President Jimmy Carter was nominated for reelection as President by the Democratic National Convention in New York City on August 13, 1980.
President Ronald Reagan signed the Economic Recovery Tax Act on August 13, 1981.
The ERTA included a 25 percent reduction in marginal tax rates for individuals, phased in over three years, and indexed for inflation from that point on. The marginal tax rate, or the tax rate on the last dollar earned, was considered more important to economic activity than the average tax rate (total tax paid as a percentage of income earned), as it affected income earned through “extra” activities such as education, entrepreneurship or investment. Reducing marginal tax rates, the theory went, would help the economy grow faster through such extra efforts by individuals and businesses. The 1981 act, combined with another major tax reform act in 1986, cut marginal tax rates on high-income taxpayers from 70 percent to around 30 percent, and would be the defining economic legacy of Reagan’s presidency.
Reagan’s tax cuts were designed to put maximum emphasis on encouraging innovation and entrepreneurship and creating incentives for the development of venture capital and greater investment in human capital through training and education. The cuts particularly benefited “idea” industries such as software or financial services; fittingly, Reagan’s first term saw the advent of the information revolution, including IBM’s introduction of its first personal computer (PC) and the rise or launch of such tech companies as Intel, Microsoft, Dell, Sun Microsystems, Compaq and Cisco Systems.
Fast Times at Ridgemont High was released on August 13, 1982.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Governor Brian Kemp issued Executive Order #08.12.24.01, extending the 60-day suspension of Rabun County Sheriff Chad Nichols under a prior Executive Order by an additional 30 day. The suspension began after Nichols was arrested and charged with violating his oath of office.
Rabun County Sheriff Chad Nichols, 45 of Clayton, was arrested by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI) on Violation of Oath of Office as well as other charges related to an ongoing investigation.
Nichols turned himself in to authorities and was booked into the Rabun County Detention Center May 31, according to a press release from the GBI.
Nichols was booked on three criminal warrants issued by a Senior Superior Court Judge — Violation of Oath of Office, a felony; sexual battery, a misdemeanor; and public indecency, a misdemeanor, according to a press release from George R. Christian, district attorney for the Mountain Judicial Circuit.
Nichols is currently running for re-election and is listed on the ballot for the June 18 runoff against Republican challenger Mark Gerrells, who is the former training director for the Rabun County Sheriff’s Office.
According to the GBI press release, Christian asked the GBI to investigate an incident involving Nichols.
“The warrants were issued after the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Region 8, began an investigation of reported criminal conduct by Sheriff Nichols, said criminal conduct is alleged to have occurred in May 2024,” according to the press release from the district attorney’s office.
“Bond was set at a total of $32,500 and included many conditions of bond, including that he shall not directly or indirectly, be involved in and/or direct any law enforcement activities in his personal capacity or his capacity as Sheriff of Rabun County,” according to the district attorney’s office.
Nichols lost his reelection bid in the May 21, 2024 Republican Primary Election, according to Sky 96.3.
The unofficial results of the Rabun County Sheriff’s Republican Primary Runoff on June 18, 2024, show Mark Gerrells receiving 1,878 votes and Chad Nichols receiving 351 votes. Gerrells said he was humbled by the victory. “I’m humbled by it and I’m very appreciative of those that did support my campaign and my election and just go on from here and do the best we can.” Gerrells shared his plans for the future of the Rabun County Sheriff’s Office.
“I do want to strengthen the Sheriff’s Office itself as far as the officers, the detention officers, the deputies, and everybody involved. I want to give them the feeling that they are being supported. I want to give them encouragement and I want to try to reach out and gather as many resources that I can to help them. I want to build a relationship with the community, make that stronger. I do want to have, and I know it is a word that is used a lot but, transparent and professional Sheriff’s Office. One that this county can take pride in and one that the Sheriff’s Office can take pride in itself as well.”
There was no Democratic opposition in the May 21st Primary, so Gerrells will be the only candidate on the ballot in the General Election on Tuesday, November 5, 2024.
The Georgia State House Study Committee on Navigable Streams and Related Matters holds its first meeting Thursday, according to the Albany Herald.
