Ashe legislation would stop tunnel proposal

January 28, 2010

This week, I introduced legislation that would prohibit the state Department of Transportation from moving forward with any proposal to construct a highway tunnel.

There is broad opposition in the City of Atlanta to the concept of a north/south tunnel running under the city, which has been discussed as one approach to relieving traffic congestion. HB 968, which has bipartisan support, would prevent the tunnel plan from moving beyond the discussion phase. The legislation was referred to the House Transportation Committee for its consideration.

Legislation I have co-sponsored early in the 2010 session includes the following:

HB 851, which would create a Teacher Loan Program
HB 890, an ethics bill that would reduce the maximum levels for campaign contributions
HB 891, an ethics bill to place limits on the gifts that lobbyists provide for public officials
HB 892, which would provide for public funding of judicial campaigns
HB 893, which would strengthen current laws regarding ethical conduct and conflicts of interest by public officials and employees
HR 1219, which urges the Department of Education to implement safeguards in the military recruitment of 17-year-old students.