On January 14, 1639, representatives of three cities in Connecticut adopted the “Fundamental Orders,” the first written Constitution in an American colony and one of the first founding documents to cite the authority of “the free consent of the people.”
On January 14, 1733, James Oglethorpe and the rest of the first colonists departed Charles Town harbor for what would become Savannah, and the State of Georgia.
The Continental Congress ratified the Treaty of Paris to end the Revolutionary War on January 14, 1784. The Treaty was negotiated by John Adams, who would later serve as President, and the delegates voting to ratify it included future Presidents Thomas Jefferson and James Monroe.
On January 14, 1835, James M. Wayne took the oath of office as an Associate Justice of the United States Supreme Court. A Savannah native, Wayne had previously served in the Georgia House of Representatives, as Mayor of Savannah, on the Supreme Court of Georgia, and in Congress. His sister was the great-grandmother of Juliette Gordon Low, founder of the Girl Scouts, and his home is now known as the Juliette Gordon Low house. When Georgia seceded from the Union, Wayne remained on the Supreme Court.
On January 14, 1860, the Committee of Thirty-Three introduced a proposed Constitutional Amendment to allow slavery in the areas it then existed.
Julian Bond was born on January 14, 1940 in Nashville, Tennessee, and was one of eleven African-American Georgians elected to the Georgia House of Representatives in 1965. After his election, on January 10, 1966, the State House voted 184-12 not to seat him because of his publicly-stated opposition to the Vietnam War. After his federal lawsuit was rejected by a three-judge panel of the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, the United States Supreme Court ordered Bond seated.
True story: Julian Bond was the first Georgia State Senator I ever met, when I was in ninth grade and visited the state Capitol as part of a school assignment.
On January 14, 1942, Franklin D. Roosevelt issued Presidential Proclamation No. 2537, requiring Japanese-Americans, including American-born citizens of Japanese ancestry, as well as Italians and Germans to register with the federal Department of Justice. The next month, Roosevelt would have Japanese-Americans interned in concentration camps in the western United States.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Under the Gold Dome Today
11:00 AM FLOOR SESSION (LD2) (House) House Chamber
11:00 AM Floor Session (LD 2) (Senate) Senate Chamber
Yesterday, the General Assembly convened for Legislative Day 1, which included swearing-in of legislators, elections of House Speaker, Senate President Pro Tem, and other officers, and adoption of a number of procedural resolutions.
Senate Resolution 6 sets the calendar for the Session, with today through Friday comprising Legislative Days 2 through 5, and next week is dedicated to budget hearings. Other significant dates on the calendar are Thursday, March 6 – LD 28, Crossover Day and Friday April 4, LD 40, Sine Die.
House Resolution 4 calls for a joint session of House and Senate at 11:00 A.M., Thursday, January 16, 2025 in the House Chamber to hear Governor Brian Kemp’s State of the State address.
House Resolution 5 calls for a joint session of House and Senate at 11:00 A.M., Tuesday, January 28, 2025 in the House Chamber to hear Georgia Supreme Court Chief Justice Mike Boggs deliver his State of the Judiciary address.
Thursday, Georgia Governor Brian Kemp is expected to highlight his top priorities at the state-of-the-state address including Hurricane Helene relief, tort reform to end frivolous lawsuits and keeping students safe in schools.
Crossover day will be Thursday, March 6 which is when one bills crosses from one chamber to the other day. The last day of the 40-day budget session will be April 4.
“This is the third consecutive year that we have had 40-day calendar and it’s never been done until three years ago,” said Senate Majority Leader, Steve Gooch. “We are proud to do that to give everyone the days of the future and when we will be in session and when we won’t be in session. There was a resolution to continue the investigation in the senate on DA Fani Willis.”
Lawmakers will hear from state leaders including Governor Kemp and Attorney General Chris Carr on Tuesday at the Eggs and Issues breakfast that’s organized by the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.
Senate Resolution 5 by State Sen. Greg Dolezal (R-Forsyth County) re-created the Senate Special Committee on Investigations to continue investigating Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis, according to the AJC.
In a party-line vote on Monday, the Georgia Senate revived a committee created to investigate Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis.
The 33-23 vote was among the first of the legislative session. It will allow the Special Committee on Investigations to continue its work weeks after a Fulton County judge ruled that the GOP-led chamber had the authority to subpoena the veteran prosecutor.
The panel has “uncovered a set of facts that require us to continue our work,” said Sen. Greg Dolezal, R-Cumming, the bill’s lead sponsor and a member of the committee. “We are focused on the potential enactment of new laws on a statewide application or a change in appropriations, and in order to do that we need to continue the work of this and that’s what this resolution does.”
Democrats said the committee was politically motivated and targeted Willis because she charged Donald Trump and 18 of his allies for attempting to overturn Democrat Joe Biden’s win in Georgia in 2020.
“This is a fixation on the past. But worse than that, it is driven primarily by the obsessions of one man who’s going to be president in a week,” said Sen. Josh McLaurin, D-Atlanta.
The committee held a handful of hearings throughout 2024, which in addition to Willis’ conduct scrutinized how the DA’s office spent public funding and how Fulton County oversees those funds.
It all culminated in a pair of subpoenas the panel issued to Willis in August seeking a slew of documents and her testimony at a public hearing.
