Ben Watson

State senator

This past week, we passed the halfway marl of the 2025 General Assembly session. We have completed 21 of the 40-day legislative session. The all-important “crossover” day is schedule for next week on Friday, March 7.

There is much discussion nationwide as state and local governments have picked up on the desire for citizens to task their elected representatives to trim their budgets and eliminate programs and employees that just don’t have measurable outcomes. Georgia is no different.

Last week, the Senate Economic Development and Tourism Committee, in which I am a member, held hearings on the Senate Bill 28, otherwise known as the “Red Tape Rollback Act.” This bill is the centerpiece of the Senate’s effort toward regulatory reform, one of the session’s top priorities as outlined last month by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones.

The Red Tape Rollback Act was presented as the state’s complement to the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency, better known as DOGE. Georgia’s entry into regulatory reform is designed to enhance a goal of creating a more efficient bureaucracy. The Senate is seeking to create efficiency, while reducing or eliminating unnecessary spending and eliminating bureaucratic red tape.

Some of the highlights of what we passed S.B. 28 include the following regulatory reform measures: • It requires state agencies to perform top-to-bottom reviews of their rules and regulations every four years.

• It directs state agencies to reduce compliance and paperwork burdens on small businesses.

• For proposed rules that are estimated to cost over $1 million over five years after implementation, it requires agencies to provide an economic impact analysis to the General Assembly.

• It empowers legislators to request a “small business impact analysis” to weigh economic costs and benefits from pending legislation.

We passed Senate Bill 403 in 2022 that established Georgie Behavior Health and Peace Officer Co-responder Act. This program turned into a big success and as a follow up on that success we honored the Department of Behavior Health and Developmental Disabilities, as well as local co-responder teams and first responders themselves. They do a heroes’ job of de-escalating crises and connecting individuals to appropriate care and reducing unnecessary incarceration.

Georgia senators passed a bill last Wednesday that could make it cheaper to buy guns, ammunition and accessories like scopes, stocks and gun safes on a party-line vote, and behind the scenes, lawmakers and lobbyists are tussling over a Democrat-sponsored plan to encourage gun owners to lock up their weapons. Senate Bill 47 would be in effect for 11 days each year, starting on the second Friday in October, set to coincide with the start of deer hunting season. This bill is designed to promote outdoorsmanship, as well as a means of keeping the deer population in check as well as preventing the destruction of crops or accidents with motorists caused by deer.

I will keep you updated on legislation affecting our community as we progress through the session. Thank you for your continued interest in the work of our General Assembly. As your public servant, feel free to visit me at the Capitol or to reach out by phone or email. I am in 325A Coverdell Legislative Office Building. My office phone number is (404) 6567880, and my email is ben.watson@ senate.ga.gov. I look forward to continuing to serve you.