Georgia could soon have an official new state flower.
Senate Bill 240, sponsored by Milledgeville Republican Sen. Rick Williams, calls for changing the state floral emblem from the invasive Cherokee rose, which is native to southern China, to the native sweetbay magnolia.
Similar bills have run into opposition in the past, including from the chairman of a powerful Senate committee that decides which bills advance, but he appears to have had a change of heart. The bill has cleared the Senate and now has until Thursday – the final day of this year’s session – to clear the House.
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