Ben Watson

I have been focused this week on my legislative efforts to honor local leadership and advocate for education reform as we navigate the critical Crossover Day period. Crossover Day is the legislative day when a bill must pass out of its original chamber (House or Senate) to stay alive for the rest of the legislative session. If it doesn’t “crossover” to the other chamber by that day, the bill usually dies for that year.

The first signs of Spring are around the corner and how can we tell: St. Patrick’s Day is this week, and the Georgia General Assembly has only nine legislative days left in this session. I congratulate Marty Hogan, who was selected as the 2026 St. Patrick’s Day Parade grand marshal. This is one of the most prestigious honors bestowed upon the Irish celebration, which includes one of the largest parades in the country, and several weeks of Irish-led festivities.

The 2026 General Assembly is beginning to close down and now has only five days left to the final session of this legislative term. All state representatives and senators, as well as all state elected government positions, will end at the end of the year, and 2027 will usher in a new General Assembly, as well as a new governor, lieutenant governor, secretary of state and others.

The 2026 General Assembly session will adjourn Sine Die this week, and we now have only two legislative days left during this session. Days will be long, as whatever legislative initiatives are not passed this year must start over next year during the next legislative session in January of 2027 when a newly-elected General Assembly is sworn in. Budget negotiations are the primary focus now.

The 2026 General Assembly adjourned Sine Die at 1:25 a.m. Friday morning, meaning the 2026 legislative session is over.

The 2026 General Assembly session has adjourned, and we can now look to the accomplishments made during this final session of this two-year General Assembly term. With the end of the legislative term, the entire General Assembly will either retire or seek re-election.

As elected officials, our first obligation is to the taxpayers we serve. That means asking hard questions — even when the answers are uncomfortable.

In part 1 we looked at the Dataform CompilationResult and WorkflowInvocation objects. Let's follow up...

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