On Monday, the 180 members of the state House of Representatives and the 56 members of the state Senate will convene for the opening of the General Assembly session. By coincidence, it’s also the beginning of Effingham Day at the Capitol.

Already, lawmakers know their 40 scheduled session days will be busy. They get to dive right into a proposed state water plan from the Georgia Water Council that went through a series of last-minute changes. Legislators must either pass the whole plan or come up with their own and pass it through both chambers before the end of the session.

If that were the only issue, maybe — maybe — they could get it done. Speaker of the House Glenn Richardson’s GREAT plan, his proposal to eliminate property taxes throughout the state, has been hotly debated since the summer. It too likely will be kicked around for days, if not weeks, on the floor of the House before anything is done.

There’s also the demand for more and better roads throughout the state. Metro Atlanta’s congestion is said to be so bad that it’s scaring off potential corporations looking to relocate there. In our part of the world, the congestion on our own roads is enough. Help is needed to push through the Effingham Parkway and Old Augusta Road.

A topic that got talked about last year — the state’s trauma care network — is going to be discussed again. The state’s largest trauma center is at Grady Hospital, where thousands of doctors have received training through the years. But the hospital is on shaky financial ground, and the state may have to step in, even after a shakeup of the hospital’s board.

All that may only be the tip of the iceberg. Thirty-three House bills were pre-filed before the start of the session; seven were pre-filed on the Senate side. Those bills range from urging the National College Football Hall of Fame to relocate to Atlanta to designating English as the official language of state agencies to outlawing abortion.

On top of all of that — and that’s plenty already — it’s also an election season for everyone under the Gold Dome, save for Gov. Sonny Perdue and Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle. All 236 members of the General Assembly will have to defend their seats this summer and fall, if they choose to do so.

There have been many such election years where lawmakers were reluctant to take stands or push through controversial measures. They didn’t want to cost themselves votes.

The state’s economy isn’t booming like it was a few years ago, but it is escaping its doldrums. The wish list for Effingham County and its Coastal Empire neighbors isn’t lengthy, but it is important and it may be difficult to achieve — ensuring a water supply for the current population and the next wave of growth and starting the foundation for needed road work.

It will be an active 40 days for lawmakers. We urge them to fill those days with action on the issues and not just speechmaking and grandstanding.