Georgia 2025-2026 Regular Session

Georgia House Bill HR884 Compare Versions

Only one version of the bill is available at this time.

Old	New	Differences
1	1	25 LC 112 3509
2	2	House Resolution 884
3	3	By: Representatives Gaines of the 120
4	4	th
5	5	, Jasperse of the 11
6	6	th
7	7	, Hilton of the 48
8	8	th
9	9	, Greene of the
10	10	154
11	11	th
12	12	, and Dempsey of the 13
13	13	th
14	14
15	15	A RESOLUTION
16	16	Urging increased state autonomy to allow for the creation of innovative solutions to work
17	17	1
18	18	disincentives and the reform of social safety net programs; and for other purposes.2
19	19	WHEREAS, according to Area Development, Georgia ranks first among all states as the best3
20	20	state for business; and4
21	21	WHEREAS, CNBC ranked Georgia number one in the United States for business5
22	22	environment; and6
23	23	WHEREAS, Georgia's economic strength and social capital foster an environment of7
24	24	opportunity that benefits families striving to escape poverty; and8
25	25	WHEREAS, Georgia's uniquely successful approach of integrated welfare program9
26	26	enrollment via the Georgia Gateway has proven effective and paved the way for further10
27	27	enrollment integration; and11
28	28	WHEREAS, the State of Georgia has made concerted and significant efforts to identify and12
29	29	address instances of chronic or inter-generational poverty that still occur among its citizens;13
30	30	and14
31	31	H. R. 884
32	32	- 1 - 25 LC 112 3509
33	33	WHEREAS, Georgia's Quick Start job training program has positioned it as a national leader
34	34	15
35	35	in workforce policies that strengthen upward mobility for impoverished families; and16
36	36	WHEREAS, new independent research from the Sutherland Institute identifies evidence of17
37	37	families receiving public assistance feeling disincentivized from pursuing or accepting18
38	38	opportunities to increase their earned income and improve their financial situation; and19
39	39	WHEREAS, this research finds that 77 percent of respondents to a statewide survey of public20
40	40	assistance recipients report concern that earning additional income would result in a loss of21
41	41	benefits that would worsen their family's financial situation; and22
42	42	WHEREAS, this research further finds that 62 percent of respondents report feeling stuck23
43	43	in a low-income job due to the belief that increased income would cause loss of benefits that24
44	44	would not be worth the additional income; and25
45	45	WHEREAS, this research further finds that 43 percent of respondents report having26
46	46	intentionally limited their earned income due to fear of triggering a "benefits cliff" or27
47	47	"benefits plateau"; and28
48	48	WHEREAS, the Georgia Center for Opportunity has produced a computational model29
49	49	demonstrating the effects of benefits cliffs in every Georgia county via their website,30
50	50	benefitscliffs.org; and31
51	51	WHEREAS, the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta defines this phenomenon as a wage32
52	52	increase that "may result in a family being financially worse off (a benefits cliff) or no better33
53	53	off (a benefits plateau) than before the wage increase"; and34
54	54	H. R. 884
55	55	- 2 - 25 LC 112 3509
56	56	WHEREAS, for families who strive to improve their economic conditions, benefits cliffs,
57	57	35
58	58	benefits plateaus, and other disincentive effects have the potential to trap families in poverty36
59	59	by hindering workforce participation and disincentivizing financial stability; and37
60	60	WHEREAS, the State of Georgia is committed to finding innovative solutions to any38
61	61	disincentive effects to work, family formation, economic independence, or other39
62	62	opportunities that may be present in the social safety net; and40
63	63	WHEREAS, due to federal restrictions, states have limited authority to experiment with41
64	64	federally funded social safety net programs for the purpose of finding innovative reforms that42
65	65	can address benefits cliffs, benefits plateaus, perception gaps, or other obstacles to upward43
66	66	mobility experienced by families receiving public assistance.44
67	67	NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that45
68	68	the members of this body urge the President of the United States and Congress to grant46
69	69	additional flexibility and autonomy to states to experiment with innovative pilot programs47
70	70	and other reforms to improve social safety net programs by addressing any work48
71	71	disincentives that may exist.49
72	72	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body urge the President and50
73	73	Congress to expedite waiver approvals for states pursuing innovative pilot programs or other51
74	74	reforms to the social safety net.52
75	75	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body urge the President and53
76	76	Congress to pursue additional flexibility to the states in the form of block grants for a wider54
77	77	array of existing social safety net programs.55
78	78	H. R. 884
79	79	- 3 - 25 LC 112 3509
80	80	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body urge the President and
81	81	56
82	82	Congress to streamline and consolidate reporting requirements from the states to the federal57
83	83	government to save taxpayer dollars and yield efficiencies.58
84	84	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the members of this body call upon the President and59
85	85	Congress to embrace the principles of federalism to further empower states to be the60
86	86	laboratories of democracy and drive innovative reforms and improvements to our nation's61
87	87	social safety net.62
88	88	BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized63
89	89	and directed to make appropriate copies of this resolution available for distribution to64
90	90	Georgia's congressional delegation, the Office of the President of the United States, the65
91	91	Speaker of the United States House of Representatives, the Majority Leader of the United66
92	92	States Senate, the United States Department of Health and Human Services, and the United67
93	93	States Department of Agriculture.68
94	94	H. R. 884
95	95	- 4 -