![]() On March 27, 2019, the Rules Committee of the House took up the Airport Takeover Bill proposed by the Senate. Many people presented and asked questions using outdated facts and figures, some 20 years old. Once all presentations and debate exhausted, Transportation Chairman Kevin Tanner stitched together pieces of the takeover, jet-fuel, and HB 511. This passed out of the Rules Committee and was sent to the Floor SB 131 creates the Airport Transparency Legislative Oversight Committee. This committee is charged with reviewing "operations, contracts, safety, financing, organization and structure" of Georgia's commercial airports. The measure does not just apply to Hartfield-Jackson it would include any commercial airport that boards at least 300 commercial passengers on planes a year. This would include airports in Albany, Athens, Atlanta, Augusta, Brunswick, Columbus, Macon, Savannah and Valdosta. The bill includes what the House previously passed regarding the suspension of jet-fuel taxes on airlines for 20 years. This would save the airlines $30-40 million a year. SB 131 includes parts of Chairman Tanner's HB 511. This would allow rideshares to be taxed. The taxes levied would then go to public transportation in rural and underserved areas for citizens to ride to jobs and school. The AJC wrote an article, Georgia House backs airport oversight instead of takeover, which includes remarks from several elected officials from across the state. On March 28, 2019, the House voted and passed SB 131 104 - 70.
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