A special House study committee tasked with determining where Georgians have the right to boat, fish and hunt in Georgia’s streams will hold its first meeting here Thursday.
The House Study Committee on Navigable Streams and Related Matters grew out of a legislative effort to name sections of some 64 streams and rivers in Georgia as “navigable” and thus open to the public for boating, fishing and hunting.
HB 1397, introduced in the most recent legislative session, was highly controversial and criticized by both river user groups and property owners. It never made it out of committee. Instead, legislators created a study committee to investigate the issue further.
The study committee will examine aspects of navigable streams in this state and the issues surrounding their ownership, private and public rights of use and other related matters and may make recommendations for proposed legislation ahead of the 2025 legislative session. The first meeting is set for Thursday at 9 a.m. in Room 606 of the Coverdell Legislative Office Building in Atlanta.
Current state law guarantees the public’s right to access all of the state’s navigable streams, but the state’s definition of “navigable” dates back to 1863 when steamboats and cotton barges were the most common vessels seen on the state’s rivers. That 1863 definition asserts that for a stream to be navigable it must be capable of floating a boat loaded with freight.Whether a stream is deemed “navigable” has far-reaching implications because of the state’s property laws. Along navigable streams, property lines end at the low water mark along the bank, but state law provides that landowners along non-navigable streams own the streambed to the center line.
In the 1990s, the Georgia Supreme Court ruled in two separate cases that a landowner possessing both sides of a stream can restrict the public from passing down that stream. To date, those decisions on Ichawaynochaway Creek in southwest Georgia and Armuchee Creek in northwest Georgia represent the only two instances where the courts or the state legislature has deemed a stream “non-navigable” in the modern era. No previous legislature or court ruling has definitively determined what streams in Georgia were navigable and non-navigable.
The Freedom to Float Coalition, which includes American Whitewater, Georgia Canoeing Association, American Canoe Association, Georgia River Network and the Tennessee Valley Canoe Club, is urging lawmakers to preserve existing recreational river uses and protect the public’s ability to float down even the state’s small streams that never floated steamboats or cotton barges in 1863.
In 2020, boating and fishing were responsible for more than $1 billion in economic activity in Georgia. The state’s rivers and streams support some 70 canoe/kayak/tube outfitter businesses and countless fishing guides along with businesses ranging from convenience stores to hotels
United States Representative Buddy Carter (R-SSI) wants to retain the Biden Administration’s energy tax credits, according to the Ledger-Enquirer.
Last Tuesday, 18 House Republicans sent a letter to House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.) emphasizing the importance of maintaining energy tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act if Trump were to be elected in November. Trump has said he would repeal the Inflation Reduction Act on his first day in office and has called electric vehicle mandates the “death of the U.S. auto industry.”
Rep. Buddy Carter, of Georgia’s 1st District encompassing Georgia’s coast and inland to Waycross, was one of the 17 co-signers. His district has received $7.6 billion, more than a third of the state’s clean energy manufacturing investment.
“We must find a balance between rolling back the worst portions of the (Inflation Reduction Act) and ensuring that companies have the stability they need to continue investing in the United States,” Carter said in a statement.
“A full repeal (of the Inflation Reduction Act) would create a worst-case scenario where we would have spent billions of taxpayer dollars and received next to nothing in return. Energy tax credits have spurred innovation, incentivized investment, and created good jobs in many parts of the country …,” the letter warns Johnson.
Hyundai chose Georgia for its access to ports and rails in Savannah, but specifically came to the U.S. and broke ground in Georgia because of the tax credits laid out in the act, according to a report by the Associated Press.
Carter said Hyundai decided to come to his district before the passage of the act.
“I am excited to have Hyundai as a strong partner in Georgia’s First Congressional District, a decision that predates passage of the (Infaltion Reduction Act), and will continue to push for pro-growth policies so that we can empower consumers and beat China,” he said in a statement.
In Hall County, one Stephanie leaves, an another moves in. Stephanie Thompson is the new Solicitor General following the resignation of Stephanie Woodard, according to AccessWDUN.
