Bill to restore budget/fiscal oversight committee advances to hearing with calls for audit coordination and safeguards

Vice Chair Mitchell Horner presented House Bill 1178 (LC 443347) to reinstate a statutory Budget and Fiscal Affairs Oversight Committee that the sponsor said had been stripped of key legal requirements between 2006 and 2008. The bill would set a fixed membership (18), authorize the committee to examine liabilities across state departments, require annual reporting and allow performance audits and subpoena authority when state funds are involved.

Horner told the committee the change would "put the responsibility back" to ensure appropriations and liabilities are reviewed and to provide a central location for agencies to report obligations. He said the committee should be able to call audits and follow state funds "wherever state money falls." The bill also proposes scheduled meetings outside the 40‑day session so members can call department officials year‑round, though Horner said he is open to discussing frequency.

Members asked whether the committee must be bipartisan, how quorum and membership would be set, and how the committee would avoid becoming a vehicle for political theater. One member asked whether the bill defined standards for "termination of necessity" to prevent political misuse; Horner said the chair, appointed by the speaker, would have discretion but acknowledged concerns about process and said he was open to adding bipartisan safeguards.

Christine Lawson, a Catoosa County resident, testified in favor of the oversight provisions and said the subpoena authority would help ensure that taxpayer dollars are spent efficiently. "In order for citizens to trust the government with the expenditure of public funds, there needs to be a means of oversight as to how those funds are spent," she told the committee.

Matt Taylor, deputy director of the Georgia Department of Audits' performance audit division, urged coordination between the new committee and existing audit work to avoid duplicative or conflicting audits. "If you are picking a particular agency or program you want looked at, you're probably going to want a slightly different objective than the next audit you do," he said, and warned that committees should coordinate timing and objectives with the Department of Audits.

Rep. Viola Davis and Rep. Kim Schofield offered support and urged the committee to add teeth and clarity on reporting and follow‑through, while members discussed how many meetings would be required and how findings would be reported to the speaker and appropriations chairman. The hearing concluded with no vote; the chair said the committee will continue refining the measure.