Representative Jay Roberts Weekly Capitol Update
January 15, 2010

The first day of the 2010 legislative session started on Monday, January 11th. During the first week of the session, the work that takes place is mostly procedural. Elections for vacant leadership positions took place on Monday. We elected a new Speaker of the House, Representative David Ralston. Then, legislation was read on the House floor so that the Committee process could begin.

On Wednesday, Governor Purdue issued his final State of the State address to the General Assembly in the House Chamber. In the final year of his last terms as governor, his speech was surprisingly different from years past. Typically, the governor addresses the budget and his legislative agenda for the session in this address. To everyone’s surprise, Governor Perdue did not release his recommendations for the upcoming budget, as he has done in previous years. He acknowledged the struggles that the state is facing in regard to the budget, but did not speak of any specifics. The Governor also acknowledged the challenges the state of Georgia and lawmakers are approaching, with the budget crisis being one of the worst the state has ever experienced. Perdue offered words of encouragement to the legislators then went through somewhat of a history lesson as he described our past as a nation, the challenges we have faced through the years and those that are still to come.

As I have told my constituents before, we have a daunting task as we balance the budget for the state of Georgia. We are fortunate that a balanced budget means that as a state we will not go into debt to fund our expenses; however, it also means that services and programs will have to be cut. The decisions and the choices will be tough, and budget cuts are never easy. The burden is heavy and unfortunately, we must all carry the load. As legislators, we have pledged not to raise taxes on the citizens of Georgia therefore we must meet the challenge of fiscal responsibility through these cuts. This means that departments and agencies will be required to tighten their belts and reduce their budget as we focus on the essentials.

Next week we will not be in legislative session; however, there will be activity at the Capitol as budget hearings will take place daily. The Governor did release recommendations for how and where the revenue for the state will be spent, but the House and Senate also have input and influence before the budget is approved. Part of the budget process will include budget hearings and requests as each state agency and department outlay their current funding requests. The members on the Subcommittees of Appropriations will sort through each budget and try to determine what is essential and where cuts could possibly be made within each.. Our economy will recover, but it will take time. We must be patient with the legislative process and vigilant in exercising fiscal responsibility as we move forward. I will keep you informed as we proceed during this legislative session.

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 orat (229) 425-5404 or write me at:
State Rep. Jay Roberts, 218 CAP, State Capitol, Atlanta, GA 30334
or e-mail me at This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it