Willis declined [to] hand over the requested information, and she skipped the hearing, instead asking a Fulton Superior Court judge to step in and kill the summons. Her legal team, led by former Democratic Gov. Roy Barnes, argued that the Special Committee did not have the authority to subpoena her and that the panel’s requests were overly broad and seeking privileged information.
In late December, Judge Shukura Ingram rejected Willis’ arguments, ruling that the committee did have the authority to subpoena her, but she gave the DA until Monday to explain why the summons should not be enforced.
Dolezal predicted that Willis would ultimately lose in court “and then we will have DA Willis testify before our committee.”
Sen. David Lucas, D-Macon, on Monday accused leaders of engaging in “bedroom politics” by zooming in on Willis for her romantic life. “What we’ve got to do is try to cross this out and work together on those things that we can to make it better for Georgians. This right here doesn’t make it any better — it makes it bitter.”
Sen. Harold Jones II of Augusta, the Senate’s new Democratic leader and a member of the Special Committee, called the investigation into Willis a “waste of time.”
“I’m a former prosecutor. We have no business trying to micromanage prosecutors’ offices,” he told reporters. “If Fulton County has an issue with what was taking place, they need to address that….That’s not the purview of the General Assembly. It never has been.”
Sen. John Albers, R-Roswell, said the Legislature needs to help the defendants who are “stuck in the middle” of the election interference case.
“They can’t move on with their lives and their very basic freedoms right now,” he said. “This is just and this is right. This committee is professional. They have followed the law, and isn’t it the job of the Georgia Senate to uphold those laws, make sure people are accountable.”
Governor Brian Kemp issued Executive Order #01.13.25.01, extending the State of Emergency related to Friday’s snow storm through Sunday, January 19, 2025 at 11:59 PM.
Governor Kemp announced a proposed legislative package to strengthen education, according to a Press Release.
Governor Brian P. Kemp, joined by Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones, Speaker Jon Burns, and members of the Georgia General Assembly, announced his legislative package enhancing K-12 education and securing Georgia classrooms.
Split between appropriations in the AFY’25 and FY’26 budgets and proposed legislation, this package fully funds K-12 formula earnings, provides funding for additional school safety grants, enhances mental health support and crisis counseling, and boosts technical education and transportation funding. The package also aims to improve benefits for teachers and faculty and provides funding for capital projects to modernize facilities and equipment, ensuring safer and more effective learning environments across Georgia.
“We are spending more today on K-12 education than we ever have in our state’s history,” said Governor Brian Kemp. “I made a promise to hardworking Georgians that we would make all of our children a priority in this state, and we are doing that once again today. In working with our legislative partners, we have fully funded our schools, raised teacher pay by nearly $10,000, delivered millions of dollars in school safety grants, consistently directed funding to address mental health in our schools, and so much more. I am proud today to stand with our legislative partners and announce these additional actions that support our educators, help secure our classrooms, and ensure our students have the resources they need for a safe and quality education.”
Since Governor Kemp took office in 2019 and in partnership with the Georgia General Assembly, Georgia has committed an additional $3.7 billion in ongoing funding for K-12 education and allocated $294.07 million specifically towards school safety grants.
“I applaud Governor Brian Kemp for prioritizing school safety. He has my full support for the proposals announced today, including the allocation of $50 million in the amended 2025 budget,” said Lt. Governor Burt Jones. “As a father of school-aged children, I believe that the safety of our students is a critical issue that requires our focus and commitment. After meeting with law enforcement, school administrators and individuals impacted by the tragic event in Barrow County, during the 2025 session, I will prioritize the final passage of “Alyssa’s Law,” and increasing penalties for those who threaten and commit these heinous crimes. Each feature of this package will build on school safety initiatives I supported last year. These are practical initiatives to achieve something every elected official should agree on – the security and well-being of Georgia’s students and teachers.”
“Today’s announcements reaffirm the dedication of the General Assembly to ensure every child in Georgia has an opportunity to pursue a quality education,” said Speaker Jon Burns. “From strengthening literacy initiatives, investing in school safety, increasing mental health resources, and championing access to Pre-K education, we are delivering on our commitment to Georgia’s students, educators, and families. This session, the House will place a continued emphasis on those policies that will ensure the safety and security of our schools, and we look forward to working alongside Governor Kemp and Lieutenant Governor Jones to pass these critical measures.”
Furthering Governor Kemp’s commitment to Georgia students, teachers, and faculty, the governor is proposing:
Support for Georgia Students
Allocate $120.8 million in amended fiscal year 2025 and $402.2 million in fiscal year 2026 to fully fund K-12 education.
Provide an additional $10.3 million in pupil transportation – sustaining the higher rate of state-funded grants for buses and operational costs.
Fund equipment grants of $1.25 million to support new or expanded technical education labs in high schools that train for high demand careers as defined by the State Workforce Development Board.
Support for Georgia School Teachers, Faculty & Staff
Legislation to increase the indemnification benefit amount in the case of death for the Public School Indemnification Fund to match the benefit for the Public Officers Indemnification Fund. Specifically, the payment would be raised from $75,000 to $150,000 and a person may elect a payment of $2,500, rather than $1,250, paid in equal monthly installments for five years.
Increase Public school employers contribution to the Teachers’ State Health Benefit Plan (SHBP) to improve the funded ratio of the health insurance plan. These increases from $1,760 PMPM to $1,885 PMPM for certified school personnel and $1,580 to $1,885 for classified school personnel will go into effect at the beginning of fiscal year 2026.
