1818Blog: Buzz on the Coming Session

Buzz Brockway has been a fixture on the Republican landscape of Gwinnett County since the mid-1990s, holding most of the Gwinnett Republican Party’s elected positions up to and including chairman. If one can be said to have labored in the vineyards, it would be Buzz. He worked on several state and local campaigns, running a number of them as campaign manager. He has a blog at Peach Pundit.

Buzz is a 1990 graduate of Georgia Tech, and owns Felicity International. He has been married to his wife Christa for 19 years. They share their home with their three daughters.

He represents the 102nd District of the Georgia House of Representatives; Lawrenceville.

I asked Buzz what his plans were for the coming session of the General Assembly.  The highlights, he answered, will deal with the fiscal cliff, Obamacare,
and other matters concerning education.

John Dunn: “Okay, Buzz, let’s assume that the fiscal cliff happens. What does that mean for the state of Georgia?

Buzz Brockway: “Raising taxes by the amount called for should we go over the fiscal cliff could throw us back into a recession. There is a lot of waste in the Pentagon that should be eliminated but indiscriminate cuts could hurt Georgia because of the large number of installations we have. I also fear a deal will be cut to avoid the fiscal cliff that kicks the can down the road and pushes the problems down to the States. There's not much road left to kick the can down and the State budget cannot absorb more unfunded federal mandates.”

JD: “You mentioned that you support Governor Nathan Deal’s stand on the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act – Obamacare. What is his stand, and why is it important to Georgia?”

BB: “Governor Deal announced on November 16th that Georgia would not create health insurance exchanges.  Health insurance exchanges in and of themselves are a good idea however PPACA greatly restricts how States can create and operate them and Governor Deal was right to decline to participate.  The federal
government will create an exchange and they will bear the full cost of running it rather than the State of Georgia.”

JD: “And how will this affect Medicare and Peachcare?”

BB: “The other major decision Georgia faces relating to Obamacare is whether or not to expand eligibility to Medicaid. The cost to implement this expansion will be about $4.5 billion in State taxes over the next 10 years. Georgia would be promised $40 billion in federal funds. With massive federal budget deficits it's not clear how Washington can afford to keep its commitment to the State and send us that money after we've expanded Medicaid eligibility and took on responsibility for those costs.”

JD: “Let’s talk about education, Buzz.  What needs addressing in the coming session?”

BB: “We need to give local school district more flexibility, especially good performing systems like Gwinnett.  Plans are in the works to do that. We also
need to work on improving the State's four year graduation rate which, according to new federal measurements, is 48th in the nation. Students need to be prepared for post-secondary education or the workplace, whichever path they
choose.”

JD: “Recently, Buzz, the voters of Georgia went through a blistering campaign to pass the Charger School Amendment to the Georgia Constitution. There appears, in some taxpayers’ minds, to have been an inordinate and inappropriate amount of opposition from the various public school districts around the state, but particularly in metropolitan Atlanta. Is there a remedy for that kind of political activism on the part of state and local bureaucrats?”

BB: “People certainly have the right to hold and express whatever opinion they choose, even if they are public school employees. I welcome input from teachers and other education professionals but that input shouldn't be done through school system email systems or at taxpayer's expense.  At no time should public school employees be made to feel they must take a political position under pressure from their superiors and we should protect teachers from any such abuses.”

JD: “State School Superintendent Dr. John Barge opposed the Charter School Amendment, and admitted he would have to answer to the voters for that. School Board members are subject to the voters as well. I believe, Buzz, that if our local school superintendents wish to engage in politics, they should cease to be merely bureaucrats and be made themselves subject to the political process of elections. What are your thoughts?”

BB: “There were allegations about the use of taxpayers’ funds for political advocacy not just during the charter amendment debate but also during the debate over the Transportation Investment Act or TSPLOST this summer.  As you said, elected officials answer to the voters and I think voters expect us to take positions on legislation and ballot initiatives, but the issue is less clear for unelected or appointed public employees. While they enjoy First Amendment free speech protections, that speech must not be done at taxpayer expense. Current law seems vague to me on that subject and I think we need to take a look at that.”

JD: “Okay, Representative Brockway, what else do you have planned?”

BB: “I have been working with Senator Renee Unterman on the issue of human trafficking which is a serious problem in the metro area. There will be some legislation dealing with that next year. I'm concerned about over reaching state and federal regulations which needlessly hamper free enterprise. When business leaders like Bernie Marcus say if he had to start Home Depot today he couldn't, we have a problem.”

The 2013 session of the Georgia General Assembly will begin on January 14.

http://www.twitter.com/1818Blog

http://www.facebook.com/1818Blog

####