Pennsylvania became the second state to ratify the Constitution on December 12, 1787.
Guglielmo Marconi completed the first transatlantic radio transmission from Cornwall, England to Newfoundland on December 12, 1901.
Jimmy Carter announced he would run for President of the United States on December 12, 1974.
Dickey Betts, guitarist for the Allman Brothers Band, was born on December 12, 1943.
The United States Supreme Court released its decision in Bush v. Gore on December 12, 2000, stopping manual recounts of contested ballots in Florida.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Governor Brian Kemp’s Office announced that November state revenues dipped 0.1% over the previous year, according to a Press Release.
The State of Georgia’s net tax collections in November totaled almost $2.29 billion for a decrease of $2.4 million, or -0.1 percent, compared to November 2021 when net tax collections totaled just over $2.29 billion. Year-to-date, net tax revenue collections totaled $12.61 billion for an increase of $741.7 million, or 6.2 percent, over FY 2022.
The changes within the following tax categories account for November’s overall net tax revenue decrease:
Individual Income Tax: Individual Income Tax collections for November totaled $1.28 billion, an increase of $55.8 million – or 4.6 percent – over FY 2022 when net Individual Tax revenues totaled roughly $1.22 billion.
The following notable components within Individual Income Tax combine for the net increase:
▪ Individual Income Tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) decreased by $16.5 million or -23.2 percent
▪ Individual Withholding payments increased by $33.5 million, or 2.8 percent, compared to FY 2022
▪ Individual Income Tax Return payments were up $17.7 million, or 78.9 percent, over last year
▪ All other Individual Tax categories, including Estimated Tax payments, were down a combined $11.9 millionSales and Use Tax: Gross Sales and Use Tax collections for the month increased by $153.1 million, or 11.5 percent, to a total of $1.48 billion compared to a total of nearly $1.33 billion in FY 2022. Net Sales and Use Tax increased by $65.6 million, or 9.8 percent, compared to November 2021 when net Sales Tax revenue totaled $670.3 million. Lastly, the adjusted Sales Tax distribution to local governments totaled $739.6 million for an increase of $85.4 million, or 13.1 percent, compared to last year.
Corporate Income Tax: Net Corporate Income Tax collections increased by $39.5 million, or 358.1 percent, from last year when Corporate Tax revenues and refunds combined for a net total of -$11 million.
The following notable components within Corporate Income Tax make up the net increase:
▪ Corporate Tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) decreased by $34.6 million or -67.3 percent
▪ Corporate Income Tax Estimated payments were down $2.3 million, or -6.6 percent, from last year
▪ All other Corporate Tax payments, including Corporate Return payments, were up a combined $7.2 millionMotor Fuel Taxes: Motor Fuel Tax collections for November decreased by $172.5 million, or -99.4 percent, compared to last year’s total of $173.5 million, as a result of Governor Kemp’s Executive Orders to extend the suspension of the Motor Fuel Excise Tax.
Motor Vehicle – Tag & Title Fees: Motor Vehicle Tag & Title Fee collections for the month increased by $1.7 million, or 6.7 percent, compared to November 2021 when Motor Vehicle fees totaled $26 million, while Title ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) collections increased by roughly $5.2 million, or 8.5 percent, compared to a total of $60.8 million last year.
From the Capitol Beat News Service via the Statesboro Herald:
The slight drop in overall tax collections despite the rise of revenue in various key categories can be attributed to the ongoing suspension of Georgia’s sales tax on gasoline and other motor fuels. As a result, motor fuels tax revenues fell by 99.4% in November compared to the same month a year ago.
That won’t continue to be the case for long. With pump prices continuing to drop, Gov. Brian Kemp announced Thursday that the gas tax suspension will be lifted after Jan. 10.
Instead, the governor said he will ask the General Assembly this winter to use part of the bulging surplus to provide an additional $1 billion in income tax relief for Georgians on top of the tax rebate the legislature approved this year.
Kemp also plans to propose a $1 billion reduction in property taxes at the local level.
Governor Kemp and legislative leaders spoke about priorities ahead of the 2023 Session, according to Atlanta News First via WALB.
