GEORGIA SENATE

Jack Murphy

• Senate District 27: Forsyth County and part of Cherokee County
• Address: 3830 Adams Road, Cumming, 30041
• District phone: 770-887-1960
• Capitol address: 304-B Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
• Capitol phone: 404 -656-7127
• E-mail: jack.murphy@senate.ga.gov
• Committees: Public Safety, chair; Economic Development, vice chair; Appropriations; Banking and Financial Institutions; Insurance and Labor; Regulated Industries and Utilities;  Retirement and Veterans, Military and Homeland Security.

Ralph Hudgens

• Senate District 47: Includes Barrow, Jackson, Madison, Elbert, Clarke and Oglethorpe Counties
• Address: 6509 Ga. 106 S., Hull 30646
• District phone: 706-353-2702
• Capitol address: 110-A State Capitol, Atlanta, 30334
• Capitol phone: 404-656-4700
• E-mail: ralph.hudgens@senate.ga.gov
• Committees: Insurance and Labor, chair; Banking, vice chair; Agriculture, vice chair; Natural Resources, secretary; Reapportionment

Lee Hawkins

• Senate District 49: Hall County and part of Jackson County
• Address: 4710 Jim Hood Road, Gainesville, 30506
• District phone: 770- 536-1229
• Capitol address: 304-A Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
• Capitol phone: 404-656-6578
• E-mail: lee.hawkins@senate.ga.gov
• Committees: Reapportionment and Redistricting Committee, vice chair; Agriculture and Consumer Affairs Committee, secretary; Health and Human Services; Natural Resources; and Environment and State and Local Governmental Operations.
• Personal issues: Job creation and job stability. Protection of health care rights and individual health care choices, along with protection of Lake Lanier.

Jim Butterworth

• Senate District 50: Banks, Franklin, Habersham, Hart, Rabun, Stephens, Towns counties, and one precinct in White
• Address: P.O. Box 2000, Cornelia, 30535
• District phone: 706-499-7567
• Capitol address: 325-B Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
• Capitol phone: 404-463-5257
• E-mail: Jim.Butterworth@senate.ga.gov
• Committees: Economic Development Committee, secretary; Education and Youth; Veterans, Military Affairs and Homeland Security; State and Local Government Operations and Retirement.

Chip Pearson

• Senate District 51: Dawson, Fannin, Gilmer, Lumpkin, Pickens, Union and parts of Forsyth and White counties
• Address: P.O. Box 209, Dawsonville, 30534
• District phone: None provided
• Capitol address: 321-B Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
• Capitol phone: 404-656-9221
• E-mail: chip.pearson@senate.ga.gov
• Committees: Economic Development, chair; Transportation, vice chair; Administrative Affairs; Appropriations; Assignments; Banking and Financial Institutions; Insurance and Labor; Rules; Special Judiciary

GEORGIA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

Doug Collins
House District 27: North Hall, one-third of White County and one precinct in Lumpkin County
Address: P.O. Box 907908, Gainesville, 30501
District phone: 770-983-2223
Capitol address: 504 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: doug.collins@house.ga.gov
Committees: Judicial, non-civil; Public Safety and Homeland Security; Children and Youth, secretary; Health and Human Services

Carl Rogers
House District 26: The center third of Hall County, includes Gainesville, parts of Oakwood and unincorporated areas of Hall County
Address: P.O. Box 639, Gainesville, 30503
District phone: 770-532-9484
Capitol address: Room 245, State Capitol, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: carl.rogers@house.ga.gov
Committees: Appropriations, vice chairman for general government; Insurance, Health and Human Services and Transportation.

James Mills
House District 25: Southern region of Hall County, includes Flowery Branch, Oakwood, Gainesville, Buford and southern end of county
Address: 3948 Kilgore Falls Drive, Gainesville, 30507
District phone: 770-967-6801
Capitol address: 228 State Capitol, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: james.mills@house.ga.gov
Committees: Banks and Banking, chairman; Rules, secretary; Appropriations and Ways and Means.

