What if you could go back and give yourself advice about the hardest job you’ll ever have? You’d be like the eleven members of the Georgia General Assembly who have decided to call the 2023-2024 legislative session their last.
Some, like Democratic state Reps. Gregg Kennard, of Lawrenceville and Doug Stoner of Smyrna, are leaving after being drawn by GOP leaders into districts with other House Democrats and deciding not to have that fight with a colleague.
For many, family drove their decisions. State Sen. Shelly Echols, R-Gainesville, has two children, including a special needs son. “It is time for me to let someone else take the reins in Senate District 49 so that I can be home and focus on being a mom,” Echols said.
I caught up with four veteran lawmakers this week to hear what stands out from their time at the General Assembly. Why are they leaving? What will they miss? And what advice do they have for those who will follow behind?
Credit: Ben Gray
Credit: Ben Gray
State Rep. Penny Houston, R-Nashville, has served in the House for 28 years. She’s worked under eight Speakers of the House and been a member of both parties. although never in the minority.
“I’m not planning on dying anytime soon,” she told her colleagues in a floor speech announcing her retirement, “but when I die, I want to die in South Georgia.”
Speaking from her Capitol office full of her grandchildren’s artwork and gifts from constituents, Houston recalled a day when Speaker Tom Murphy marshaled the female Democrats of the House to lobby the men of the state Senate on a birth control measure and won. Murphy then handed cigars out to the women to celebrate.
“One of the best memories I’ve had was smoking that cigar,” she said with a laugh.
After nearly 30 years in office, she said she’d give the same advice to new members that the late state Rep. Jeanette Jamieson gave her when she arrived at the Capitol. “She said, ‘I will tell you about your credibility here … if you lose it, you can’t get it back.’”
Credit: Ben Gray
Credit: Ben Gray
Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler was elected to the Senate two years after Houston arrived in the state House. Butler eventually became the first woman to lead any party caucus in the General Assembly. Fellow Democrats credit her with modernizing the leadership office to raise more money to hire additional strategic staff.
“I’ve done so many things over these 26 years,” she said. “I’ve done a lot and been so many places. But I still have places to go.”
Like every member I spoke to, Butler said her friendships are what she’ll remember most, especially the ones people might not expect.
“I used to sit in a chair on the back row in the Senate. Every time Burt Jones used to walk past, he’d stop and we’d talk some kind of foolishness,” she said of the Republican lieutenant governor. “The press found that kind of unusual. But, to me, it was just natural to really be friends with a person.”
Butler has been a mentor to dozens of new members in her time, so I asked her what advice she has for next session’s new arrivals.
“One of the things that I learned about new people coming in is that they’re rushing. They want everything so quickly,” she said. “But that’s not the way it works.”
Building relationships takes time, she’s learned. And you can’t get anyone on your side or supporting your bill without having those relationships first.
“Listen to the people that have been here for years. They know what they’re talking about,” she said with a smile. “It may sound like that’s old school, but it works.”
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
Along with Butler, the Democrats’ other top Democrat, House Minority Leader James Beverly, has also announced his retirement from the General Assembly.
Taking over as leader of the caucus was increasingly taking time away from his constituents at home in Macon, he explained in an interview with our “Politically Georgia” show recently.
“Your constituency changes to those 78 (Democratic) members,” he said. “And so it pulled me away, quite frankly, from the folks who are in (my) community who need housing, who need transportation, who need jobs.”
As for his advice for next year’s freshman class, Beverly had two words: Stay focused.
“Get really focused and then figure out who the stakeholders are involved in doing the work,” he said. “It’s not just the work you got to do. It’s who’s involved in the work. If they stay focused they’ll be fine.”
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
Credit: Ben Gray for the AJC
State Rep. J Collins announced his retirement earlier this year after four terms. Along with being a funeral director, the Republican from West Georgia was the mayor of Villa Rica for twelve years before that.
He said that with a 13-year-old daughter, J.J., and a 93-year-old grandfather at home, the time felt right “to stop the train at the station.”
“The longer I’ve served here in the Legislature, the more responsibility I’ve had,” he said. “The hours get longer and longer. The three months from January to March get harder. And I just felt it was a good time.”
Collins said working with the late House Speaker David Ralston was a highlight of his time at the Capitol. Ralston appointed him as chairman of the House Public Safety Committee after just two terms in office.
“I‘ll always be grateful to him for the confidence that he placed in me to become a chairman,” he said.
Like Butler, Collins said his advice for future members is to cultivate relationshipsand make sure that people know they can count on you.
“Get to know people that don’t necessarily look like you or act like you,” he said. “One of the things I’ve really enjoyed is getting to know people from all across the state, in all walks of life.”
After a spring break trip with his daughter next week, Collins will be back at work at his funeral business. The job not only gives him plenty to do after his time in politics, it also gives him perspective on life. He wants to spend more with the people he cares about most.
“It’s been an honor of a lifetime representing the district and the people out in Carroll County. But it’s time to turn the page,” he said. “You know, quitting, and quitting on your terms are not always the same.”
People don’t always get the chance to leave on their own terms, especially in politics. But this year’s retiring lawmakers are making sure they do.
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