Gov. Brian Kemp, Speaker-elect Jon Burns, Speaker Jan Jones, and Lt. Gov.-Elect Burt Jones spoke about the upcoming legislative session. They said economic relief from inflation is one of their top priorities.
“Hard-working Georgians have had to fight record high inflation, mostly because of bad policies coming out of Washington D.C.,” said Kemp.
Republican leadership is pushing for a homeowner tax relief bill. Kemp said his new plan could save the average homeowner $550 on their next property tax bill.
“With these applications, we agree that Georgians should keep as much of their hard-earned money as possible. It’s not our money it belongs first and foremost to the taxpayers of the state,” said Burns.
The 79 Democrats in the House are outnumbered by 101 Republicans. Lawmakers will have 90 days to work together to pass legislation. [Democratic Leader James] Beverly says the issue of education seems bipartisan; he’s calling for incentives for teachers and money for broadband expansion so kids in rural areas can use technology in schools.
“Hopefully, our Republican colleagues will join me and the Democrats in an effort to retool those teachers, but also to make sure that our students get what they need for emerging markets that have surely come,” said Beverly.
Democrats plan to propose changes to Georgia election law. Beverly reports a discussion to change the threshold for a winner to 45 percent or opt for rank-choice voting. Beverly says there is too much money spent on local elections that could be used to help the community.
Governor Kemp appointed Carroll County State Court Judge Erica Tisinger to the Superior Court for the Coweta Judicial Circuit, which serves Coweta, Carroll, Heard, Meriwether and Troup Counties, according to the Newnan Times Herald.
She will fill the vacancy created by the appointment of the Honorable Bill Hamrick to the Georgia State-wide Business Court earlier this year.
The 2023 Legislative Session may start more slowly than usual due to a potential UGA National Championship bid, according to the AJC.
As the Bulldogs make another title run, the championship game once again falls on the first day of the planned legislative session: Jan. 9, 2023. That’s why state officials are quietly making plans to rearrange the schedule; that is, if UGA first defeats Ohio State in the Dec. 31 Peach Bowl.
[W]e’re told to expect another abbreviated Monday session (Jan. 9) and a light schedule on Tuesday to give legislators, state officials and perhaps a reporter or two time to return from Los Angeles.
And Gov. Brian Kemp — a diehard fan himself — has given himself a cushion in case he travels to the game, too. His inauguration is set for Thursday, Jan. 12 — three days after the possible championship.
I wouldn’t be shocked if a Constitutional Amendment is proposed to read in Article III “The General Assembly shall meet in regular session on the second Monday in January of each year, or otherwise as provided by law…” unless the University of Georgia is playing in the College Football Championship.
University of Georgia Terry College of Business Dean Benjamin C. Ayers spoke of the state’s economic outlook, according to the Athens Banner Herald.
Georgia’s economy will enter a mild, short recession early next year that should only persist for about six months, the dean of the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business said Friday.
The downturn will be prompted by the series of interest rate hikes the Federal Reserve board has ordered this year to curb inflation, rising energy prices brought on by the war in Ukraine and hits to personal wealth including a down stock market, Ben Ayers told a luncheon audience at the Georgia Aquarium in downtown Atlanta.
Georgia, however, is better positioned than other states to weather the recession because of its strong labor market and several major economic development projects that will pour investment into the state and create jobs, Ayers said.
As a result, Georgia’s Gross Domestic Product is only likely to experience a “slight dip” of 0.2%, less than the national average, he said.
“We will continue to outperform the nation,” he said. “Growth will slow, but growth will not stop.”
Augusta University Hull College of Business Professor Dr. Simon Medcalfe spoke about the economic outlook for the Augusta area, according to the Augusta Chronicle.
Of the 22 major occupation groups recognized by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Medcalfe ranked the major groups that occupy the top 12 shares of the market in the Augusta area since 2013.
“The reason why I started in 2013 pulling the data was because that’s when the (U.S.) Army Cyber Command announced it was going to move here to Augusta, so it’s a good starting point to see some trends, particularly in mathematical occupations,” Medcalfe said.
