ATLANTA– Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has made it a priority limiting judgments in lawsuits but the plans he outlined to business leaders on Tuesday were all about investing in infrastructure and education.
The Republican governor told the Georgia Chamber of Commerce that his reform plans are not quite ready, and a spokesman said details would be released before the end of the month.
“We’re just connecting the dots,” spokesman Garrison Douglas said Tuesday. “This is a huge undertaking.”
Instead, the governor used his speech before the House to propose ways to use the state’s $11 billion in excess cash.
Kemp said he wanted to spend another $1 billion on infrastructure after the state chipped in additional $1.5 billion last year. The governor also said he would introduce a bill to improve the way Georgia guides students toward college or vocational training, linking high school learning to college and measuring the effectiveness of career training.
Kemp promised the chamber in 2023 that he would limit lawsuits and grand jury verdicts, an effort many are calling “tort reform.” Advocates say Georgia has a permissive legal system that allows people to unfairly sue businesses, doctors and property owners for damages, drive out insurance companies and raise insurance rates.
Normally, Kemp might have rolled out his plan in the first few days of the session, which began this week, but the policy of limiting lawsuits crosses normal party lines. Opposition comes from Democrats and Republican trial lawyers. Kemp signed a law in 2024 to collect data on legal costs while considering a range of reform approaches.
“This is not a partisan issue,” Kemp said Tuesday. “Regardless of your party, your neighborhood, your zip code or your background, this problem affects us all.”
Several Republican leaders, including House Speaker Jon Burns of Newington, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch of Dahlonega, have said they would make court reform a top priority in their chambers.
Opponents of the lawsuit reform say changes would limit Georgians’ rights to seek compensation for wrongdoing by companies, doctors and others. They also say there is no evidence that the state’s legal landscape is causing higher insurance rates.
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Kramon is a staff member of The Associated Press/Report for America Statehouse News Initiative. Report for America is a nonprofit national service program that places journalists in local newsrooms to report on undercovered issues. Follow Kramon on X: @charlottekramon.