Latest news with #JamesBurchett
Yahoo
27-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Revised bill to require disclosure of third-party financing in civil suits heads to Georgia Senate
House Majority Caucus Whip James Burchett argues third-party financing of civil lawsuits needs better disclosure. Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder A sequel to Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp's push to overhaul Georgia's civil litigation system has passed the House in a 98-69 vote, bringing the governor's top legislative priority closer to fruition. Unlike its far-reaching counterpart, Senate Bill 69 focuses solely on promoting greater transparency into third-party groups that finance civil suits, which supporters argue could give both judges and juries a clearer sense of what forces might be influencing a case before deciding whether to award damages. The bill was amended in the House Subcommittee of Rules on Lawsuit Reform to include a new section allowing the Department of Banking and Finance to deny litigation financing registrations and outlining an appeals process for organizations that have been denied. It also clarifies prior language defining foreign adversaries and requires additional disclosures for any stakeholders who own 10% or more of a company financing litigation. Because of the additional provisions added on the House side, SB 69 will need to return to the Senate for another vote to reconcile changes before it can advance to the governor's desk, but is not expected to encounter any additional hurdles. The bill has enjoyed more bipartisan support than Senate Bill 68, passing unanimously during its first vote in the Senate. The use of third-party lawsuit funding is a multibillion dollar industry, according to the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. It works by allowing hedge funds and other investment groups to finance lawsuits in exchange for a portion of anticipated damages awarded to the plaintiffs. Supporters of the practice, which is sometimes referred to as champerty, argue that it can expand access for plaintiffs, who may be struggling financially in the wake of an accident that leaves them unable to work or results in hefty medical bills. However, critics say that it allows private equity groups to exert influence over trials, which could prolong costly litigation expenses, and may give foreign actors access to sensitive information they would not otherwise be able to obtain. Georgia law doesn't currently require plaintiffs to disclose the use of outside funding. 'Currently there are no provisions whatsoever that outline regulations on litigation financing,' said House Majority Caucus Whip James Burchett, a Waycross Republican who sponsored the bill in the House. 'What this bill seeks to do is put some guard rails and regulation on the industry.' Efforts to require greater transparency for third-party lawsuit financing have become increasingly popular in state legislatures across the country in recent years, with Indiana, Louisiana and West Virginia all passing new restrictions against the practice in 2024. Georgia lawmakers also said the legislation will help safeguard business innovation to support growth in the state's economy. 'We have to be thinking of different ways to get more innovation into our economy and our industries,' said Rep. Todd Jones, a South Forsyth Republican who chairs the House Technology & Infrastructure Innovation Committee. 'One of the ways that we protect innovation is to ensure that bad actors don't capture trade secrets, patents and other intellectual property through bad actors and the litigation process.' As with the first part of Kemp's tort overhaul legislation, the majority of House Democrats opposed the bill, though Rep. Michelle Au of Johns Creek, Rep. Tangie Herring of Macon and Rep. Brian Prince of Augusta crossed party lines to vote in favor of the legislation. Rep. Charlice Byrd of Woodstock was the sole Republican 'no' vote. Minority Caucus Chair Tanya Miller, an Atlanta Democrat who served on the House Subcommittee of Rules on Lawsuit Reform where the bill was heard, condemned SB 69's passage, calling Kemp's push to overhaul Georgia's civil courts a 'manufactured crisis.' 'Like so many Republican-backed bills, it attempts to solve a problem that simply doesn't exist,' she said of SB 69. 'In committee, not a single case in Georgia was identified to justify this legislation. That's because the need for this bill was never grounded in facts—it's part of a broader propaganda playbook designed to protect big business and the insurance industry at the expense of everyday Georgians.' SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
21-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Georgia lawmakers approve $300M in farm and timber tax breaks after Hurricane Helene
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia lawmakers on Friday approved tax breaks for farmers and timber owners harmed by Hurricane Helene that could be worth nearly $300 million. House members voted unanimously to send the bill to Gov. Brian Kemp for his approval. 'This is a part of the Hurricane Helene recovery package that specifically addresses issues for farmers and foresters,' said House Majority Whip James Burchett, a Republican from Waycross. The tax breaks come on top of $862 million in spending that Georgia lawmakers earlier allotted for Hurricane Helene relief after the storm caused billions of dollars in damage when it cut across the eastern half of the state in September. The bill would exempt federal crop insurance and disaster payments to farmers because of Helene damage from Georgia state income taxes. That could be worth $140 million. Farmers in Georgia are already collecting hundreds of millions in crop insurance payments. Georgia officials estimate the state's farmers are also likely to collect $2.4 billion in federal disaster relief payments from the $30.8 billion allocated to cover disaster losses in a December law passed by Congress. The U.S. Department of Agriculture this week began accepting applications for $10 billion in aid to farmers nationwide due to losses suffered because of rising fertilizer prices and lower prices for crops, meeting a deadline imposed by Congress and cited last week in Atlanta by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. But the department has not yet disbursed any of the other aid despite rising frustration among farmers. Georgia's bill would also let private timberland owners claim a credit on their state income taxes for damaged timber if they replant trees. The credit, available in 66 disaster-area counties, would be good for up to $550 per acre. The timberland tax break could be worth $83 million to $104 million through 2030, estimates show. Another tax break would waive state and local sales taxes on building materials needed to rebuild chicken houses, barns, fences and other structures. A fourth program would let counties waive the taxes they collect when timberland owners cut down trees for the last three months of 2024 and all of 2025. Any county that chooses to waive taxes would refund any taxes collected since Oct. 1. The state would spend an estimated $17.4 million to replace counties' lost tax money. 'When you go from Valdosta to Augusta, it's pretty devastating,' said Sen. Russ Goodman, a Republican from Cogdell. "You've got not only these folks who have lost their inheritance, or their children's inheritance, or their retirement and everything else. But you've got to look at what it means to the local community as far as losing all the revenue because the timber crop was destroyed." Georgia lawmakers earlier this month approved $285 million for low-interest loans to farmers and to remove downed trees from private lands so they don't become a fire hazard. There's also $25 million in grants to nonprofits that are supposed to go to help individuals.