Slipping just below Augusta’s top 12, at No. 13, is the job category Computer and Mathematical Occupations, which includes cybersecurity workers. In 2013, there were only a few dozen area employees identified as information security analysts. Through 2021, that number boomed.
“You can see they’re growing at a 433% over the past eight years,” said Medcalfe. “It started on base, obviously. It wasn’t part of our economy, particularly at 60 people … in 2013.”
That sector now employs 320 people.
Occupations in healthcare support ,and computer and math categories are projected to see the fastest growth over the next decade, at 17.8% and 15.4%, respectively, according to the US. Bureau of Labor Statistics.
“Overall, we seem to be well-positioned with our two pillars of our community moving forward into the next 10 years,” Medcalfe said.
Healthcare jobs will see the highest local increases from 2013 to 2031 among nurse practitioners (a 46% rise), physician assistants (28%), medical and health services managers (28%), physical therapist assistants (27%) and occupational therapy assistants (25%).
United States Representative Buddy Carter (R-Pooler) toured the Brunswick Housing Authority, according to The Brunswick News.
During a tour of two public housing units on Friday, [Housing Authority Executive Director William] Baker told Rep. Buddy Carter, R-1, that HUD has not been forthcoming with federal funds and has pushed the authority to move tenants into units that he considers “unlivable.”
The reason he wanted Carter to visit the BHA was to show him the work the authority has been up to and to ask him to help get the federal agency to cut them a little slack.
HUD requires the authority to move new tenants into a unit within 17 days of the last tenant vacating, said Kevin Kimble, who works with BHA on economic development initiatives. That’s regardless of whether the unit needs substantial renovation work.
Baker said he can’t very well hold his tenants to a very high standard when it comes to maintenance if he’s moving them into substandard housing from the word go.
“Our goal is to make our tenants accountable and make them productive,” Baker said.
Kim Ogden, the BHA’s director of housing, said it costs around $40,000 on average to renovate a unit, and the authority has 39 vacant units in need of renovations. That cost can go up drastically depending on things like mold.
She said HUD is giving them grief because the BHA has only just recently started to move residents back into renovated units after several months. Now that the first units are being completed, she said the process will become standardized and further renovations will be completed much quicker.
United States Senator Jon Ossoff (D-Atlanta) touted federal funding for broadband expansion, according to WJBF.
U.S. Senator Jon Ossoff came to Jefferson County on Friday to speak to local leaders about a new grant program that will bring better high-speed internet to rural parts of Georgia.
He secured $250 million through the American Rescue Plan for the program.
“When I arrived in the Senate and sat down with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to craft legislation that helps Georgia, high-speed internet was at the top of the list because it’s such a significant issue for communities across the state,” Ossoff said at a press conference.
“As I heard today from the superintendent, this directly impacts students, teachers, school principals, both access at school and doing schoolwork at home. It directly impacts entrepreneurs and small businesses who rely upon high-speed connectivity for e-commerce. This directly impacts farmers who rely upon internet access,” he said.
According to Georgia’s Department of Community Affairs, 70% of Georgians who lack high speed internet are in rural communities.
“There are about a million Georgian’s who don’t have broadband internet access,” Ossoff said. “This is a historic day in the economic history of the CSRA. Major investments are on their way to help connect homes and businesses in Jefferson County and across the region with high-speed internet access.”
Ossoff shared the news at a press conference in Commerce, where he briefed Jackson County’s leaders on this historic expansion.
Jackson County and Banks County are just two out of 33 counties who are eligible to apply for this grant.
“So again, a historic day in Georgia’s economic history, announcing this huge investment to connect tens of thousands of homes and businesses across the state with high speed internet access,” Ossoff said at the press conference.
According to Ossoff, about a million Georgians still lack access to high-speed internet. This expansion will not only benefit individuals and schools, but also small businesses and farms.
“That’s why I’ve worked so hard as we upgrade Georgia’s infrastructure to ensure that broadband internet is a key priority and have delivered these resources to connect tens of thousands of homes and businesses with high speed internet connections,” Ossoff said.
“We have worked closely with [the] executive branch to ensure that the state of Georgia will maximally benefit,” Ossoff said. “And these resources are now on their way to the state of Georgia.”
