Georgia Assembly Adopts Rules on Legislative Privilege After 2020 Election Probe
January 12, 2023 | Georgia
The Georgia state House and Senate adopted rules on Wednesday that say communications between lawmakers and people outside the legislature should be shielded by legislative privilege after some lawmakers were forced to testify in a 2020 election-related special grand jury probe.
The U.S. and Georgia constitutions say that lawmakers shouldn’t face questioning for activities such as communications with third parties that might take place during public policy debates and discussions related to making laws.
The Republican-controlled legislature voted to support the rule change language, while most Democrats voted against it. The Georgia General Assembly routinely adopts rules at the beginning of each two-year session.
House Majority Leader Chuck Efstration, a Republican representing District 104, said on the House floor ahead of the vote that the purpose of the rule change is to recognize and remind members of that legislative privilege and reflect in the House rules “what is already in place through constitutional means about legislative privilege.”… (Excerpt from The Epoch Times)
