The Conference adopts policy positions on a non-partisan basis,
takes no part in political campaigns and
does not support any candidate or political party.
Legislative Priorities
In light of the Gospel message of Jesus Christ, the Georgia Catholic Conference addresses a broad spectrum of issues, including:
- Concern and respect for the poor and marginalized
- Respect and protection for all human life
- Children and youth
- Education
- Family life
- Racial justice
- Fair labor practices and dignity of workers
- Economic justice
- Rural life
- Environmental justice
- Religious liberty
- Healthcare and public health
- Restorative justice and criminal legal reform
- Comprehensive immigration reform
Our Policy Positions
Please note that this list of policy positions is not exhaustive. It merely represents those issues for which we receive the most questions.
The Qualified Education Expense tax credit program in Georgia allows individual and corporate taxpayers to contribute to a student scholarship organization (SSO) and receive a state income tax credit in return. These SSOs offer scholarships for students to attend private schools chosen by their parents. Our Catholic schools are able to welcome hundreds of students through the Georgia GOAL program. To support these students, the Conference supports the maintenance of the tax credit and works to expand the cap of donations year to year so that we have the opportunity to welcome more students into our schools.
Just as nations have a right to enforce their borders, individuals likewise have a right to emigrate in order to find safety and stability. Furthermore, all immigration enforcement must recognize the dignity of human beings and the unity of the family. The Conference supports comprehensive immigration reform that streamlines immigration processes, opens up legislative paths to citizenship and prioritizes the human dignity and safety of all.
The bishops of the Province of Atlanta stated in 2023: “The ready accessibility of firearms presents an immediate threat to the wellbeing of children, families impacted by domestic violence and individuals experiencing mental illness. Our first priority must therefore be to prevent firearms from falling into the hands of those who would carry out violent acts against children in schools, against their families or against themselves.” As directed by our Georgia bishops, the Conference works to support legislation and budget proposals that can restrict access to firearms, particularly by minors and individuals with significant mental health or violence issues, as well as oppose any further weakening of weapons carrying or ownership requirements.
As Pope Leo wrote in Magnifica Humanitas, “For AI to respect human dignity and truly serve the common good, responsibility must be clearly defined at every stage: from those who design and develop these systems to those who use them and rely on them for concrete decisions.” (105). Policy is still needed to define these various responsibilities chiefly to protect minors and vulnerable individuals from harmful content and manipulation. The Conference supports legislation that puts safeguards in place on these systems regarding who can access them and what content they are able to engage with.
Care for our environment is central to social doctrine and to our belief in the dignity of human life. If our environments are degraded, so too is our quality of life – with a disproportionate impact falling to the poor. The environmental and human impact of data centers has been well-documented, and the Conference strongly encourages elected officials to take these studies into account as they consider where and, indeed, whether data centers are built in their communities.
The Catholic Church teaches that the death penalty is “inadmissible because it is an attack on the violability and dignity of the person” (CCC, 2267). As such, the Conference supports legislation to abolish the death penalty in Georgia and the United States.
The Church recognizes the pain that couples experience when they encounter infertility. While there are methods which are in line with moral teaching, in-vitro fertilization (IVF) is not morally acceptable because of its waste of embryos and external conception process. The Conference, therefore, opposes legislation that promotes the use of IVF.
The Catholic Church plainly and definitively teaches that assisted suicide “is an intrinsically evil act, in every situation or circumstance” and that “it is gravely unjust to enact laws that legalize euthanasia … invoking the false right to choose a death improperly characterized as respectable only because it is chosen” (Samaritanus Bonus, V.1). The Conference works to preserve the dignity of all human life and so opposes the legalization of euthanasia or assisted suicide in our state.
