPE is divided by the number of HOPE recipients and "that is what the scholarship amount will be for the year."

Then there is illegal immigration, an issue that has come to the forefront as more Georgians are unable to find work.

A joint House and Senate committee has been working to gather input and craft recommendations for new legislation dealing with illegal immigration, which should be coming out with recommendations soon.

The General Assembly passed Senate Bill 529, the Georgia Security and Immigration Compliance Act, in 2006.

That law requires any public or tax-payer funded entity to require affidavits from all contractors and general contractors doing public projects.

In those affidavits, contractors don't swear that they don't employ illegal immigrants. Instead, they swear that they use the E-Verify system to make sure any newly-hired employees are eligible to work in the U.S.

The way the law is currently written, a contractor could sign up for E-Verify the day before bidding on a contract, and could have plenty of illegal employees, as long as the contractor doesn't hire additional illegals after signing up for the program.

Refining and strengthening that law has been one of the ideas discussed by the committee, as has increasing programs whereby law enforcement officials check the immigration status of those arrested for crimes, and detain those in the country illegally.

There has also been discussion of Georgia implementing an "Arizona-style" law that requires law enforcement officers to approach and question anyone they feel might be in the country illegally.

"A lot of times... after you pass the law, the issue is the enforcement of it," Seabaugh said. "I have been here long enough to know that, no matter how hard you try and have a very tight law, there are ways around it," he said. "That is why you have to revisit it and make sure that those who are finding loopholes cannot continue to... violate the spirit of the law."

Those are the major issues Seabaugh sees for the 2011 session, but "there is always a surprise issue that comes up," he said.

"We don't know what it is yet, but there will be a surprise issue that rears its head -- that will captivate not only the members of the Georgia General Assembly but Georgia itself," Seabaugh said.

Last session, that issue was Gov. Sonny Perdue's hospital "bed tax."

Seabaugh said he hears from his constituents on these and other issues, and it's his job to solicit input from those he represents.

The best way to tell Seabaugh your thoughts is by e-mail at mail@mitchseabaugh.com. Seabaugh said he gets a lot of e-mail, so it's a good idea to also call his office and give staffers a heads up so they will know to be on the look out for your e-mail.

The number is 404-656-6446.

Or, you can mail a letter at Sen. Mitch Seabaugh, 421-D State Capitol, Atlanta, Ga. 30334.

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Illegal?

1/10/2011