Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for December 8, 2021

President Abraham Lincoln issued his Proclamation of Amnesty and Reconstruction on December 8, 1863.

First, it allowed for a full pardon for and restoration of property to all engaged in the rebellion with the exception of the highest Confederate officials and military leaders.

Second, it allowed for a new state government to be formed when 10 percent of the eligible voters had taken an oath of allegiance to the United States.

Third, the Southern states admitted in this fashion were encouraged to enact plans to deal with the freed slaves so long as their freedom was not compromised.

On December 8, 1899, Georgia Governor Allen Candler signed legislation to levy a tax on all dogs older than four months.

The United States declared war on Japan on December 8, 1941. Montana Congresswoman Jeanette Rankin, the first female elected to the United States House of Representatives, cast the sole dissenting vote. Rankin later moved to Athens, Georgia.

Gregg Allman was born December 8, 1947 in Nashville, Tennessee.

John Lennon was shot and killed outside his apartment building in New York City on December 8, 1980.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

United States District Court Judge R. Stan Baker, serving on the Southern District of Georgian and based in Augusta, enjoined enforcement of the federal vaccine mandate as it applies to employees of federal contractors, according to AccessWDUN.

The order came in response to a lawsuit from several contractors and seven states — Alabama, Georgia, Idaho, Kansas, South Carolina, Utah and West Virginia. It applies across the U.S. because one of those challenging the order is the trade group Associated Builders and Contractors Inc., whose members do business nationwide.

Baker found that the states are likely to succeed in their claim that Biden exceeded authorization from Congress when he issued the requirement in September.

“The Court acknowledges the tragic toll that the COVID-19 pandemic has wrought throughout the nation and the globe,” wrote the judge, an appointee of former President Donald Trump. “However, even in times of crisis this Court must preserve the rule of law and ensure that all branches of government act within the bounds of their constitutionally granted authorities.”

Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, said in a Twitter message that the ruling will provide relief to workers “who were in fear of being forced to choose between this vaccine and their livelihood.”

Gwinnett County Commissioners again passed on voting to decriminalize possession of marijuana, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

On Tuesday, Gwinnett County Commissioners put off making a final decision on a proposal to decriminalize possession of small amounts of marijuana for the second month in a row — and it’s unclear if the issue will be considered again.

The proposal, which has been floated for months, is to change a county ordinance so that police would have the option to give someone a citation for breaking county laws if they are found to be carrying an ounce or less of marijuana or charge them with a felony crime under a state law.

The commission voted 4-1 to take the proposal off the agenda, leaving it open to be taken up at an unspecified later date. Commissioner Kirkland Carden, who has been a leading proponent of the proposal, cast the lone vote against taking it off the agenda for Tuesday’s meeting.

Law enforcement in Gwinnett has, so far, only had the option of charging someone under state law for possession of an ounce of marijuana or less. Carden has argued that creating a county marijuana ordinance creates an alternative where police and deputies could instead issue a citation and let the person go if they didn’t want to arrest the person.

Carden’s argument has been that giving law enforcement officers that option means police and deputies can spend more time on the streets doing patrols rather than transporting people to the jail if the only crime they have committed was possessing less than an ounce of marijuana.

Georgia Republican candidates for 2022 have seized up on the idea of eliminating the state income tax, according to the AJC.

First it was Georgia Senate President Pro Tem Butch Miller, a candidate for lieutenant governor in 2022, trying to play to his Republican base by vowing to eliminate the state income tax.

Then came former U.S. Sen. David Perdue, who is challenging Gov. Brian Kemp in the Republican primary next year, promising as he entered the race this week to end the state income tax – which brings in more than half of all revenue for k-12 schools, colleges, public health, criminal investigations, prisons, and mental health programs.

House Appropriations Chairman Terry England, R-Auburn, who has voted to cut the income-tax rate in the past, said eliminating it altogether could be a disaster for state finances.

“Well, you either eliminate k-12 education – that’s about what we put into it – or if you don’t want to do away with that, I think you would wind up with a 17% state sales tax rate to offset the loss of revenue, if you don’t change the base.”

