Now that the state session is over, most legislators will likely transition right into campaigning after a day or two breather as the primary elections are just under two months away. But amid the election activity, there will be multiple off-session committee hearings throughout the year. There have always been a handful of these study committees, but over the past few years the number and activity of these have grown, as state legislators have been utilizing the months outside of the session to analyze multiple issues. Some of the topics of interest to credit unions to be studied include:
- A continued study on tax exemptions and credits, with a cost-benefit analysis of specific ones;
- A thorough review and potential overhaul of the system of how real property is taxed;
- An analysis of how occupational taxes are assessed, and how that should be expanded or changed;
- Multiple studies on the challenges surrounding expansion of marijuana and hemp; and
In addition, there is also the possibility that the state Legislature reconvenes for a short period for an atypical “special session” to address anything that needs to be done legislatively in the event Georgia is picked for Amazon’s second headquarters. If this comes to pass, it will be interesting to see how this dovetails into the elections that are already under way. As these hearings and potential special session take place, they will be monitored closely to ensure that credit unions and their ability to serve their members are not impacted.
