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Georgia General Assembly
A
form of representative government has existed in Georgia since January 1751. Its modern embodiment, known as the Georgia General
Assembly, is one of the largest state legislatures in the nation. The General Assembly consists of two chambers, the House
of Representatives and the senate.
The General Assembly has operated continuously since 1777, when Georgia became one of the thirteen original states and revoked
its status as a colony of Great Britain. Since the General Assembly is the legislative body for the state, the location of
its meetings has moved along with each move of the
state capital
. In its earliest days the legislature met first in
Savannah
, and subsequently in
Augusta
,
Louisville
, and
Milledgeville
. In 1868 the capital—and the assembly—settled permanently in
Atlanta
. Today the General Assembly meets in the
state capitol
, an impressive
granite
building with a distinctive gold dome. Each chamber is housed in a separate wing.
Every two years, Georgia voters elect members of the legislature. These elections occur in even-numbered years (e.g., 2002,
2004, 2006). The qualifications for holding office in both houses, as well as the size of both chambers, are established in
the Georgia state constitution.
House of Representatives
The House of Representatives, sometimes referred to as the lower house, is the larger of the two chambers. Its 180 members
represent districts from across the state, and it is presided over by the Speaker of the House, who is elected by the entire
membership. The Speaker has always been a member of the majority political party and has the power to schedule debates, to
vote, and to assign members to committees. There are three other important leaders in the house: the majority leader, the
minority leader, and the floor leader. The majority leader is responsible for advancing the agenda of the majority party in
the house, while the minority leader is responsible for advancing the cause of the minority party. The floor leader promotes
the
governor
's interests in the chamber.
Much of the work of the house is done in thirty-six standing committees. At the start of each two-year session, each member
is assigned to two or three committees, which are organized by such topics as
agriculture
, education, or taxes. Each political party's leadership selects members to serve on the committees, which ensures that the
parties are effectively represented in the process. Thus the party composition of committees is proportional to the party
composition of the house. The Speaker of the House selects the chairs of each committee; since the Speaker belongs to the
majority party in the chamber, all the committees are chaired by members of the majority party. Legislation passes through
the committees, where it can be amended, changed, or killed. Members, therefore, actively seek to be placed on committees
that deal with issues important to them personally and to their constituents.
To serve in the House of Representatives, an individual must be at least twenty-one years old. Other requirements include
residency for at least a year in the district that he or she represents and residency in Georgia for at least two years.
Senate
The state senate is very similar to the house, but the senate is a smaller body, with fifty-six members who represent districts
from around the state. The chief officer of the senate is the
lieutenant governor
. Unlike the Speaker, who is elected by the members of the house, the lieutenant governor is elected by all the voters of
the state. Thus, the lieutenant governor may belong to a different political party than the majority of the senators, as was
the case in the 2003-4 and 2005-6 sessions when Lieutenant Governor Mark Taylor, a Democrat, presided over a majority-Republican
senate. This scenario requires careful political balancing and the investment of significant authority in the president pro
tempore of the senate, who is the leader of the majority party.
There are twenty-six committees in the senate, and senators are required to serve on at least three committees during their
two-year terms in the General Assembly. As in the house, the party affiliations of senate committees are proportional to the
party affiliations of the senate as a whole. The lieutenant governor appoints the chairs of the committees, which resulted
in an unusual situation in the 2003-4 session. Although the Republican Party was the majority party in the senate and thus
could expect to receive all the committee-chair appointments, the Democratic lieutenant governor reached an agreement with
the Republican leadership—members of the majority party were appointed chairs for most of the committees, but some leadership
roles were given to Democrats.
To serve in the senate, an individual must be at least twenty-five years old. Other requirements include residency for at
least a year in the district that he or she represents and residency in Georgia for at least two years.
The Assembly in Operation
Each January representatives congregate at the state capitol for the start of the legislative session, which lasts for forty
days, to deliberate matters of importance to the citizens of the state. The forty days are not always continuous, and during
the time when the chambers are not in session, members generally work in committees or return home to meet with constituents.
The General Assembly uses a committee system to accomplish its legislative tasks. Since they meet year round, even when the
legislature is not in session, committees can consider
proposed legislation at length and reach some form of consensus before the proposals reach the floor for a vote. Such a system
allows legislators to specialize by concentrating on a few major topics and also allows the
legislative process
in Georgia to move more efficiently. Typically, the legislature adjourns in late March, after the major legislative business
has been completed. From time to time the governor may call the General Assembly into a special session for a set number of
days.
The most important function of the General Assembly is to pass the state's operating budget each year. In fact, approximately
half of the hours spent in session are related to the budget. This includes establishing spending priorities and setting tax
rates. Additionally, lawmakers must enact other laws on a broad array of topics from education to roads and transportation.
Another task of the General Assembly is to consider all proposed amendments to the
Georgia constitution
. A two-thirds vote in both houses is the primary means for approving resolutions to place proposed constitutional changes
on the ballot. Voters will then decide if the constitution is to be amended.
A special task that the General Assembly must undertake every ten years is the drawing of legislative district lines to create
the maps used for the state house and state senate district boundaries. The General Assembly also establishes the district
lines for Georgia's delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives.
Assembly Members
A number of famous Georgians have served in the General Assembly.
Jimmy Carter
, the only Georgian ever to be elected president of the United States, served in the state senate during the 1960s. Several
civil rights leaders, including
Julian Bond
and
Hosea Williams
, have served in the General Assembly. Most governors and U.S. senators from the state served in one of the two chambers before
running for higher office.
Several
members have served lengthy terms, most notably Hugh Gillis Sr. of Soperton, with more than fifty years of combined service
in both houses of the legislature. No discussion of longevity in the General Assembly would be complete without mention of
Tom Murphy
of Bremen, who was Speaker of the House between 1974 and 2002. Murphy was the longest-serving Speaker in the nation when
he was defeated in his 2002 reelection bid.
The average General Assembly member is white and male; 18 percent of the members are women and 21 percent are African American.
Suggested Reading
James C. Cobb,
Georgia Odyssey
(Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1997).
Arnold Fleischman and Carol Pierannunzi,
Politics in Georgia
(Athens: University of Georgia Press, 1997).
Chris Grant,
Our Arc of Constancy: The Georgia General Assembly, 250 Years of Effective Representation for all Georgians
(Atlanta: Georgia Humanities Council, 2001).
Chris Grant, Mercer University
Published 3/26/2005
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