State Legislative Session at Day 25

As of press time, the state Legislature is on day 25 of the 40-day schedule with one month remaining. The level of hearings as well as the number of issues being introduced are at an all-session high given that the self-imposed deadline of Crossover Day is looming large next week on March 7^th. There were hours of tax-related hearings monitored on behalf of credit unions as well as several issues and bills being analyzed, addressed and lobbied. Some of the highlights from this week include:

• Auto Dealer-Franchisee Relationships: On February 27^th SB 122 by Sen. John Kennedy (R-Macon) was debated in a special committee; it seeks to make several changes to the way auto dealers and franchisees interact with each other as well as how they protect data. And while it’s narrowly focused, it is monitored closely to ensure that what they are seeking doesn’t affect lending.
• Boat Titling: On February 27^th the full House Ways and Means committee passed HB 314 by Rep. Ron Stephens (R-Savannah), which seeks to create a boat titling procedure in Georgia regulated by the Department of Natural Resources. GCUA will stay engaged in the process; however, the Legislature has considered boat titling for more than 20 years without a successful final passage.
• Elderly Abuse Suspicions: HB 402 by Rep. Houston Gaines (R-Athens) seeks to expand the elderly exploitation reporting requirements for financial institutions to go beyond financial exploitation to include all abuse. In discussions with Rep. Gaines on the concerns on expanding this requirement onto financial institutions, he shared he will work with the industry to address these if the bill moves forward in the process.
• Gift Card Fraud: HB 488 by Rep. Martin Momtahan (Dallas) seeks to combat organized retail crime through the regulation of what data is obtained from the personal sale of gift cards. While the intent is to prevent fraud, there are problems with the application and work is under way to prevent compliance burdens on credit unions. Much more work is needed on this issue.
• Habitat for Humanity: On February 27^th HB 313 by Rep. Spencer Frye (D-Athens) was debated in a House Ways and Means subcommittee hearing; this bill seeks to address a property tax issue for Habitat for Humanity and how its properties are assessed before they are turned over to the new owners. And while narrow in scope, it opens up dialogue and sections of law that pertain to lending, nonprofits and tax exemptions.
• Hemp Farming: On February 27^th legalized hemp farming took another step forward when HB 213 by Rep. John Corbett (R-Lake Park) passed the full House. This bill, as well as the other marijuana-related bills are monitored to ensure that no barriers to financial services (other than the existing barriers on a federal level, but efforts are under way in Congress to try to address those) are created.
• HOA Clearance Letters: SB 178 by Sen. PK Martin (R-Lawrenceville) is similar in nature to a bill from last year that passed but was vetoed; this bill seeks to regulate what information HOAs share in letters requested for mortgage closings, and what fees could be charged, and is anticipated to be hotly contested in the process with multiple versions. This bill passed the Senate Special Judiciary Committee on February 26^th after it was amended with language that included requirements for Fannie Mae loans added to the “list” of items that can be considered standard requests. The bill will be watched closely to ensure that credit union operations are protected, and to ensure that HOA interests did not insert language to supersede the lien status of the lender in the midst of the debate.
• Improvement Zones: On February 27^th the Senate passed SB 20 by Sen. Michael Rhett (D-Marietta), which is the same “banking improvement zone” bill they passed last year. This issue has been introduced for the past several years, and attempts to encourage cities and counties to utilize public funds as a quasi-incentive for banks, but is problematic in its application and the expectations it sets. It is watched closely as it is an attractive bill for other interests to take and use for negative bills that could impact financial institution law.
• Liability Protection & Clear Operations for Funeral Home Payments: HB 490 by Rep. Jason Ridley (R-Chatsworth) is the legislation that GCUA and others have engaged to include liability protection and a clear process with funeral home payments. Last year GCUA kept dialogue open with Rep. Rick Williams (R-Milledgeville) on his previous attempts to expedite the payment of funeral expenses (when an individual dies without a will and without a joint member on their account). Presently there is a 90-day waiting period in which the funds must be held before payment, and in 2018 he sought to abolish the waiting period and instruct the financial institutions to pay funeral home expenses first before any family member. However, Rep. Williams has been very open to working with the industry to ensure that what is pursued this year is positive for credit unions. He has modified his original effort to remove the onerous language from 2018, and has included liability protection for the financial institution as well as a clear system in which to apply for payment.
• Mass Tax Exemption Review: As of press time action is anticipated soon on SB 120 by Sen. John Albers (R-Alpharetta) as it has passed the committee process last week; this bill calls for an analysis and cost-return on 53 separate income and sales tax exemptions and credits. This bill will be monitored closely through the process to ensure that credit unions are not impacted.
• Mortgage Licensing Exemptions: On February 27^th the House Banking Committee passed HB 212 by Rep. Clay Pirkle (R-Ashburn) to carve out an exempt for mobile home dealers if they are not facilitating a mortgage. And while it’s directed at federal law changes, the committee passes a more narrowly defined version of the bill to ensure it did not create unintended consequences for the lending environment in the state. It will continue to be monitored in the process to ensure that it does not bring Georgia law out of sync with federal requirements and accidentally bring more compliance burdens onto credit unions.
• Peer to Peer Car Sharing: On February 28^th a House Regulated Industries subcommittee debated how peer to peer car sharing could be regulated with HB 337 by  Rep. Shaw Blackmon (R-Bonaire). GCUA continues to be engaged in the process as this is a new concept, and is working to ensure that the car is insured throughout the entire time.
• Reciprocal Deposits: SB 157 by Sen. John Kennedy (R-Macon) seeks to allow deposit placement services as an alternative to collateralization of public deposits. As drafted the bill is narrow in its approach, and seeks to allow Georgia to be the last of the 50 states to allow this option.
• Self-Settled Trusts: For the past several years there have been efforts to allow self-settled trusts in Georgia. This bill has been reintroduced: SB 186 by Sen. Bill Cowsert (R-Athens) as well as HB 497 by Rep. Bonnie Rich (R-Suwanee) both seek to permit this new form of trust account to be offered in Georgia, and are monitored closely to ensure that creditors have the capability to claim on assets that were included in making a decision on a loan (if the assets were placed under the trust afterwards). The House Banking Committee debated this on February 28^th, and the bills will continue to be monitored to ensure that it does not morph into previous versions that did not contain creditor protections.
• TAVT Changes: House Ways and Means debated TAVT changes this week, with the full committee passing HB 365 by Rep. Shaw Blackmon (R-Bonaire) forward on February 27^th. There are annual tweaks or attempts to change the tax and how fair market value is calculated on vehicles; this bill seeks to put autos sold at used and new dealers on the same process for calculating fair market value as well as lowering the amount of tax required. It will likely have MANY changes in the process and will be monitored closely.
• Towed Vehicles: GCUA continues to be engaged on a bill that seeks to overhaul the entire section of law that pertains to towed vehicles: HB 307 by Rep. Alan Powell (R-Hartwell). The original version of the bill lengthened the period of time in which a towing facility would notify a lienholder to 20 days; however, GCUA has been working closely with Rep. Powell and interested parties to shorten this to keep credit unions and other from having a delay in realizing that a vehicle had been impounded. The bill passed the House Motor Vehicles committee on February 28^thand may still change several times in the process; stay tuned!