| State Representative Ron Stephens (R-Savannah) represents the 164th District in the Georgia House of Representatives, where he has served for 24 years. Rep. Stephens is the chairman of the House Economic Development & Tourism Committee. He is also a member of the Appropriations, Rules and Ways and Means committees. Rep. Stephens is a graduate of Armstrong State & Mercer University with a degree in Pharmacy. He and his wife, Janice, have two daughters, Karen and Ashlin, two grandsons, Walker Brown and James "Beau" Dukes, IV, and one granddaughter, Ivey. The Stephens are members of Richmond Hill Baptist Church. Rep. Stephens has spent more than 40 years as a pharmacist. Before being elected to the House, Rep. Stephens served as a city councilman in Garden City. Proven to be a consensus builder and a member who can reach across party lines, Rep. Stephens was previously selected as the vicechair of the Appropriations Subcommittee on Health and as a member of the Economic Development subcommittee under a democratic majority and leadership. After serving 17 years in the state House, Rep. Stephens was selected by Speaker David Ralston (R-Blue Ridge) as the chair of the Economic Development & Tourism Committee. He has also served on the House Appropriations Committee for more 20 years. Rep. Stephens is the co-author of the first floating homestead exemption in Georgia. House Bill 350 effectively freezes property taxes for the homeowner. The exemption now applies in more than 70 taxing districts in the state, and today, House Bill 350 is known as the "Stephens-Day Bill." |