Improving and Safeguarding Georgia Schools
Allocate $50 million in the amended fiscal year 2025 budget for one-time additions to school safety grants. This is an additional $21,635 per school in one-time funds on top of the $47,125 base amount received each year. This year, in total, $158.9 million will be made available in school safety grants for a total of $68,760 per school.
Sustain $3,015,000 for expanded K-12 bandwidth as started with Governor’s Emergency Education Relief Funds.
Fund crisis counseling training with the Southern Regional Education Board (SREB). With this allocation, 20 counselors from local districts and postsecondary institutions will be able to receive intensive training in a nationally recognized program designed to provide counseling support in an educational environment.
Include over $872,000 in the Quality Basic Education program to improve the student to school psychologist ratio.
The governor is also proposing a total capital package of $212.4 million that includes $178.5 million for regular facility earnings, $20 million for the purchase of school buses, $7.3 million for vocational and agricultural lab equipment in fiscal year 2026, and $6.6 million in the amended fiscal year 2025 budget.
Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp on Monday proposed giving public schools a one-time additional $50 million to spend on school safety, but his plan falls short of the increased counseling resources school officials want after four people were shot and killed at Apalachee High School in Winder in September.
The $50 million would be added to the current state budget atop $109 million in continuing funding that schools are already receiving. That money was placed in the continuing budget beginning July 1, the first time Georgia’s public schools have gotten ongoing funding instead of one-time safety grants.
“All of these investments were planned with the goal of making our schools even safer,” Kemp said, adding he believed that without the funding the state has already provided, “that fateful day could have been even more tragic” at Apalachee.
The Republican governor said the $50 million would give each of Georgia’s more than 2,000 public schools another $21,635 to spend on safety, atop the $47,125 they’re already getting.
The governor also proposed that the state boost funding on school psychologists by $872,000. That would provide an estimated 16 more school psychologists statewide, or one for every 2,420 students.
Kemp and other Republicans have shied away from trying to regulate children’s access to guns, although state Rep. Michelle Au, a Johns Creek Democrat, introduced a bill Monday to make it a misdemeanor to not secure guns around children.
State school Superintendent Richard Woods and educational advocacy groups have been seeking spending on counselors and mental health clinicians to intervene with students before they become a threat to themselves or others.
Woods wants more spending on the state’s Apex mental health program, which pays for mental health services for students. That program is currently voluntary and serves only about a third of Georgia’s schools. Woods, an elected Republican, also called for direct funding of crisis alert systems and police officers in every school.
When Kemp and lawmakers agreed on the $109 million in school safety spending last year, they said they wanted the money to pay for at least one security officer at each school. Local superintendents have said the full cost for a school resource officer is significantly higher.
A group of educational associations wants more spending on school counselors and school social workers as well as psychologists. The American School Counselor Association recommends one counselor for every 250 students, while Georgia state funding pays for one counselor for every 450 students. The educational groups want to fund one counselor for every 400 students, costing an estimated $26 million more annually.
Boosting the number of social workers so that each school district has enough state funding for one person would cost an estimated $1.7 million. The groups also requested the increase in spending on psychologists, but it was the least expensive item.
The governor said he supports Apex, but said it’s difficult to find licensed counselors and other professionals. “I’m open to all of the above,” he said of such funding. But if Kemp doesn’t recommend the spending in his proposed budget, lawmakers would have to shift dollars from elsewhere, because Georgia’s governor sets an overall limit on how much lawmakers can spend.
Woods said he wasn’t giving up on his proposals.
“The process has just started, and we’ll continue to engage,” Woods said. “But anytime we see additional money like that, we’re very pleased.”
Kemp said he also wants to fund crisis counseling training by the Southern Regional Education Board for 20 counselors from public schools and colleges.
Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and House Speaker Jon Burns, both Republicans, said they support Kemp’s plans.
“These grants will provide the flexibility and discretion needed to fit the unique needs of every school in every corner of our state,” said Burns, of Newington.
Jones renewed his call for a law mandating wearable panic buttons for teachers and school employees. Burns reiterated his calls for a program of information sharing among education, child welfare and juvenile court agencies in hopes such data will help officials better assess threats from students. He also repeated his call to earmark fines from automated school zone speeding cameras for school safety.
“The taxpayer can rest assure that this is going to keep our kids and our teachers and our school systems staff safe,” Kemp said. “As all of us remember the horrific tragedy last year put these investments to the test. And had those supports for school security not been made, that fateful day in October could’ve been more tragic.”
Kemp is proposing one-time school safety grants totaling $50 million. That breaks down to a little over $20,000 per school. This comes just four months after a student opened fire at Apalachee High School in Winder, GA.
The money would help schools decide what they need for safety, like cameras or other technology and more resource officers.
Speaker Jon Burns proposed a bill that would require schools to share student records with law enforcement.
“This funding combined with our prior investments in school safety will make a significant improvement and significant investment in every public school in our state for school safety upgrades, improvements, infrastructure and personnel,” Burns said.
“I think we saw how well the system that Apalachee had worked,” Kemp said. “Even though that was a tragic day it could’ve been more tragic if we had not had that funding.”
“As all of us remember, the horrific tragedy last year put all of these investments to test,” Kemp said about the worst school shooting in Georgia’s history. A 14-year-old student is accused of shooting and killing two students and two teachers at Apalachee High in Barrow County. State leaders have since come out with a number of proposals to improve school safety in the state.
