The Act provides for an income tax credit to individuals and corporations who lease or purchase a new low-emission vehicle or who convert an existing conventionally fueled vehicle to a low emission vehicle on or after January 1, 1998. The new or converted vehicle must be registered in an area
The Act makes a variety of changes to Georgia's workers' compensation law. First, the Act increases the penalties to be paid by employees who fraudulently retain income benefits to which they are not entitled. The Act also amends the workers' compensation law as it applies to
The Act provides for mental health parity under certain conditions. The Act applies to individual, small group, and large group policies; self-insured companies are exempted from the Act. In general, an employer is not required to offer mental health insurance coverage. However, if such coverage is offered, the Act provides
The Act prohibits telephone solicitations to residential telephone subscribers who indicate their opposition to such solicitations. Residents who do not wish to receive telephone solicitations may pay a fee to have their phone number entered into a data base. The Georgia Public Service Commission shall establish this data base and
The Act imposes a mandatory term of imprisonment of not less than ten years for a defendant who commits a serious violent felony. The Act further provides that no portion of the ten-year sentence may be suspended, stayed, or reduced by any form of parole or commutation. The seven serious
The Act impacts the three statutorily defined methods of condemnation proceedings previously established by Georgia law. The three condemnation methods are: (1) the three assessor method; (2) the special master method; and (3) the declaration of taking method.' In condemnation proceedings over which assessors preside, the Act establishes minimal
The Act provides a means for local schools to substitute an academic and/or vocational performance-based contract, called a charter, for state and local rules, regulations, policies, and procedures governing public schools. The Act allows private individuals, private organizations, or state or local public entities to establish a local school
The Act amends eleven Code sections relating to insurance. The Act classifies as "felonies" all acts that meet the current definition of insurance fraud and increases the maximum penalty for insurance fraud to ten years imprisonment and/or a $10,000 fine. The Act prohibits the Insurance Commissioner
The Act requires that health insurance plans of all types allow participation by qualified rural health care providers. The Act first provides that health plans must give rural providers the opportunity to apply to become a participating provider. The Act requires that if the rural providers' applications are denied
The Act expands the definition of pandering by making the offense applicable to persons who solicit prostitution individually as well as persons who solicit prostitution for a third person. The Act also increases fines for a person found guilty of pandering when the offense involves the solicitation of a person
The Act redefines the offense of stalking to include conduct that puts a victim in fear of his or her safety, rather than just conduct that puts the victim in fear of death or bodily harm. The Act also authorizes permanent restraining orders and permanent protective orders, and adds that
The Act requires owners of large public waste-water treatment facilities to privatize the operation and maintenance of their systems if certain violations of their permits occur. The Act sets forth schedules, milestones, and standards for the privatization process. The Act creates a privatization oversight committee and authorizes this committee to
The Act authorizes the State Attorney General to bring civil or criminal judicial actions in his or her discretion to enforce Georgia open and public meetings law.
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The Act expands the coverage of Georgia law prohibiting labor strikes by state employees to prohibit labor strikes by all essential public employees. Those public employees whose absence would endanger the health, safety, public welfare, and morals of the populace of Georgia are not allowed to strike, nor are they
The Act provides that the State Commissioner of Insurance can choose either to contract with private examiners or use the Commissioner's own staff to examine group self-insurance workers' compensation funds. The Act further provides that the workers' compensation fund will pay for the examination.
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