Jay Morgan Column “2023 Georgia General Assembly Legislative Priorities” Featured in November/December Issue of James Magazine

See an excerpt below and read Jay’s full column on page 57 of the November/December issue here.

WHILE MANY pundits, both local and national, have been fixated on the rematch between Gov. Brian Kemp and Stacey Abrams or the undercard match of Sen. Rev. Raphael Warnock and Herschel Walker, Georgia business leaders and political observers are about to turn the page and focus on the 2023 session of the Georgia General Assembly. Come January, over 50 new legislators will be welcomed to the historic seat of state government and the issues they will face are plentiful. Consider:

The budget get The governor’s recommendations will set the tone for the 2023 session and provide a roadmap for the next four years. With ample reserves but a loom - ing recession, establishing budget priorities will set the table for many “family discussions” around the GOP leadership table. Filling the chairs at the table will be a new chairman of the House Appropriations Committee and new leadership in the Senate which will change both the voices and the tenor of those negotiations. Taxes The GOP nominee for lieutenant governor Burt Jones has run ads promising to “cancel” the state income tax. While many legislators have given stump speeches about this for years, should he win this will be the first time a statewide office holder has made this their signature issue. Georgia’s reserves have never been stronger which makes this a tantalizing target. But read on for what may be unintended consequences of this debate.