In his second

term in the state Senate, Jonesboro's Greg Hecht continues to sponsor

and cosponsor numerous bills, most of them involving criminal penalties.

Hecht, who

represents north Fayette and parts of three other counties, has introduced

Senate Bill 34, the Crime Prevention Act of 2001, which provides a new

category of penalty for escape, changes the definition of pandering and

provides for forfeiture of a motor vehicle used for the third time in

the commission of pandering.

If the bill

passes, those who use their cars or homes in pimping to turn children

into prostitutes will lose them, and the crime will be a felony. "It's

presently a misdemeanor and these people just consider that a cost of

doing business," said Hecht. "This has just got to stop."

Also in the

bill is a new one- to five-year penalty for prisoners who escape before

they are convicted of a crime. Current law provides one to ten years only

for convicted felons who escape.

"Again,

a lot of these drug dealers consider that a cost of business," said

Hecht. Penalties for some drug crimes are very high, whereas "It's

just 12 months if they run," he said.

Also, persons

will be charged with pandering if they solicit anyone under 18. Current

law says the person solicited must be under 17.

Hecht's name

also appears as cosponsor of SB 1, which addresses teen driving concerns.

Under the bill,

anyone getting a driver's license for the first time would have to have

40 hours of driving under the supervision of an adult 21 or older, at

least six hours of that at night. It also provides for a limited license

for those under 17, limiting the time of driving and the number of non-family

passengers under 21.

At 17, the

holder of the restricted license could get full driving privileges if

he or she has held the restricted license for 12 months with no serious

violations on record. The bill also requires that license applicants be

given an on the road driving test.

Hecht also

has cosponsored SB 15, which requires those convicted of various sexual

and family violence crimes to pay $25 to have their photos published along

with names, addresses and details of the crimes.

Included in

the extensive list of crimes covered by the provision is fornication,

defined as follows: "An unmarried person commits the offense of fornication

when he or she voluntarily has sexual intercourse with another person

and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished as for a misdemeanor."

Hecht said

he understood that provision might have been stricken down in court, but

added he will look into it. "We need to look into some of that where

there would be unintended consequences," he said.

SB 35, the

Child Sexual Commerce Prevention Act of 2001, also cosponsored by Hecht,

raises the age of consent from 17 to 18 for pimping and pandering by compulsion.

The bill also allows convictions for those who compel both males and females

under 18 to perform prostitution "under duress or coercion."

Current law defines the crime as applying to females.

Hecht also

has filed a measure aimed at slowing natural gas price increases and improving

billing procedures.

Senate Resolution

13 forms a study committee to field complaints and input from citizens

and businesses around the state, gain explanations from providers, review

billing processes, and to look for legislative solutions to changing prices,

demand and changing times with regard to the provision of natural gas.

"We need

to find answers to the continuing problems facing our constituents regarding

the provision of natural gas," said Hecht, adding that lawmakers

need to find out the effect of deregulation on natural gas pricing and

billing practices, Hecht said. "No one is stating that deregulation

caused the increase in prices, but whether deregulation has resulted in

increased prices or not is an area which must be determined," he

said.

He said this

week the bill has been assigned to the Public Finance and Utilities Committee,

and the chairman has promised to give it attention as soon as possible.

Hecht hopes

to pass the resolution for a study committee that would begin hearings

in May or June. "The result will hopefully include legislative remedies

and more tools for the PSC to handle problems," he said.

Hecht's 34th

District includes portions of Clayton, Douglas, Fayette and Fulton counties.