Senate Minority Leader Gloria Butler, D-Stone Mountain, was more blunt about the politics behind the proposals.

“Beware of those peddling shiny objects,” Butler said. “You simply cannot take away half of the state’s revenue and expect there to be no impact.

State Rep. Dave Belton (R-Buckhead) announced he will pass on running for reelection, according to the Covington News.

District 112 includes portions of Newton and Morgan counties. Belton has represented the area since 2015.

In a statement to The Covington News, Belton said he was proud to be “leaving on a good note” and grateful to the community for allowing him to serve.

“Thank you for allowing me to serve you,” Belton said in part of his statement. “Over the last 36 years, I have served 23 years in the military, flying in combat zones during five different wars. I have also served as a PTO treasurer, and then Band Booster president for 10 years. I have also served as a School Board member for 8 years, and State Legislator for another 8 years.

“I can honestly say that being a legislator is the most rewarding and yet odious job I have ever had. The current level of political vitriol – from both the left and the right – makes me wonder why anyone of good conscience would ever seek public office.”

DeKalb County Commissioner Ted Terry (D) wants to require safe storage of firearms, according to the AJC.

A DeKalb County commissioner has introduced a local ordinance that would mandate the safe and secure storage of firearms, a measure he said would help address preventable gun deaths and stem the tide of violent crime.

“This is a policy that works,” Terry said. “We have to do it across the country, but we’re not waiting. We’re taking action now.”

Terry’s commission district covers the western half of DeKalb, including parts of the city of Atlanta. Several other local officials — including state Sen. Elena Parent, Atlanta school board chairman Jason Esteves and incoming Atlanta City Council president Doug Shipman — joined him at the press conference announcing his proposal.

As written, the DeKalb ordinance would make it unlawful to store firearms where “a minor, at-risk person or prohibited person” could easily gain access. It would require that guns either be stored in a locked container or “secured by a device or mechanism, other than the firearm safety, designed to render a firearm temporarily inoperable.”

The draft ordinance currently calls for a $500 fine for first-time violators. Options on the local level are limited and Terry said that, as much as anything, it’s about providing a basis for educating gun owners about the potential ramifications if they don’t properly secure their firearms.

“The Georgia legislature has pre-empted almost everything when it comes to gun control, but is silent on safe storage legislation,” Terry said. “We welcome a legal challenge because it’s important to have those debates. But in the meantime we’re going to move forward.”

Evictions are up amid questions whether rental assistance is getting out quickly enough, according to the AJC.

It took four months, but [Heather] Somerstein’s application for assistance was finally approved in late November. Now, the landlord is guaranteed payment through January, when a new consulting job in marketing should provide Somerstein with enough income to get back on track.

Buying time for tenants to get back on track is exactly what lawmakers had in mind when Congress authorized billions of dollars in emergency rental assistance.

An estimated 30,000 tenants in Georgia are still waiting for applications to be processed. As of late November, less than 15% of the $989 million allotted to Georgia had been distributed, a pace that’s been criticized by tenant advocates and housing experts.

Georgia — which delegates rental assistance distribution to nine counties, two cities and the Department of Community Affairs — lags behind 38 states and the District of Columbia in the amount of rental assistance dollars disbursed, according to the most recent statistics from the U.S. Department of Treasury.

Meanwhile, the number of evictions has been increasing.

Unless Georgia gets better at distributing payments, the state might lose some of the rental assistance money allotted. Up to $120 million of the remaining funds could be redistributed to more efficient states, according to the U.S. Treasury Department.

It hasn’t been as simple as sending out checks, said Daphne Walker, division director for housing assistance at the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Programs had to be assembled, staff trained, outreach done and applicants vetted, Walker said last week, speaking to the Atlanta Regional Housing Forum.

Albany Commissioners will consider liquor license renewals or issuance for 207 establishments, according to the Albany Herald.

During a Tuesday work session, commissioners quizzed Code Enforcement Director Nathaniel Norman and City Attorney Nathan Davis about the approval process as the businesses are up for blanket renewal of alcohol licenses during the board’s Dec. 21 regular meeting.

Three nightclubs have been under review this year after accounting for a high volume of calls for law enforcement service.