The additional grant funding makes a total of $158 million in school security grants distributed statewide in this fiscal year, Kemp said.
Kemp was joined by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and House Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington at the news conference Monday. Jones said he would prioritize the final passage of “Alyssa’s Law,” which would require schools to have panic buttons. Barrow County schools had purchased crisis alert badges before the September shooting.
Though Alyssa’s Law did not pass in the House of Representatives, Jones said he expects it will be successful in the coming year.
Back in September, Burns endorsed efforts to expand mental health care access, offer incentives for gun safety purchases and toughen penalties against people who make terroristic threats. More recently he suggested using money from speeding cameras around school zones to fund safety measures.
“I’ve made it clear to the House that we leave no stone unturned when it comes to ensuring our students can learn in a safe and secure environment,” Burns said Monday.
The security grants are outside of the state’s education funding formula, which Kemp has proposed fully funding again this year — never a guarantee.
Some of the metro area’s largest school systems, including DeKalb and Gwinnett counties, are asking lawmakers to take it a step further and change the state funding formula to give more money for students living in poverty. Amending the behemoth formula has long been a topic of discussion at the Gold Dome. But this could be the year for modernization, House Education Committee Chairman Chris Erwin said in a panel hosted by the Georgia Partnership for Excellence in Education last week. He conceded it would be a “steep mountain to climb.”
Kemp also proposed an additional $10.3 million for student transportation, which is often a stressor for school systems. State funding has not kept up with rising transportation costs. In 2021, the state funded roughly a quarter of transportation costs for metro Atlanta school systems.
Gov. Kemp’s Office announced December state revenues, according to a Press Release.
December Tax Revenues Up 9.6%; Adjusted YTD Down 1%
The State of Georgia’s net tax collections in the month of December totaled almost $3.34 billion, for an increase of $291.4 million, or 9.6%, compared to December 2023, when net tax collections approached $3.05 billion for the month. Year-to-date, net tax revenue collections increased by $283.1 million, or 1.8%, an increase that was boosted by the collection of the state’s motor fuel excise tax, which was suspended by Executive Order for a two and a half month stretch of FY 2024. Net of motor fuel tax changes, revenue collections for the six-month period ended December 31 totaled roughly $16.36 billion, for a decrease of 1% from this time a year ago.
The changes within the following tax categories account for December’s overall net tax revenue increase:
Individual Income Tax: Individual Income Tax collections in December totaled $1.49 billion for an increase of $107.8 million, or 7.8%, over last year, when Individual Tax revenues approached $1.39 million for the month.
The following notable components within Individual Income Tax combine for the increase:
Individual Income Tax refunds issued (net of voided checks) decreased by $53.4 million or 42.7 percent
Income Tax Withholding payments increased by $28.6 million or 2.1% over December FY 2024
Individual Income Tax Return payments increased by $16 million or 75.2% over December 2023
All other Individual Tax categories, including Estimated Tax payments, were up a combined $9.8 million
Sales and Use Tax: Gross Sales and Use Tax collections totaled $1.57 billion, for an increase of $52.3 million or 3.4% over December 2023. Net Sales and Use Tax increased by $19.4 million, or 2.6%, compared to FY 2024, when net Sales Tax totaled $757.6 million. The adjusted Sales Tax distribution to local governments totaled $784.8 million, for an increase of $39.4 million, or 5.3%, while Sales Tax refunds decreased by $6.5 million.
Corporate Income Tax: Corporate Income Tax collections for the month decreased by roughly $29 million, or 4.1%, compared to last year, when net Corporate Tax revenues totaled $712 million in December 2023.
The following notable components within Corporate Income Tax make up the net decrease:
Corporate Income Tax refunds issued (net of voids) were down $8.8 million or 25.1% from FY 2024
Corporate Income Tax Estimated payments decreased by $33.2 million or 7.3% from last year
All other Corporate Tax payments, including S-Corporation payments, were down a combined $4.6 million
Motor Fuel Taxes: Motor Fuel Tax collections for the month increased by $182 million over last year, when Governor Kemp’s Executive Order to suspend the state excise tax was in effect through the end of November, thereby effectively eliminating the collection of motor fuel tax receipts in the month of December 2023.
Motor Vehicle – Tag, Title & Fees: Motor Vehicle Tag & Title Fee collections for December increased by $4.1 million or 13.8%, while Title ad Valorem Tax (TAVT) collections declined by $0.9 million or 1.4% from FY 2024.
Georgia’s economic growth in 2025 will be slower than 2024, but is expected to outpace the rest of the nation, according to The Brunswick News.
During the annual Georgia Economic Outlook presentation at the Jekyll Island Convention Center Monday, the audience was cautioned there are some potential challenges ahead.
Keynote speaker Jeff Humphreys, director of the Selig Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia, predicted there is a 25% possibility of a recession this year.
The Federal Reserve’s decision to constrain lending helped lower inflation from 8% in 2022 to 3% in 2024. The rate is expected to maintain at 3% in 2025.
Job growth in the state is expected to rise 1%, which is slower than last year’s rate of 1.5% but still higher than the national job growth rate of 0.6%
Humphries said there are “lots of triggers” that could affect the economy.
“A tight labor market is here to stay,” he said.
The good news is Georgia continues to outperform the nation thanks to a low cost of living and a low cost of doing business in the state.
Humphries said there are lots of new projects underway that will create tens of thousands of new jobs in the state thanks to a “workforce centric” approach.
