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District 159 mostly unchanged
burns jon 2015
Rep. Jon Burns

Friends,

Last week, the House and the Senate passed each chamber’s map. Once each chamber had passed its own map, it was sent to the other chamber for their review. The Senate passed the House’s map Nov. 12 and the House passed the Senate’s map Nov. 15. The maps now go to the governor’s desk for his signature.


The Updated Map for the Georgia House of Representatives

After undergoing the thorough House committee process, the Georgia House of Representatives map passed the House on Wednesday, November 10. The Legislative and Congressional Reapportionment Committee produced a fair and equitable map that is representative of Georgia’s changing demographics and shifting population centers. The public was invited to participate fully in the process, and Georgians could attend eleven committee hearings, held jointly with the Senate, that took place across the state and online. These hearings included twenty-two hours of public testimony, and the General Assembly also received more than nine hundred public comments from interested citizens. 

One of the priorities of our House of Representatives map was to keep as many counties whole as possible. This new map has made five additional counties whole that previously were split up among multiple representatives. An additional part of the redistricting process is the re-numbering of districts. We were lucky here in District 159 to keep our same district number - something that I know makes things a lot simpler for me!

The boundaries of House District 159 have remained remarkably similar to what they were before the redistricting process. District 159 still contains all of Screven County. District 159 now contains slightly more of Effingham County gaining Precinct 1A and Precinct 1C in southwest Effingham County, areas previously represented by Chairman Bill Hitchens. In Bulloch County, part of Church Precinct near downtown Statesboro, previously in District 159, was moved into District 158 and will now be represented by my good friend, Chairman Butch Parrish. The Hagin Precinct near the Bulloch-Screven County line will now be completely in District 159, while part of it was previously represented by Chairman Jan Tankersley, another good friend. The three of us look forward to continuing to represent Bulloch County together in the Georgia State House!


The Updated Map for the Georgia State Senate

The Georgia Senate map for Bulloch, Screven, and Effingham Counties remains unchanged. Senator Billy Hickman, who currently represents District 4, will continue to represent Bulloch County and Effingham County in the Senate. Meanwhile, Senator Max Burns, who currently represents District 23, will continue to represent Screven County. Both Senator Hickman and Senator Burns have been good friends to House District 159 and to me. Working with them both has been a pleasure, and I look forward to continuing to work with them to represent Bulloch, Screven, and Effingham Counties.

I look forward to continuing to represent Georgia House District 159, including some new folks that I have not had the pleasure of representing before. It is truly an honor to work for you and this great state. As always, if you have any feedback, do not hesitate to call (404.656.5052), email, or engage on Facebook. If you would like to receive email updates, please visit my website to sign up for my newsletter or email me.


Jon Burns represents District 159 in the Georgia General Assembly, where he serves as the House majority leader.