State Rep. Mark Hamilton Earns Chamber Award

District 23 State Representative Mark Hamilton (R-Cumming) has earned an ‘A+’ grade from the Georgia Chamber of Commerce for his strong support of the state’s business community during the 2012 legislative session, according to a news release.  

“As an owner of two businesses, I understand how state government can have an impact on economic development and job creation,” said Rep. Hamilton. “I am glad to be part of this session’s legislative accomplishments that will continue to make Georgia a place that businesses want to conduct business and call their home. The chamber’s involvement was a valuable resource and of great help in passing legislation that will benefit Georgia citizens and businesses.”

The Chamber released its legislative scorecard for the General Assembly, which includes grades for state House and Senate members based upon their votes on legislation deemed important to economic growth and job creation.

“The ‘A+’ grade given by the Georgia Chamber to State Rep. Mark Hamilton reflects an unwavering commitment to bringing jobs, investment and long-term economic growth to Georgia,” said Georgia Chamber President and CEO Chris Clark. “Without question, he is a true champion of the state’s business community. We are tremendously grateful to have such a strong voice at the capitol working to strengthen Georgia’s pro-business climate and help companies across the state effectively compete in the global marketplace.”

For 2012, the Georgia Chamber identified nine key pieces of legislation critical to the business community for lawmakers to be scored on in policy areas including education, judiciary, and economic development. Prior to votes being taken, the Chamber communicated its position to members of the General Assembly and noted that those bills were eligible to be designated as “scorecard issues.”

This is the second year the Chamber has included letter grades in its report.  Legislators were assigned final grades of A, B, C, or U based on their support of the scorecard bills from 2012, and House and Senate members in office during the 2011 General Assembly had last year’s “midterm” grade combined to result in an overall grade for the two-year term. 

To receive a grade in either year, the legislator must have been present to vote for 50 percent of the total scorecard votes. If the legislator was not present for 50 percent of the votes, they received an ‘N/A’ grade. For some legislators, subjective factors – including but not limited to bill sponsorship, speaking for or against bills and committee votes – were taken into account.

See the PDF file to the right for the complete Georgia Chamber 2011 scorecard.

Editor's Note: Cumming Patch is not affiliated with nor endorses any political party or candidate running for public office.