The department has reviewed the 205 establishments over the past year and has recommended approval of them all. The two new applications also meet requirements.

Savannah City Council is finalizing their 2022 budget, according to the Savannah Morning News.

The expected approval of the $479 million budget will also be a historic one as the city is set to invest an unprecedented $19.1 million to address various affordable housing and homelessness initiatives.

The backbone of the overall budget and a large portion of the housing investment is made possible by federal funds received as part of the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). The City of Savannah is set to receive a total of $55 million. The first half, about $28 million, was received in May and the remainder will come in May 2022.

Residents will have an opportunity to offer public comment prior to a council vote on the budget during the Dec. 9 meeting. The meeting begins at 2 p.m. and will be held in council chambers at Savannah City Hall.

The Whitfield County Board of Education approved a plan to pay bonuses for new hires, according to the Dalton Daily Citizen News.

In order to attract workers to areas with staff shortages, Whitfield County Schools is now offering a $1,000 sign-on bonus for new hires in maintenance, school nutrition and transportation.

Current Whitfield County Schools employees can also receive a $1,000 bonus for referring new workers, said Mark Gibson, chief operations officer for the school system. The $1,000 payments would be spread over four months — $250 per month — for both current employees and new hires “so they don’t get the $1,000 and leave.”

The Whitfield County Board of Education approved the measure 4-0 — board member Joseph Farmer was absent due to illness — during Monday’s meeting.

Statesboro Mayor Jonathan McCollar appointed an ad hoc committee to propose liquor sale regulations after a referendum passed to allow sales, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Last spring when council members acted to place a referendum on permitting liquor stores on the November ballot without first proposing an ordinance, the mayor promised to establish a committee for input on the rules on where the stores can be located and how they will operate. After 74% of participating Statesboro voters Nov. 2 approved allowing liquor stores, McCollar said he and Mayor Pro Tem Paulette Chavers, the District 2 council member, would be gathering names for the committee to be announced this week.

“The last time we had an opportunity to get together we resumed discussing package sales, and we discussed creating an ad hoc committee, and we’ve had several people inquire,” McCollar said during Tuesday’s 9:30 a.m. regular council meeting. “To date we have about 10 people that said that they wanted to be a part of it, and all 10 of those people will be a part of it.”

Bulloch County Commissioners proposed minor changes to redistricting maps proposed by the state reapportionment office, according to the Statesboro Herald.

In 10 years, Bulloch County’s population grew 15.5%, from 70,217 residents in the 2010 census to 81,099 in 2020. Meanwhile, the county’s racial demographics shifted a little, with minorities becoming a somewhat larger part of the local population.

The long-established plan lets larger, white-majority District 2 elect four commissioners, or two-thirds of the six regular commission seats, while the smaller District 1, where minority residents are more than half the population, elects two commissioners. This general concept has been in use since the settlement of a Voting Rights Act lawsuit in federal court in 1994. The board also includes a chairman, elected countywide.

Seat 1-A Commissioner Ray Mosley thinks the two-district plan, with the minor changes now being made, will still deliver equitable representation. He is one of the two commissioners elected by District 1, who are also currently the only two African American commissioners.

Bulloch County officials requested and received the sponsorship of Rep. Jan Tankersley, R-Brooklet, for the Reapportionment Office’s assistance. She chairs the state House Intergovernmental Coordination Committee, which handles the redistricting proposals from counties, cities and school boards all over the state.

The commissioners cannot adopt their own districts, but can recommend the map to the Georgia General Assembly as local legislation for approval in January.

Chatham County Commission and Savannah-Chatham County Board of Education districts will be redrawn, according to the Savannah Morning News.

Much like the state, Chatham County Commission’s district lines, which are intertwined with Savannah-Chatham County School Board’s district lines, are redrawn every 10 years after the census.

Unlike the state, it’s not a partisan process, and lawmakers aren’t the ones drawing the maps. The task is led by the Chatham County-Savannah Metropolitan Planning Commission, and they’re well along the way already.

The MPC uses a computer program to process the geographic population changes in the census data and revise the district boundaries. The staff compares the software-generated lines to the current boundaries, changing as little as possible. The goal is to create districts with common sense lines – no jutting or jagged edges.