The state’s population growth is three times the national rate, but that rate in Georgia can’t be sustained, he said.
The demand for new homes will increase and Humphries predicted builders will respond by building more single-family homes.
Home prices have increased at three times the inflation rate, and he said they won’t go much higher, but they’re not going to fall, either.
“By any metric, homes are moderately overpriced,” he said.
From Georgia Public Broadcasting:
Georgia’s economy will likely see slower but continued growth in 2025, according to forecasters at the Savannah Area Chamber of Commerce’s annual outlook meeting.
University of Georgia Terry College of Business dean Ben Ayers told attendees Wednesday that although employment gains will moderate compared to last year, they should still outpace the national average.
“Most sectors in our state will continue to hire,” Ayers said, with homebuilding and health care leading the way due to expected interest rate cuts from the Federal Reserve and growing demand for telemedicine.
Although Ayers estimates a 25% chance of recession in 2025 — slightly above historical norms — those odds are lower than last year’s, when a 33% chance was forecast.
The Savannah area’s prospects appear even brighter than the state’s, thanks to the region’s expanding manufacturing and logistics sectors, according to Georgia Southern University economist Michael Toma.
“While the U.S. economy may be shedding manufacturing jobs, that’s not happening here — it’s not happening here at all,” Toma said, referring to continued development around Hyundai’s electric vehicle factory in Bryan County. “This will be fun to watch and see.”
State House Speaker Jon Burns (R-Newington) was re-elected to his post, according to the Capitol Beat News Service via the Savannah Morning News.
The General Assembly gaveled into session Monday with the usual pageantry and little of the heavy lifting that will be required to make it through the 40-day session.
House lawmakers voted 153-21 to reelect Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington, to preside over the chamber during the next two years.
“I like doing that!” Burns said as he brought the gavel down to open the 2025 legislative session. “Let’s get to work.”
Burns vowed to support “strong, common-sense policy” in keeping with the Republican-controlled House’s track record of tax cuts, cracking down on illegal immigration, and investing in critical infrastructure.
Over in the Senate, John Kennedy, R-Macon, was reelected president pro tempore by unanimous consent of his Senate colleagues. Rep. Jan Jones, R-Milton, won another term as House speaker pro tempore by a vote of 158-19.
Eighteen of the 180 House members took the oath of office for the first time, while four newly minted Senate freshmen were sworn in on the Senate side of the Capitol.
At the opposite end of the time-served spectrum, Sen. David Lucas, D-Macon, began his 50th legislative session under the Gold Dome.
“It’s been a good 50 years,” said Lucas, who was elected to the Georgia House in 1974 and moved over to the Senate in 2012. “I never thought I’d be here that long.”
Monday kicked off a busy week for the General Assembly. Lawmakers will hear Gov. Brian Kemp outline his priorities for the session Tuesday morning at the annual Eggs and Issues breakfast sponsored by the Georgian Chamber of Commerce. Then on Thursday, the governor will deliver his annual State of the State message to a joint session of the House and Senate.
The legislature also set the full 40-day schedule for the session on Monday, voting to adjourn for the year on Friday, April 4. Crossover Day, the deadline for bills to pass either the House or Senate to remain alive for the session, will take place on Thursday, March 6.
Other important issues include tort reform, the state budget, continuing hurricane relief, and transgender sports according to the Associated Press.
Top issues will include Gov. Brian Kemp’s push to limit lawsuit verdicts and proposed responses to September’s deadly shooting at Apalachee High School in Winder. Revenue growth is slowing, but Georgia has an $11 billion surplus lawmakers can spend if Kemp, a Republican, lets them.
Here’s a look at some other key issues:
Doing more to ease Hurricane Helene damage
Georgia leaders are generally applauding a relief package that Congress passed in December. But they say more needs to be done after Hurricane Helene cut a swath from Valdosta to Augusta in September, causing billions in damage.
After Hurricane Michael in 2018, Georgia allocated $470 million on top of federal spending. That included $200 million in income tax credits for timber and pecan farmers to replant trees and $69 million to help state and local agencies cover emergency response costs, $55 million to assist farmers suffering crop losses and $20 million for timberland cleanup.
State officials have already approved a plan for $100 million in loans to affected farmers and timber owners.
House Speaker Jon Burns in particular wants more money to clean up downed timber, saying fallen trees will become a wildfire risk if not removed.
Republicans push to ban transgender women in school sports
Georgia Republicans in both chambers, including Republican Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and Burns, have promised to prioritize banning transgender women and girls from competing in women’s school sports.
The General Assembly in 2022 left it up to the Georgia High School Association to make decisions about transgender women and girls in sports. The association, mostly made up of public high schools, then banned transgender women and girls from participating in its sports events.
Top Republicans now say that’s enough, after Donald Trump and others have made opposition a political issue.
“I have four granddaughters, and they’re engaged in athletics, and they work hard spending hours a week preparing themselves to participate,” Burns said at a recent press conference. “We want them to have the opportunity to excel and to win and to be first.”
Jones has said Senate Republicans will seek a ban at the college level as well as in high school athletics, but it is unclear if the House will go that far.
Jeff Graham, executive director of Georgia Equality, an organization that advocates for LGBTQ+ rights, noted there are no known instances of transgender athletes in Georgia participating in school sports.“They are really putting a lot of time and effort into solving a problem that does not exist,” Graham said.