Thompson, who has served as the Assistant Solicitor General in the county since 2022, released a statement Monday regarding her goals as she takes on the role.
“First and foremost, I want to express my commitment to restoring the faith and the trust of the community in the Hall County Solicitor’s Office, “Thompson wrote. “I will work tirelessly to restore the confidence in the prosecutorial process and to ensure that every case, every dollar and every victim is handled with the utmost honesty. As the Acting Solicitor General, I want to assure Hall County that I will operate with transparency, trustworthiness and integrity.”
Woodard’s resignation came after she was indicted on criminal charges in June accusing her of stealing thousands of dollars from the county over a four year period as well as a civil suit from a former employee claiming Woodard retaliated against her following the GBI’s investigation into the situation.
Gwinnett County Public Schools announced the district will offer Advanced Placement African-American Studies, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.
GCPS announced it would offer the course after State Superintendent Richard Woods, who had previously said he would not recommend state funding for the class, announced on Wednesday, it did not need his recommendation and would therefore receive state funding.
Woods’ announcement this week — which was based on an opinion from Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr’s office — came after weeks of backlash and questions from legislators and Gov. Brian Kemp about why he would not recommend including AP African-American Studies to the list of AP courses that receive state funding.
“While this is a victory in many ways, the State Superintendent’s actions caused undue burden on our schools and pain to many in our community, including our students,” GCPS Superintendent Calvin Watts said in a statement. “However, I am grateful for the collective advocacy of our students, families, staff, and community to do what is right for our students.”
Since GCPS is three days into the 2024-2025 school year, district officials said they are working with schools that planned to offer the class before Woods’ initial decision to adjust schedules in an effort to try and add the course back in.
Students who had originally signed up to take the class this year will be able to do so if their school is able to make the needed schedule adjustments. Affected students are expected to receive information from officials at their schools about schedule adjustments over the next few days.
“I am sorry that we went through this, but I am happy that in the end, our students can take this course and receive the full AP experience and rewards of completing the course successfully,” Watts said.
The Cobb County Board of Elections and Registration set election schedules for two new elections ordered by a judge, according to a Press Release.
The Cobb County Board of Elections and Registration (BOER) approved the Advance Voting schedule for the November general election. From October 15 through November 1, voters can cast ballots at 12 locations across Cobb.
The schedule includes Sunday voting at select locations on October 20 and 27 and voting Monday through Friday from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. at all locations.
The BOER also set election dates for Cobb Board of Commissioners Districts 2 and 4. Earlier this year, a judge ordered a special election in those two districts as part of a challenge over district maps and qualifications.
The BOER approved two different election schedules, which depend on whether there is a runoff in the November general election.
If there is no runoff election necessary, the board will follow this schedule:
Qualifying: Dec. 18 – 20
Primary: February 11
Runoff: March 11
General: April 29
If there is a runoff election, this would be the schedule:Qualifying: Jan. 27 – 29
Primary: March 18
Runoff: April 15
General: June 17
Advance In-Person voting dates would be available.The county has filed motions in the case asking the judge to allow the county to intervene and to reconsider her ruling. The judge has not yet responded to those motions.
Phones and internet are out at the Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office, according to the Valdosta Daily Times.
All Internet-based services are out at the sheriff’s office, including GCIC — the Georgia Crime Information Center — through which deputies normally run car tags, said Lowndes County Sheriff Ashley Paulk Monday afternoon.
“Even our in-car computers are down,” he said.
People trying to call the sheriff’s office should call 911, he said.
Bulloch County opponents of new water wells for the Hyundai plant in Bryan County are circulating petitions in hope of placing referenda on the ballot, according to the Savannah Morning News.
Opponents of plans to pull water from hundreds of feet below Bulloch County and send it to Hyundai Motor Company’s electric vehicle and battery manufacturing site near Savannah said Monday they’re petitioning for a referendum to block drilling the proposed wells.
Commissioners from both counties approved the wells in July.
Bryan, bound by a joint development agreement to supply water for the $7.6 billion manufacturing complex, is going outside the county because it is subject to state withdrawal limits aimed at limiting saltwater intrusion in the aquifer near Savannah.