The Independent
21-03-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Georgia lawmakers approve $300M in farm and timber tax breaks after Hurricane Helene
Georgia lawmakers on Friday approved tax breaks for farmers and timber owners harmed by Hurricane Helene that could be worth nearly $300 million. House members voted unanimously to send the bill to Gov. Brian Kemp for his approval. 'This is a part of the Hurricane Helene recovery package that specifically addresses issues for farmers and foresters,' said House Majority Whip James Burchett, a Republican from Waycross. The tax breaks come on top of $862 million in spending that Georgia lawmakers earlier allotted for Hurricane Helene relief after the storm caused billions of dollars in damage when it cut across the eastern half of the state in September. The bill would exempt federal crop insurance and disaster payments to farmers because of Helene damage from Georgia state income taxes. That could be worth $140 million. Farmers in Georgia are already collecting hundreds of millions in crop insurance payments. Georgia officials estimate the state's farmers are also likely to collect $2.4 billion in federal disaster relief payments from the $30.8 billion allocated to cover disaster losses in a December law passed by Congress. The U.S. Department of Agriculture this week began accepting applications for $10 billion in aid to farmers nationwide due to losses suffered because of rising fertilizer prices and lower prices for crops, meeting a deadline imposed by Congress and cited last week in Atlanta by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. But the department has not yet disbursed any of the other aid despite rising frustration among farmers. Georgia's bill would also let private timberland owners claim a credit on their state income taxes for damaged timber if they replant trees. The credit, available in 66 disaster-area counties, would be good for up to $550 per acre. The timberland tax break could be worth $83 million to $104 million through 2030, estimates show. Another tax break would waive state and local sales taxes on building materials needed to rebuild chicken houses, barns, fences and other structures. A fourth program would let counties waive the taxes they collect when timberland owners cut down trees for the last three months of 2024 and all of 2025. Any county that chooses to waive taxes would refund any taxes collected since Oct. 1. The state would spend an estimated $17.4 million to replace counties' lost tax money. 'When you go from Valdosta to Augusta, it's pretty devastating,' said Sen. Russ Goodman, a Republican from Cogdell. "You've got not only these folks who have lost their inheritance, or their children's inheritance, or their retirement and everything else. But you've got to look at what it means to the local community as far as losing all the revenue because the timber crop was destroyed." Georgia lawmakers earlier this month approved $285 million for low-interest loans to farmers and to remove downed trees from private lands so they don't become a fire hazard. There's also $25 million in grants to nonprofits that are supposed to go to help individuals.
Associated Press
21-03-2025
- Business
- Associated Press
Georgia lawmakers approve $300M in farm and timber tax breaks after Hurricane Helene
ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia lawmakers on Friday approved tax breaks for farmers and timber owners harmed by Hurricane Helene that could be worth nearly $300 million. House members voted unanimously to send the bill to Gov. Brian Kemp for his approval. 'This is a part of the Hurricane Helene recovery package that specifically addresses issues for farmers and foresters,' said House Majority Whip James Burchett, a Republican from Waycross. The tax breaks come on top of $862 million in spending that Georgia lawmakers earlier allotted for Hurricane Helene relief after the storm caused billions of dollars in damage when it cut across the eastern half of the state in September. The bill would exempt federal crop insurance and disaster payments to farmers because of Helene damage from Georgia state income taxes. That could be worth $140 million. Farmers in Georgia are already collecting hundreds of millions in crop insurance payments. Georgia officials estimate the state's farmers are also likely to collect $2.4 billion in federal disaster relief payments from the $30.8 billion allocated to cover disaster losses in a December law passed by Congress. The U.S. Department of Agriculture this week began accepting applications for $10 billion in aid to farmers nationwide due to losses suffered because of rising fertilizer prices and lower prices for crops, meeting a deadline imposed by Congress and cited last week in Atlanta by U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins. But the department has not yet disbursed any of the other aid despite rising frustration among farmers. Georgia's bill would also let private timberland owners claim a credit on their state income taxes for damaged timber if they replant trees. The credit, available in 66 disaster-area counties, would be good for up to $550 per acre. The timberland tax break could be worth $83 million to $104 million through 2030, estimates show. Another tax break would waive state and local sales taxes on building materials needed to rebuild chicken houses, barns, fences and other structures. A fourth program would let counties waive the taxes they collect when timberland owners cut down trees for the last three months of 2024 and all of 2025. Any county that chooses to waive taxes would refund any taxes collected since Oct. 1. The state would spend an estimated $17.4 million to replace counties' lost tax money. 'When you go from Valdosta to Augusta, it's pretty devastating,' said Sen. Russ Goodman, a Republican from Cogdell. 'You've got not only these folks who have lost their inheritance, or their children's inheritance, or their retirement and everything else. But you've got to look at what it means to the local community as far as losing all the revenue because the timber crop was destroyed.' Georgia lawmakers earlier this month approved $285 million for low-interest loans to farmers and to remove downed trees from private lands so they don't become a fire hazard. There's also $25 million in grants to nonprofits that are supposed to go to help individuals.
