Georgia Senate panel guts new elections bill

Voting Law Georgia
Georgia Senate President Pro Tem Butch Miller, R-Gainesville, sparks laughter, Tuesday, March 29, 2022, during a hearing on an election law bill at the Georgia Capitol in Atlanta. Miller asked a House member "What happened to your bill?" after the Senate Ethics Committee slashed it from 39 pages to two pages, removing all controversial proposals. (AP Photo/Jeff Amy)

Georgia senators are scrapping plans to seek further big changes in state election law, beset by strong opposition from local election officials who say their offices would be wrapped in needless red tape.

The Senate Ethics Committee amended House Bill 1464 on Tuesday to ditch all its proposals except a provision requiring employers to give workers time off to vote early, supplementing a current law requiring time off to vote on Election Day.

Georgia’s General Assembly was upended last year by a restrictive voting law, which reduced the time to request an absentee ballot, stripped power from Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger and severely rolled back the pandemic-driven expansion of absentee ballot drop boxes. It was one of the first and highest-profile restrictive laws passed by Republican-controlled legislatures, a trend that continues this year.