The referendum would be in Bulloch, with the goal of nullifying that county’s agreement.
Lawton Sack, one of the petition organizers, said he and other opponents of the wells felt that a referendum was the only way to stop the wells after pleading with county commissioners for months.
“We went to meeting after meeting after meeting and asked them to vote against (the well agreement),” Sack said in a phone interview Monday with the Savannah Morning News. “We asked them to call a referendum, just put it in the hands of the people. And we just kept being told that they’re going forward with it.”
They say they want a referendum to repeal the Bulloch-Bryan water and sewer agreement for the Hyundai plant off of I-16.
The Bulloch Action Coalition said they’re fighting for the water rights of citizens.
They said the agreement is bad for taxpayers.
The Chairman-Elect of the Bulloch County Board of Commissioners says regional and state leaders have had their say, and it’s time voters had theirs.
“You’re gonna hear people that are gonna cry and they’re going to moan about how this is a horrible timing and we are holding up the growth at Hyundai and everything else. You’re right, we are, but you know what? The people deserve to have a voice in this process,” said Bulloch County Chairman-elect, David Bennett.
In Richmond County, an online petition opposing the new school cell phone policy garnered 4000 signatures, according to WJBF.
In June, a new cell phone policy for schools in Richmond County received the vote of approval and was implemented for the 2024-2025 school year.
The amended cell phone and electronic device policy states that, “Cell phones, electronic communication devices, and/or accessories must be turned completely off (not on silent or vibrate mode) and put away out of view (as directed by school administration) during the instructional day…”
Just days into the new school year, opinions have been voiced about the policy, so much so that a petition has been started on Change.org.
The petition calls for the Richmond County Schools “to review and reform their polices on mobile phone usage.”
School leaders have emphasized that the goal of the policy is to ensure students are learning without distraction. Per the policy, students needing to make emergency calls are able to do so in the main office of schools.
Peach County Commissioners will consider expanding their use of surveillance cameras to county parks, according to 13WMAZ.
If it passes at Tuesday’s meeting, a Flock camera system will be installed at North Peach Park South Peach Park. Peach County Parks and Recreation Director Bruce Mackey said it’s an effort to put extra eyes on blind spots and enhance park safety and security.
“The parks didn’t have the surveillance and the cameras that I thought it needed to fully secure our parks,” Mackey said. “I would hate for something to happen and we not be able to offer some type of assistance to PD to help catch whoever.”
Currently, there isn’t a designated park security staff, but local law enforcement patrols the area. Mackey said he’s hoping the addition of a Flock camera system would help provide police assistance in real time.
Flock cameras are license plate reading technology, equipped to catch plate numbers and the make and model of a car as it passes through the area. In other Central Georgia jurisdictions, it has helped authorities narrow down the path of a possible suspect.
Mackey said if the vote passes, the Flock cameras will monitor traffic at the parks’ entrances and exits. But he doesn’t want the coverage to stop there.
At the county commission’s previous work session meeting, Mackey presented a proposal for 360-degree cameras. Both parks are over 20 acres, so he said he wants to have more eyes on just the high traffic areas such as the entrance and exit zone, to help protect people who use the trails, fields and courts.
Mackey tells 13WMAZ he isn’t sure if the 360-degree surveillance system will receive a vote at Tuesday’s meeting but he hopes to see it considered for the future. Commissioners will meet on Tuesday, Aug. 13 at 6 p.m., in the Board of Commissions Office in Fort Valley.
Two nuclear submarines will be removed from the Kings Bay installation, according to The Brunswick News.
Every time a new Ohio-class submarine came to Kings Bay during the construction of the fleet, more than 350 sailors and their families would move to the region.
Now, Kings Bay will lose two of its oldest submarines, USS Florida and USS Georgia, in the coming years due to old age.
All the Ohio-class submarines in the Navy, 14 ballistic-missile submarines and the four older guided missile boats, have exceeded their life spans and are operating on borrowed time. The loss of skilled ship builders, infrastructure and know-how were all lost during that time.