Ultimately, the Chatham Commission and the Savannah-Chatham School Board will get the final vote on the lines, but Wilson says even then, it’s at least a bipartisan process

“We meet with our elected officials, but we meet with them together. So it’s non-partisan politics here. You could have somebody that is a member of either party, and they’re in a room together, but you still get agreement and consensus,” she said.

Ultimately, it’s up to the County Commission to vote on the maps that will be put to the legislation. That’s really the last major hump in the process, District 164 Rep. Ron Stephens said, as most, if not all of the opposition to the maps would be from locals, not state-level representatives.

“Unless there are massive outcries from those folks back home like we had the last time we did redistricting, there was a lot of people complaining back home and it really slowed the process down… So that’s about the only thing that will slow it up. But I don’t anticipate any issues. I hope they send us a map that we can agree on and send it out.,” Stephens said.

Columbus City Council will consider district maps drawn by an independent commission, according to WTVM.

A Redistricting Commission is selected every ten years to use the new census data to reapportion the eight council districts in Columbus.

“Something that’s very important to me is referenced in the charter. One person one vote,” said Marc D’Antonio, a member of the Redistricting Commission. “We strive to have an even population of population among the districts and you’re always going to have some on the margin and that’s just the process here.”

The new map, which includes both school board and council districts, will require both districts to undergo minor changes.

The item will be brought back for a vote next Tuesday.

From the Ledger-Enquirer:

The commission tasked with redrawing Columbus’ council and school board boundaries crafted a new map, and the Columbus Council will vote on the newly proposed districts next week.

Under the new map, Districts 2, 4 and 6 will shrink because they had too many residents, and the remaining territories must expand and pick up more people.

The map received near-unanimous approval from the Districting Commission with one member voting against the map over concerns that a midtown district wasn’t being fairly drawn for Black voters.

The new map must now be approved by state officials, the Columbus Council and the Muscogee County School board before it takes effect.

The council and school board have indicated they want the same district maps, but the bodies could ultimately decide to draw their own borders.

Augusta Commissioners approved new district lines for Commission and Board of Education seats, according to the Augusta Chronicle.

The Augusta Commission approved new commission and Richmond County Board of Education lines Tuesday over the protests of many in two historic areas split in the plan.

The vote was 6-4 along color lines, with commissioners John Clarke, Catherine Smith McKnight, Sean Frantom and Brandon Garrett opposed.

The plan is not a done deal. It goes for school board approval next week, then is taken up by Augusta legislators. One of them, Rep. Mark Newton, R-Augusta, said he expects the delegation and the full House and Senate to take the neighborhoods’ concerns into account.

Reconvening the 12-member ad-hoc local committee that approved the map last week is not an option, because members won’t agree to it, said Frantom.

Frantom, who chaired the local redistricting committee that recently selected the plan, said Tuesday he wished the committee had worked harder to develop a map.

Mason and two others who spoke Tuesday declared the plan, drawn by a technician in the Legislative Reapportionment Office in Atlanta, a good one. Mason repeatedly said that a map drawn by the state office doesn’t have to go through additional technical review.

The Northeastern Judicial Circuit, serving Dawson and Hall Counties, is applying for COVID relief aid to help with a case backlog, according to the Gainesville Times.

With more than 1,000 unindicted cases in Hall County alone, the Northeastern Judicial Circuit has applied for $1.1 million in federal funds to address the court’s backlog.

In October, Gov. Brian Kemp announced he would allocate up to $110 million in American Rescue Plan funds for court backlogs.

The application was announced during a Monday, Dec. 6, work session for the Hall County Board of Commissioners. No matching funds are required by the county.

The award notifications for the grant are expected Dec. 21.

“In 2021, Hall County alone has swelled to 1,121 pending unindicted cases as of Oct. 1 — an increase of 62% over pre-pandemic levels,” according to the court’s application. “While grand juries have been convened weekly to work through this backlog, the number of pending cases remains extraordinarily high and offers a clear preview of the cases that are in the ‘pipeline’ that will soon hit dockets and trial calendars.”