Day 28- March 22, 2010

Tonight on Lawmakers, the House fails to pass a Constitutional Amendment in opposition to federal healthcare legislation; the Georgia Hospital Association announces it now supports Governor Sonny Perdue’s plan to implement a 1.6% hospital provider tax to help shore up the Medicaid budget; a bill that would allow the Governor to delay implementation of national cap and trade regulations passes the Senate; and the Georgia State Supreme Court declares tort reform caps enacted in 2005 unconstitutional. All that and more tonight.

New Legislative Schedule

The Georgia General Assembly today voted to adopt a new adjournment resolution. Senate Resolution 1322 sets the following schedule for the legislature in the coming weeks:

Monday, March 22 LEGISLATIVE DAY 28
Tuesday, March 23 IN RECESS
Wednesday, March 24 LEGISLATIVE DAY 29
Thursday, March 25 IN RECESS
Friday, March 26 LEGISLATIVE DAY 30 (Crossover Day)

Monday, March 29 IN RECESS
Tuesday, March 30 LEGISLATIVE DAY 31
Wednesday, March 31 LEGISLATIVE DAY 32
Thursday, April 1 LEGISLATIVE DAY 33
Friday, April 2 IN RECESS

Monday, April 5 IN RECESS
Tuesday, April 6 IN RECESS
Wednesday, April 7 IN RECESS
Thursday, April 8 IN RECESS
Friday, April 9 IN RECESS

Monday, April 12 LEGISLATIVE DAY 34

Be sure and tune in to Lawmakers on GPB every night that the General Assembly is in session for Lawmakers at 7 PM.

Day 27- March 18, 2010

Tonight on Lawmakers, the Senate passes a measure making it illegal to text while driving; a bill that supporters say puts common sense into zero tolerance laws clears the Senate; regional transportation funding in the form of transportation special local option sales taxes, or T-SPLOSTs, takes an important step as it clears House committee; and it’s the end of another legislative week- that means it’s time to check in with Tom Crawford of The Georgia Report. All that and more tonight.

Day 26- March 17, 2010

Tonight on Lawmakers, a bill that would allow Georgia’s Governor to appoint the Commissioners of Labor, Insurance and Agriculture as well as the State School Superintendent passes out of committee; an amendment aimed to thwart federal healthcare legislation fails to pass the Senate; a bill that intends to capture unreported taxes at point of sale from business owners passes the House; and our leadership series of interviews continues with Senate President Pro Tem Tommie Williams. All that and more tonight.

Special Broadcast Times TONIGHT

Lawmakers will not be seen on GPB tonight, Wednesday, March 17, at 7 pm due to special coverage of the Georgia Tech Inventure prize. You can watch Lawmakers live at 7 pm on GPB Knowledge, which is available to most cable customers and on digital tuners at point 3 of your dial. For example, 8.3 in Atlanta or 20.3 in Augusta. Or, you can watch Lawmakers on GPB at 10:30 pm. Those are special airtimes for tonight only. 7 pm on GPB Knowledge and 10:30 pm on GPB.

Day 25- March 16, 2010

Tonight on Lawmakers, Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Carol Hunstein delivers her first State of the Judiciary Address and warns that further budget cuts could cause the State to lose the rule of law; the Senate passes a bill to allow local government-sanctioned racing on closed roads and the House bans euthanasia for animals administered by gas chamber. All that and more tonight.

LIVE State of the Judiciary Broadcast/Webcast

On Tuesday, March 16, Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Carol W. Hunstein (pictured left) will deliver her first State of the Judiciary Address to a special joint session of the House of Representatives and the Senate at 11 AM. Justice Hunstein was appointed to the Supreme Court in November 1992 by then Governor Zell Miller. She is the second woman in history to serve as a permanent member of the Court. It is expected that her remarks will address the current budget situation in Georgia's courts. GPB will broadcast LIVE the State of the Judiciary address on GPB Knowledge. GPB Knowledge is available to most cable customers and those with digital television receivers at point 3 of your local GPB transmitter. For example, 20.3 in Augusta or 8.3 in Atlanta. The State of the Judiciary: A Lawmakers Special Edition will also be streamed live online at www.gpb.org.

Complete coverage of the State of the Judiciary address can also be found on our regular Lawmakers broadcast, Tuesday night at 7 PM on GPB-TV.