Tommy Benton
House District 31: Part of Barrow, part of Hall, and part of Jackson counties
Address: 177 Martin St., Jefferson, 30549
District phone: 706-367-5891
Capitol address: 501 Coverdell Building, Atlanta, 30334
Capitol phone: 404-656-0177
E-mail: tommy.benton@house.ga.gov
Committees: Education , secretary; Retirement, secretary; Natural Resources and Environment; Transportation

Amos Amerson
House District 9: Lumpkin County, Dawson County and three precincts in Forsyth County
Address: 689 North Chestatee St., Dahlonega, 30533
District phone: 706-864-6589
Capitol address: 401 State Capitol, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: hamerson@windstream.net
Committees: Science and Technology, chair; Appropriations; Higher Education; Energy, Utilities and Telecommunications

Mark Hamilton
House District 23: Cumming, western Forsyth County and eastern Cherokee County
Address: 108 Colony Park Drive, Suite 400, Cumming, 30040
District phone: 770-844-6768
Capitol address: Suite 504 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: mark.hamilton@house.ga.gov
Committees:  Children & Youth; Governmental Affairs; Industrial Relations; Transportation

Tom Knox
House District 24: Includes part of Forsyth County
Address: Cumming
Capitol address:220 State Capitol, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: tom.knox@house.ga.gov
Committees: Insurance, chair; Appropriations; Industrial Relations; Judiciary Non-Civil

Terry England
House District 108: Most of Barrow County, includes Carl, Auburn, Bethlehem, Braselton, Statham and Winder
Address: 1060 Old Hog Mountain Road, Auburn, 30011
District phone: 770-867-1601
Capitol address: 501 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: englandhomeport2@windstream.net
Committees: Agriculture and Consumer Affairs, vice chair; Industrial Relations, secretary; Appropriations; Natural Resources and Environment. Also chairman of the House Rural Caucus.

Stephen Allison
House District 8: Rabun, Towns, Union and part of White counties
Address: 90 Blue Ridge St., Blairsville, 30512
District phone: 706-781-3929
Capitol address: 501 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: stephen.allison@house.ga.gov
Committees: Banks and Banking;  Children & Youth; Higher Education and Judiciary

Rick Austin
House District 10: Habersham and part of White counties
Address: 1590 Double Springs Road, Demorest, 30535
District phone: 706-894-2268
Capitol address: 607 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: rick.austin@house.ga.gov
Committees: Children & Youth; Education; Motor Vehicles and Ways & Means

Michael Harden
House District 28: Banks, part of Franklin and Stephens counties
Address: P.O. Box 1189, Toccoa, 30577
District phone: 706-599-6028
Capitol address: 404 Coverdell Legislative Office Building, Atlanta, 30334
E-mail: michael.harden@house.ga.gov
Committees: Agriculture & Consumer Affairs; Children & Youth; Higher Education; Motor Vehicles
 

HOW A BILL BECOMES LAW
When the General Assembly adjourns this year, legislators will have considered scores of bills in the span of 40 working days. Legislation has to follow a specific path to become a law.

• A lawmaker introduces legislation in either the House or the Senate. The bill sits for two days and is assigned to a committee.
• Committees, small groups of lawmakers who consider legislation related to a particular area, hold hearings on the bill.
  
• The committee can change the bill or pass it back to the legislature intact. Some bills never make it out of committee, effectively killing them.
  
• Once back in the House or Senate, the bill is put on a calendar and scheduled for a vote. Calendars can get packed with bills in the final days of the session. Some bills never make it to a vote.
  
• On the floor, lawmakers can debate about and vote on the bill. They can amend the bill, pass the bill, kill it or pass it back to committees for more work.
  
• When passed, the bill goes to the other house of the legislature. For instance, if the House passes a bill, it goes to the Senate.
  
• If the other house changes the bill, the House and Senate assign a small team of lawmakers to come up with a compromise that both bodies can vote on.
  
• To become law, a bill needs at least 91 votes in the House and 29 in the Senate.
  
• Once approved, the governor can sign or veto the bill. A two-thirds vote in both houses of the General Assembly can override a gubernatorial veto.
  
• The bill is now a law.

There are many ways to keep up with where a bill is in the legislative process:

By phone
Call the House Clerk at 404-656-5015 or the Secretary of the Senate at 404-656-5040, who can answer some questions on the status of bills.
They also can mail legislation to you; the House Clerk can mail, but not fax, copies of legislation. The Senate will do both, but won't fax an item more than 10 pages. Neither office charges for the first 100 pages of copies. After that, it's 10 cents a page.
TIP: It helps if you know the number of the bill or resolution, but sometimes staffers can track legislation down with only a general subject.

In person
You can obtain bill copies from the House Clerk (Room 309) and the Secretary of the Senate (Room 351).

On the Web
Visit the General Assembly at www.legis.state.ga.us. Web visitors can pull up all the bills being considered, all amendments and roll call votes. The site includes the entire up-to-date Georgia code.

Site operators said they will have live audio coverage for the House sessions and the Senate. The Web also will have general information, plus a list of lawmakers, their background information and committee meeting schedules. However, the Web site will be a day behind actual legislative activity. For example, if on a Tuesday the House passes a bill, the Web site won't list the information until Wednesday.