Murray County Commissioner Greg Hogan has proposed a budget for FY 2023, according to the Dalton Daily Citizen News.
Savannah City Council approved spending $7.8 million to renovate the Police Department headquarters, according to the Savannah Morning News.
Council’s approval on both items allows for the spending of $7.8 million to renovate the police headquarters building on Habersham Street, the oldest operating police headquarters in the country, and another $696,000 to contract with Axon Enterprises for police equipment.
The headquarters building at 201 Habersham St. will include interior renovations and repairs to the building envelope, which is the physical separator between the conditioned and unconditioned environment of a building.
The envelope repairs will include replacing the windows and the HVAC system and adding insulation to the exterior wall. The bricks will be repointed, which means repairing mortar that may be loose or cracked.
The police headquarters building is considered a historic building, and a contributing building to Savannah’s Landmark Historic District.
After council’s approval Thursday, Savannah police will renew the contract they’ve had with Axon since 2018, using the company’s body-worn cameras and tasers. As that contract nears expiration, this new one has been negotiated to take its place, with a few new benefits that the city says are “intended to enhance police transparency and efficiency.”
Those new benefits include access to Axon’s Respond+ software, which allows police to monitor up to 25 live streaming devices at once, including body cameras, drones and in-car monitors.
Tybee Island City Council heard from residents who want to release the hounds. To frolic on some of the beaches. From the Savannah Morning News:
However, this time around, residents and some council members are asking the city to trust its citizens (and other dog owners who visit Tybee) for just one day a week and for four months out of the year.
During Thursday’s council meeting, city officials discussed a proposal brought forth by council member Brian West that would allow people to walk their canine friends on Tybee’s sandy shores on Wednesdays between Nov. 1 to March 1. A designated area confined to the island’s south end from 14th Street to Inlet Avenue would also be established. Further, dogs wouldn’t be allowed on the pier.
Dubbed “Wagging Winter Wednesdays”, the program aims to strike a compromise between groups on either side of the issue.
People have routinely implored the city to go easier on their zero-tolerance policy on dogs for years, according to West. The proposal stresses that dog owners must bring their own bags to pick up after their pets and that pets must be leashed at all times.
Gwinnett County District 4 Commissioner Matthew Holtkamp was sworn in ahead of taking office on January 1, 2023, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.
New commissioners typically hold their swearing in ceremonies sometime in the December before their term officially begins. This time it was Holtkamp’s turn, after he defeated outgoing Commissioner Marlene Fosque in last month’s general election, and the ceremony was held at the Gwinnett County Historic Courthouse.
But, Holtkamp did get support from across the political aisle at his swearing-in ceremony. Two Democrats who will soon be Holtkamp’s colleagues on the county commission, Chairwoman Nicole Love Hendrickson and Commissioner Kirkland Carden, attended the ceremony.
Hall County District Attorney Lee Darragh and Sheriff Gerald Couch disagree over the disposition of cases involving drug defendants, according to the Gainesville Times.
The District Attorney’s Office has dropped charges against 16 defendants in a massive drug investigation going back to 2019, citing a lack of evidence.
But Hall County Sheriff Gerald Couch disagrees with the decision, saying Friday that there is plenty of evidence to move forward with the case.
“I feel certain we have more than enough evidence to prosecute in state court right now,” he said. “Why the district attorney doesn’t pursue the charges, I have no idea. But I’ll tell you, as sheriff, I’m going to make sure that everything that we can do is pursued to the limit and to make sure that we have the evidence that we need to prosecute these criminals for putting this poison in our society.”
Couch also said he was blindsided by the news that the charges had been dropped, saying District Attorney Lee Darragh never told him. He said he received an email from Darragh in July and that was the last he heard from him about the case.
Northeastern Judicial Circuit District Attorney Lee Darragh responded in a written statement: “While I have not personally been in contact with the Sheriff himself in some time regarding this case, our office has had significant contact with the primary investigator in the matter. I’m sure the Sheriff was personally caught off guard by the dismissal, and that I regret. I do not intend to be at loggerheads with the Sheriff, a man of integrity who I much respect and with whom I’ve worked very closely for over thirty years. The dismissals in this case do not legally end the case, which could potentially be recharged. I remain ready and willing to work with the Sheriff’s office toward a successful prosecution.”