Spending could improve conditions in Georgia’s prisons
Lawmakers in both chambers have said they will pursue legislation to address violence and deaths in Georgia’s prisons.
The U.S. Department of Justice said in November that conditions in state prisons are “inhumane” and prison officials are violating prisoners’ Eighth Amendment protections against cruel punishment.
In a meeting earlier this month with lawmakers, Corrections Commissioner Tyrone Oliver said Kemp is proposing to spend more than $600 million to renovate prisons and hire more staff, among other investments. Oliver also said the state would build another new prison.
Lawmakers want to cut off access to cell phones and drones, which officials say bring contraband inside. Others have suggested increases in mental health staff.
Can sports betting come up a winner?
Despite support from Jones, the Metro Atlanta Chamber and Atlanta’s pro sports teams, legalizing sports betting in Georgia has gone nowhere in recent years. Proponents will certainly try again to legalize it.
There are multiple issues that need to be resolved before legislation can move forward. Some argue that legalization requires an amendment to the Georgia Constitution, which would require a two-thirds vote in each chamber, followed by approval from a majority of those voting in a statewide referendum. Others say only a simple majority vote would be required if sports betting is regulated by the Georgia Lottery.
There are also disagreements about how the proceeds should be spent, and how heavily the state should tax the activity. ___ This story corrects the year Biden last won Georgia. It was 2020, not 2022.
With two prisons located in southwest Georgia, in Calhoun and Mitchell counties, the spending will impact the region.
“We think it’s more than the ($372 million),” state Rep. Gerald Greene, R-Cuthbert, whose District 154 includes a portion of Dougherty County, said. “I have a feeling it’s not enough.
“We just had another murder in a prison due to these gangs. We are just sick and tired of what’s going on in these prisons. We are concerned for the correctional officials. It’s dangerous for these workers in these prisons.”
With average salaries of about $30,000, the salaries of those who work in such dangerous conditions need a boost, the representative said. Prisons also need programs that will allow inmates who leave those facilities to have a chance at rehabilitation.
“We’ve got to have professional people,” Greene said. “Our position should be one where (for) prisoners, I know we’re mad at you when we put you in there … but we’ve got to be at the point of looking at rehabilitation. A lot of times we turn them loose, and they’re worse the next time they come in there.”
Rehabilitation should include programs to give inmates skills for when they leave prison, and their day should be more structured instead of mostly free time, state Sen. Freddie Powell Sims, D-Dawson, said. Inmates should also have the opportunity to learn skills that are relatable to today’s economy.
“There needs to be more of a schedule, an agenda for the day every day,” she said. “There’s too much idle time. There are some jobs programs, but the world has changed drastically since prisons became what they are. The programs now are antiquated.”
In speaking with her constituents, Sims said, opinions vary from those who think prison should be tougher to those who think punishments are too harsh. The reality is that those who go into the system, for the most part, will return to their local communities.
“Usually it’s our communities that are afraid to have criminals coming in and out of them,” she said. “Communities are the ones who suffer the most. We need to get it right. We need to frame this around we are a successful country, we are a brilliant country, and we can figure this out.”
Pay for prison employees is inadequate, the senator said, and that should be addressed. Facilities also should be made safe.
“I believe if you have committed a crime, you don’t ask for a Ritz Carlton to live in every day,” she said. “I think there’s too much free time in prison for you to get into trouble.”
Some of the other big statewide issues legislators will consider this year are more spending on mental health, health care and schools.
Both Greene and Sims are retired educators, and for Sims a big concern is how the state education dollars are spent. Most of the 13 counties in her district do a good job in using the funds for the purposes they were allocated, Sims said, but there is room for improvement.
In some systems, funding for wraparound services that include mental health and other programs meant to improve the learning environment for students and families are not being used effectively, according to Sims. Many of her constituents have told her that services in programs that have been funded are not available in their area, she said.
“We have administrators across the state who do not have a good grasp on what is needed in the schools,” she said. “There are state dollars that are supposed to be going to mental health, health services and the like. If you look at education, the accountability is not there. I would like to see more accountability for all the agencies in the state. We do a decent job, but we can do better. Let’s see where the dollars are going.”
Rural school systems have struggled in recruiting and retaining educators, despite recent investments in boosting teacher pay, and some systems have cut the number of days students are in school as a perk to entice teachers, Sims said. That increases the “brain drain” students experience from being away from the learning environment.
To help boost smaller counties’ ability to bring in teachers and other needed employees like first responders, the state needs to look at increasing affordable housing, she said.
“When we talk about housing, we need to talk about affordable housing for teachers, for police, for service workers, for firefighters,” she said. “We should help teachers with continuing education. We don’t really do that anymore.”
State Senator Greg Dolezal (R-Forsyth County) also introduced Senate Bill 1, the “Fair and Safe Athletic Opportunities Act,” on transgender school sports, according to the AJC.
Early Monday, state Sen. Greg Dolezal, a Republican from Cumming, filed the chamber’s first bill, which would require transgender girls and women competing in sports at public middle schools, high schools and college student-athletes to play on teams, dress, shower and use restrooms according to the gender on their birth certificate. The bill would also apply to out-of-state and private institutions in games they play against those schools.
“I introduced legislation today that came out of the work of the Senate’s Committee on Protecting Women’s Sports,” Dolezal said in a news conference. Dolezal served as chair of the Senate Special Committee on Protecting Women’s Sports. “It does exactly what we discussed in the committee: it will establish clearly in Georgia law that males are not allowed to compete in female sports in the state.”