As for the four guided missile submarines, Konetzni said plans are to build new Block 5 Virginia-class fast attack submarines with 76% more firepower than their counterparts to fill the void left by the loss of the SSGNs from Kings Bay and the Navy’s West Coast base in Bangor, Wash.
With the prospect of losing two boats, one in 2026 and the other in 2028, Konetzni said planning needs to start on how the county will prepare for the loss of two submarines.
The good news is the new Columbia-class submarines are coming to Kings Bay first, starting in 2027. The new boats and their crews could amount to a wash when it comes to the population loss in Camden County, he said.
“The military affairs committee and chamber has to get involved,” he said. “Is it a wash? I want to make sure we have the right funding. We cannot afford to stop building submarines in the world we live in.”
The Southern Poverty Law Center wants Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr (R-Cobb County) to investigate financial firms allegedly favoring white-owned businesses, according to the AJC.
In an Aug. 5 letter to Carr, the nonprofit civil rights law group said its research of public information shows several prominent private financial institutions operating in Georgia “appear to have primarily supported majority or entirely white-led businesses.”
The SPLC, in its letter, identified three specific companies: Primus Capital, Garden City Equity and Linx Partners, which have offices in Atlanta. The firms invest in health care, software and technology companies, family and founder-owned businesses, and industrial manufacturing and service companies, respectively.
Scott McCoy, the SPLC’s deputy legal director, said the SPLC isn’t accusing Primus Capital, Garden City Equity or Linx Partners of racial discrimination. But he said the fact that those institutions are run by white people and list portfolio companies that are also white-led should be looked into by Carr as a matter of fairness.
McCoy said Carr should “put his money where his mouth is” by ensuring that venture capital funds and other financial institutions operating in Georgia have “race-neutral and meritocratic” systems like those Carr advocated for in education.
“If you’re opposed to race-based favoritism for Black and brown people, then under your worldview and to be consistent, you should be opposed to race-based favoritism when that favoritism is to the benefit of white people,” McCoy said.
The City of Pooler announced Heath Lloyd as the new City Manager, according to WSAV.
The city of Pooler said in their press release that Lloyd has over 18 years of experience in public service, including roles as assistant city manager, chief infrastructure and development officer, interim city manager and leadership positions in public works, water management and revenue.
Lloyd has a bachelor’s degree in chemical engineering from Clemson University, a Master of Science in Civil Engineering from the University of South Carolina and is a “triple Eagle” holding master’s degrees in public administration, Business Administration and Social Science from Georgia Southern University.
The city included that Gov.Brian Kemp appointed Lloyd to the Coastal Regional Water Council in 2021.a
Former Tifton City Manager Emily Beeman addressed the circumstances of her departure, according to WALB.
The record will show she resigned, but her settlement agreement will pay her for another six months.
Beeman says she was completely blindsided when she was placed on administrative leave. She says the decision was illegal and without justification.
She was placed on administrative leave on July 22. At the time, no reason was given publicly. Beeman says no reason was given to her, either.
She responded to the end of her tenure in a written statement that reads in part.
“There has never been an official motion, second, discussion or vote by the City Council, in open session, as required by Georgia law to place me on administrative leave, to terminate me or enact any disciplinary actions on me. The City of Tifton has never provided me with any information, any complaint, any criticism or any notice of any kind outlining any reason for the actions. The City of Tifton has never provided any basis for the actions of the three council members and the actions of the City of Tifton are not the result of any poor job performance, any unethical, immoral or illegal act, or any justifiable reason.”
Former Tifton City Manager Emily Beeman
Christopher Cohilas, a legal expert, says this situation raises an interesting question.
“Whether or not Georgia sunshine laws have been appropriately followed? [Beeman] made allegations that actions were made against her without an appropriate vote. I think all of that has been for not because they ultimately settled their dispute,” Cohilas said.
Many in Tifton are stunned that Beeman will continue to be paid well after leaving her job. The city’s official settlement agreement outlined the terms of Beeman’s resignation payment.
“The city will pay Beeman in accordance with Section 11, paragraph B of her employment agreement as though her employment with city was terminated without cause, except that the period of payment shall be extended through March 5, 2025.”
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