More failures than successes on Day 37 at the State Capitol

The last week of the General Assembly session is typically filled with hastily called committee meetings, day-long voting sessions, and midnight negotiations. But this week, lawmakers may be able to get some beauty rest.

House leaders say they won’t pass a lot of senate bills if the Senate isn’t going to return the favor. Today-the last day senate committees can approve legislation for the year-senators dealt blows to several controversial House bills.

The Senate Judiciary Committee refused to approve a bill that could have expanded Georgia’s death row. The legislation would have changed procedures during the sentencing phase of death penalty trials. Under the measure, a judge could sentence a defendant to die, even if some jury members objected.

“I don’t know that we had an opportunity to form an opinion about the merits of the bill and to fully understand what it did in the amount of time that we had,” said Judiciary Committee Chairman Preston Smith (R-Rome).

Prosecutors who came to the committee meeting refused to testify. The bill’s sponsor, Rep. Barry Fleming (R-Harlem) did not show up.

The Senate Public Safety and Homeland Security Committee tabled a bill that would have regulated red-light cameras-a major source of revenue for local governments.

The Senate Rules Committee refused to approve a measure to protect employees who keep guns in their cars while parked on company property. The Georgia Chamber of Commerce called the measure “an effort to diminish the rights of private property owners.”