The United States Department of Justice will grant $750,000 to a Savannah-based nonprofit startup, according to the Savannah Morning News.
At a press conference outside of the United Way on Bull Street on Thursday, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that it will award a $750,000 grant to Tharros Place, a start-up Savannah-based nonprofit that will provide a residential facility and wraparound support services to survivors of human trafficking.
Standing at the podium, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia David Estes said, “The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of Georgia appreciates the work of our partners in the fight against violent crime and human trafficking, including those whose mission supports the victims of these crimes. The Department of Justice grant to Tharros Place recognizes these efforts and provides assistance to help keep our communities safe.”
According to a press release, when completed in summer 2023, the residential facility will be open 24/7 and staffed by trained and licensed professionals providing trauma-informed, client-centered care to girls ages 11 to 17. The facility, which will be located at an undisclosed location within Chatham County, will house 12 beds. When fully operational, Tharros Place will be staffed by a program director, a human services professional, educators, a life coach, 20 childcare workers, and house parents.
Rome City Commission members will hear a proposed $43 million dollar budget for FY 2023, according to the Rome News Tribune.
The general fund budget — which covers most daily operations and services — is projected to need about $2 million from the city’s fund balance, based on projected revenue of just over $40 million. No property tax increase is being proposed.
A major driver of the deficit is the city’s bus service. It’s expected to need about $1.5 million to operate in 2023, compared to the $175,000 budgeted in 2022.
That’s due to a loss of federal funding from several sources, primarily connected to a ruling that those grants can’t be used to transport Rome City Schools students on daily routes. The system had in place for decades and the past few years have been spent untangling the financing. A boost from the American Rescue Plan Act deferred the reckoning but that money also is going away, City Manager Sammy Rich has said.
Floyd County Board of Elections members are expected to certify the results of Runoff Elections held December 6, 2023, according to the Rome News Tribune.
[Herschel] Walker won big in Floyd County, netting 71% of the vote to Warnock’s 29%. Warnock was the favorite in East Rome, 914 to 892, and in South Rome, 442 to 113. Walker handily won the county’s other 23 precincts.
Of the 28,315 local runoff voters, 11,653 voted in advance the week prior to election day. There was only one day of weekend voting, on Sunday, Nov. 27, with 509 voting in person at the elections officer and 333 voting at the Anthony Recreation Center in Garden Lakes.
Emerson Mayor Albert Pallone, and his wife, Camillia, died in a car wreck, according to 11Alive.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp said in a statement that his family is “heartbroken.”
“They will be deeply missed by their loved ones and the community that they served so well,” he wrote
Officials said when Pallone’s vehicle was struck, it lost control, overturned and was struck by a GMC. The Chevrolet also struck a Mazda 3.
“Al and Millie have been a staple of the Emerson community for over 40 years,” the city manager Kevin McBurnett said in a statement on social media. “Al was a proven leader serving the citizens of Emerson as a city councilman for 23 years with the last 15 years as Mayor. Millie was always near providing him support, the framework to his strong leadership.”
Two Right Whale calves were spotted off the Georgia Coast, according to WABE.
On Wednesday, an aerial survey team saw a whale known as Medusa swimming with a calf off St. Catherine’s Sound. It’s Medusa’s seventh documented calf. On Thursday, researchers saw another mother, known as Archipelago, and her new calf off the coast of Little St. Simons Island. This is Archipelago’s third calf.
Fewer than 350 North Atlantic right whales remain, including just over 70 breeding females, so every calf is critical to the survival of the species.
The whales travel from their feeding grounds off New England and Canada to the coasts of Georgia, Florida and the Carolinas to give birth every winter, from about mid-November to April.
According to Department of Natural Resources Wildlife Biologist Clay George, researchers have seen eight adult whales so far this season, seven of them females who’ve had calves before. He called that “encouraging.”
“We’re basically losing right whales faster than they can replace themselves,” said George. “And that’s not good for any species, much less a critically endangered species.”
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