“Biological men do not belong in women’s sports, period,” said [LG Burt] Jones, who created a panel to study transgender girls in sports last summer the day after Algerian boxer Imane Khelif’s gender was questioned following her defeat of an Italian boxer in last year’s Paris Olympics.
Khelif is not transgender, but the controversy around her participation in the 2024 Olympics spurred some Georgia lawmakers to take a closer look at transgender student athletes.
“This is common sense to everyone but the most radical liberals in Georgia,” Jones said.
State Rep. Bill Yearta (R-Sylvester) enters his third term, according to WALB.
District 152 includes Worth and Lee counties, as well as a portion of Dougherty County.
“Over the past four years, I have worked on common sense policies that help those in Southwest Georgia,” Yearta said. “It is vital that our voice is heard at the state Capitol, and there is more work to be done. I look forward to working on meaningful legislation this session that will improve the quality of life for all those in District 152.”
Priorities for the Republican-led Georgia House of Representatives include revisiting tax breaks for Georgians, investments in the medical workforce across the rural parts of the state, and advancing child literacy initiatives. Hurricane Helene’s recovery remains a top priority for the state, according to the release.
Yerta plans to ensure that rural Georgia receives additional economic development opportunities and that those in southwest Georgia continue to prosper.
“As a small business owner, I know tax cuts can have a real impact on families and small businesses in our community at a time when inflation is squeezing everyone’s pockets. It is imperative that we do what we can on the state level to ease the burden that families are feeling.”
Prior to serving in the Georgia Legislature, Yearta was the Mayor of Sylvester for over 17 years. A small business owner, he lives in Sylvester with his wife, Susan, and has two children and two grandchildren, according to the release.
State Rep. Matt Dubnik (R-Gainesville) spoke about his priorities, according to AccessWDUN.
Rep. Matt Dubnik (R-Gainesville) said on WDUN’s “The Martha Zoller Show” Monday that he expects to remain in his prior appropriations role in the Georgia House Republican caucus. He said he hopes to see the legislature continue to invest in education initiatives.
“I don’t think it’s any secret that we’ve spent a great deal of time and money to invest in literacy initiatives to boost those reading proficiency scores across the state,” Dubnik said. “I’ll continue to champion that, and I think we’ve got a great model with these literacy coaches.”
Dubnik also said it will be important for the legislature to take further looks at school safety initiatives. 2025 marks the first Georiga legislative session since the first mass school shooting in state history in September 2024 at Apalachee High School in Barrow County.
On healthcare issues, Dubnik said his main concern is staffing.
“Things that make me nervous and keep me up at night are when we have a shortage across the state of nurses at all levels and primary care physicians,” Dubnik said. “Those are things we’re going to continue to tackle.”
On other topics, Dubnik said he believes 2025 could be the year sports betting could come to a vote in the state legislature. He also said maintaining a balanced state budget is of importance to him.
American Oversight filed a lawsuit alleging some State Election Board members are using Gmail accounts to sidestep Open Records requests, according to the AJC.
Two Republican State Election Board members who use private Gmail accounts for official business have refused to allow searches of their emails, leading to an accusation that they’re violating government transparency laws.
A lawsuit by the watchdog group American Oversight alleges the State Election Board has “systematically obstructed public records requests” for information about voter eligibility challenges, communications with outside organizations and voter citizenship verification.
The two election board members, Janice Johnston and Janelle King, said they follow Georgia’s open records laws and provide emails upon request. But they said they’re unwilling to share their email accounts with government records officers.
Without any outside review, there’s no way to ensure that all requested emails are disclosed, said Loree Stark, an attorney for American Oversight.
Under Georgia’s Open Records Act, most government documents must be made available, including communications from personal accounts if they’re used to conduct public business.
“This is about transparency and the public’s right to know,” Stark said. “It’s hard to know when someone is doing their own search on their own emails whether they’re ever truly turning over responsive documents.”
Johnston, who was appointed by the Georgia Republican Party, said the board uses Gmail because the secretary of state’s office hasn’t provided government email addresses, and she’s uncomfortable with sharing her email password.
“How could I be sure that my emails were secure — not deleted, not edited or not leaked to bad actors?” Johnston said. “I have been very diligent in my ORR (open record request) searches.”
King, who was appointed by Republican House Speaker Jon Burns, said she uses personal email addresses both for the State Election Board and for her role on the Georgia Board of Corrections.
“I do not have any agenda other than to do the right thing. I can’t pick and choose what to send. I have to send whatever is asked in the ORR — emails, text, etc.,” King said. “I prefer to manage my stuff. Nothing more and nothing less.”
The three other members of the board also use Gmail accounts, but they permit the board’s paralegal to conduct records searches.
“The public officials may in fact be hiding nothing, but the fact is we will never know. That lends credence to all these conspiracy theories,” said Richard Griffiths of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation. “By moving their communications onto services that aren’t available to the public for inspection, it raises all kinds of questions about what those officials may be trying to hide.”
The Glynn County Commission and the Golden Isles Convention & Visitors Bureau want to raise the hotel/motel bed tax, according to The Brunswick News.
The Glynn County Commission and the Golden Isles Convention & Visitors Bureau are recommending an increase from the current rate of 5% to a new 7% accommodation excise tax beginning at the start of the new fiscal year on July 1.
