'Lawmakers' Day 16: Senate passes tax holiday on gun products; House passes bill to protect judge info

It was a busy day in both chambers with lively debate over some controversial issues.

The Senate took on three pieces of legislation on Wednesday. Most notably, Senate Bill 47 would create an 11-day tax holiday each October on the sales of firearms, ammunition and related items.

Last year, a similar bill was passed out of the Senate but failed to make it out of the House.

“This bill would run from the second Friday of October for 11 days,” Sen. Jason Anavitarte (R-Dallas) said. “Firearms, ammunition, gun safes and related accessories would be exempt from the sales tax. Use taxes during that period to promote hunting, conservation and tourism in Georgia. Senate Bill 47 will also carve out a window of tax revenue to expand the base of hunters and increase tax revenue dated to conservation.”

Democrats say there is no need for the tax break.

“The optics of this really suck,” Sen. Nan Orrock (D-Atlanta) said. "The optics of this are sending a message that I'm not sure you want to go home and explain. I'm just not sure you want to do that — about why you rejected in committee the idea of one of our Democratic colleagues, the idea that finally reinstates the sales tax relief on school supplies. No, no, no. This is for people that — and you know what? Guns are going off — just flying off the shelves like I don't know what.

“Why do we need to incent gun buying? It's doing fine all on its own.”

A Democrat proposed an amendment that would have excluded AR-15 rifles from the exemption. It failed to be considered when the bill was engrossed, but the contentious issue was still passionately debated.

“Let me tell you what an assault weapon is: It was a Ford truck that was used to kill people in New Orleans," Sen. Carden Summers (R-Cordele) said. "That's what it was. It's a pressure cooker that was used to blow up people in a race in a marathon race in Boston. That's what assault things are that people do. And we get caught up in this stuff about guns. What things are. Let me tell you something. I own a lot of guns. I like to collect them. I like to shoot them. I like to go hunting. It has nothing to do with this right here.

“I appreciate this bill because it allows safety in this bill that you can buy safety items going along with guns. I appreciate the senator from the 31st for bringing this bill. I just want you all to know AR does not stand for assault rifle or automatic rifle."

“If we had the opportunity, we would have attempted to exclude those types of guns, no matter what you call them, that was used in the shooting at Apalachee High School,” Sen. RaShaun Kemp (D-Atlanta) said. “It's unfortunate that what we're doing today is extending from five to 11 days and giving an opportunity for folks to buy more guns like this. As I ask in my question, the gun that was used was legally bought, and so we are giving an opportunity for people to purchase these guns, whereas we could be trying to do something to ensure that we are keeping kids safe.”

The bill was passed as expected along party lines 31 to 21.

Also passed was SR 95.

The resolution would name a new legislative building being constructed next to the Capitol after former Georgia governor, former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture and current Chancellor of the Georgia University system, Sonny Perdue.

In the House, five bills received near-unanimous approval.

One bill, House Bill 199, would change the way judges could request for their personally identifiable information, like phone numbers and addresses to be redacted.

The House passed a similar bill last year.

“What we decided to do at that time was to ask our judges, through our administrative office at the courts to compile a database that they could then enter their information into and then send that information out to the appropriate form of government to then be redacted,” Rep. Trey Kelley (R-Cedartown) said. “Well, through the process of implementation this year, we've realized that asking all of our judges to submit this sensitive information to one central database may not be the most secure way to protect that information. It's also going to be fairly costly.”

Another bill, HB 216, would create a commission for education and production of semiconductor chips.

The commission would be named after late House Rules Chairman Richard Smith.

“So, we need to bring that home because over 90% of the chips right now that go in your phone, your appliances, your cars, all that's made in Taiwan —over 90% of it,” Rep. Vance Smith (R-Pine Mountain) said. “So, we need to bring it back to Georgia. So, I would hope that you have had a chance to take a look at this. It does create a commission.

“We're going to work hard to see if we can bring that industry here as high paying jobs. And I think it'd be great for our citizens,” he added.

Other bills passed would update credit union terminology, add another judge to the Alapaha Superior Court, and increase the cost cap on state contracts.  

After passing legislation, lawmakers moved on to afternoon orders, where several Democrats took the opportunity to rebuke President Donald Trump.  

Rep. Anne Allen Westbrook (D-Savannah) used the president’s own inappropriate words from a 2005 interview to dispute the president’s claim that he is a protector of women and girls. 

"Yesterday, from the well, the president was portrayed as a defender of women and girls," she said. "I was wondering if this was the same president whose record on women and girls, I had thought was well known. So, I felt it necessary to remind folks of the fuller story. ‘I moved on actual you know, she was down on Palm Beach. I moved on her and I failed. I'll admit it. I did try and bleep her.’”

On Thursday, the Senate was expected to take up a bill dealing with immigration enforcement. It's also New Americans Day at the Capitol, where newly sworn-in citizens can celebrate with lawmakers.

Watch Lawmakers tonight to see Rep. Esther Panitch (D-Sandy Springs), Rep. Lehman Franklin (R-Statesboro), WABE Politics Reporter, Rahul Bali, and AJC Politics News and Enterprise Reporter Michelle Baruchman discuss the latest on the legislative session.