ATLANTA — State Representative Keisha Waites (D-Atlanta) announced today that she plans to continue her work on House Bill 54, the Fallen Heroes Bill, during the 2016 legislative session of the Georgia General Assembly. The legislation would provide additional funding for college tuition for the children of fallen public safety officers.
“Law enforcement officials act selflessly on our behalf every day, and for this reason, I take a tremendous amount of pride in working on behalf of those who sacrifice and put their lives at risk to protect and serve,” said Rep. Waites. “While this legislation in no way would ever account for the loss these families have experienced, my hope is that this bill proves just how serious Georgia is about taking care of the ones left behind by those who take care of us.”
The Fallen Heroes Bill would supplement the existing Georgia Law Enforcement Personnel Dependents Grant by providing additional funding to cover any tuition expenses not provided by the grant. Under HB 54, funding for the grant would be collected by adding a voluntary $1.00 donation option to the filing forms for Georgia Income Tax Motor Vehicle Driver’s License forms.
HB 54 was first introduced during the 2015 legislative session and unanimously passed during the House Higher Education Committee hearing in March 2015, but failed to pass the Rules Committee before the end of the 2015 legislative session.
“Authoring this legislation is a very small way for me to honor the families and heroes who have given the ultimate sacrifice,” said Rep. Waites. “It is my hope that through HB 54, we can remove the financial burden of higher education costs for the dependent children of our fallen heroes.”
For more information on HB 54, please click here.
Representative Keisha Waites represents the citizens of District 60, which includes portions of Clayton and Fulton counties. She was elected into the House of Representatives in 2012, and currently serves on the Interstate Cooperation, Juvenile Justice, Public Safety and Homeland Security, Special Rules, and Transportation committees.
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