The bed tax has been set at 5% for overnight visitors to the Golden Isles for the past three decades.
The proposed increase would help create new opportunities for the county, including the establishment of a new Tourism Product Development fund. This would allow 14.2% of the fund to be dedicated toward tourism-related infrastructure improvements.
“The hospitality industry recognizes that we must reinvest in our infrastructure to provide the best quality experience for visitors while also improving the quality of life for residents,” said Scott McQuade, president and CEO of the CVB.
County Commission Chairman Walter Rafolski said the timing is right to consider an increase in the bed tax.
“The Board of Commissioners appreciates the recommendation of the CVB on the Accommodation Excise Tax,” Rafolski said. “This has been discussed for many years and we agree with the need to reinvest in our community. Glynn County will now have additional resources to address countywide improvements for all of our residents.”
Augusta City Commissioners are considering raising the hotel/motel tax, according to WJBF.
“People want to see good things happen in Augusta. We got to go somewhere. I’ve not been one in the past to want to support that,” said Commissioner Catherine Smith Rice.
City leaders approved a resolution of support to go to state lawmakers to increase the city’s hotel motel tax from six percent to eight percent – the highest the state allows.
“We’re finally catching up to a lot of destinations in the state not just our competitors a lot of smaller destinations of found value in doing what the law allows,” said Bennish Brown President of Destination Augusta.
Increasing the tax would be about a $700,000 boost for two entities getting funding from the lodging tax – the Visitors Bureau and the Coliseum Authority.
The Coliseum Authority says it comes at an important time with a new quarter billion-dollar arena being built.
“We want to make sure we’ve got the funds to keep it looking like a $250 million-dollar building,” said Cedric Johnson. Coliseum Authority Chair.
Destination Augusta says extra funds means extra marketing of Augusta to visitors.
“We market against the world. Think about that. I know that sounds strange, but every day some city somewhere is trying to make sure they name surfaces to the top. Augusta deserves that opportunity,” said Brown.
An if the increase is approved, Augusta would get a slice of the hotel motel tax for the first time – about a million and a half dollars a year.
“So hopefully we could utilize that money to do something to attractive not only our residents, but for people coming in,” said Augusta Mayor Pro-Tem Wayne Guilfoyle
The hotel tax increase will have to be approved by the Augusta’s legislative delegation. City leaders hope is it can be in place before the Masters.
Augusta Commissioners discussed opting-out of the HB 581 property tax homestead exemption, according to WJBF.
A new Georgia law was approved by voters to cap property tax increases. But as part of that law, local communities can opt out of the plan – and several in the CSRA say they intend to do so after a required series of public hearings.
Whether Augusta will do so was a topic of discussion Monday.
At the Augusta Commission meeting, Bob Young reminded fellow commissioners that 60% of Augusta voters voted “yes” for the homestead exemption.
He says the question of opting out of the cap goes beyond the homestead exemption but rather casts doubt on whether referendums mean anything in Richmond County.
“The exemption is just another incentive for people to invest in homeownership in Augusta, Richmond County,” said Young. “So my message to you is that you don’t need to schedule any public hearings about opting out. The public hearing was held on Nov. 5, when 48,000 people in Richmond County said give us our tax break.”
He said he doesn’t understand why anyone would consider taking away the voices of more than 60% and “tossing it out” in a process he called voter nullification.
He says the exemption “brings some control” to property taxes, and he doesn’t understand why officials didn’t voice concerns prior to the November vote.
Commissioner Wayne Guilfoyle said the challenge for a lot of elected officials is that they don’t know what the impact of the cap would be.
“There’s a lot of unanswered questions,” he said.
Guilfoyle also questioned what will happen to businesses and new construction in the community if commissioners take action on the homestead exemption.
“We also are going to have to find funding to stay and keep our operations going, especially with our new sheriff’s department,” said Guilfoyle. “You got our judicial and you even got the marshal’s department that’s coming for us now looking for funding. Well, we are $8.7 million in the rear right now. Money’s got to come from somewhere and that’s something that we have to look at. That’s the elephant in the room for me.”
Mayor Garnett Johnson read the resolution straight from the ballot and said the opt-out potential was included in the language of the resolution voters pondered in November.
Young, on the other hand, said the ballot measure was written in “word salad.”
Commissioner Francine Scott said people need to know the 62% who voted for the measure indicated the percentage of voters, not the percentage of homeowners.
At the meeting, Sue Parr spoke on behalf of her client the Augusta Metro Chamber of Commerce.
“Opting out of this measure is not a tax break for the business community,” said Parr. “It is simply a matter of assessing equitable, fair property tax value on property, whether it’s commercial or homestead. We need both.”
Rome City Commissioners reelected Commissioner Craig McDaniel as Mayor, according to WRGA.
The Rome City Commission voted Monday to reappoint McDaniel.
“It is an honor to serve as the mayor of this city,” McDaniel said. “There have been some people that have sat in this chair that I have tremendous respect for, and I will never fill those shoes, but it’s an honor. We had a good year last year and we are going to have a great year this year.”
The vote was not unanimous.
Commissioner Mark Cochran voted “no.”
Jim Bojo was elected mayor pro tem and Rome City Manager Sammy Rich was reappointed.
Commissioners Cochran and Harry Brock voted against Rich’s reappointment.
Mike Boyd (D4) and Johnny Hardin (D6) were sworn in as Colquitt County Commissioners, according to the Moultrie Observer.
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