On January 22, 1733, James Oglethorpe arrived at Yamacraw Bluff, where the colony of Georgia would be founded.
On January 22, 1861, following the passage of Georgia’s Secession Resolution, six delegates, including both from Gwinnett County, signed a statement protesting the decision to secede.
On January 22, 1866, Georgia Governor Charles Jenkins signed a resolution by the legislature asking for federal troops to be removed from Georgia.
On January 22, 1959, Atlanta buses were integrated after a federal court decision.
On January 22, 1973, the United States Supreme Court issued its 7-2 decision in the case known as Roe v. Wade.
Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections
Governor Nathan Deal appointed Jennifer E. Carver as Solicitor General for the Bacon County State Court.
LEGISLATIVE COMMITTEE MEETINGS TODAY
9:00 AM HOUSE APPROP PUBLIC SAFETY 415 CLOB
9:00 AM HOUSE APPROP HIGHER EDUCATION 341 CAP
10:00 AM HOUSE FLOOR SESSION (LD 7) House Chamber
11:00 AM HOUSE MOTOR VEHICLES 403 CAP – Upon Adjournment
12:00 PM SENATE RULES – UPON ADJOURNMENT 450 CAP
1:00 PM SENATE PUBLIC SAFETY MEZZ 1
1:00 PM SENATE INSURANCE AND LABOR 310 CLOB
2:00 PM SENATE TRANSPORTATION 310 CLOB
2:00 PM HOUSE APPROP HUMAN RES 341 CAP
2:00 PM HOUSE APPROP ECON DEV 506 CLOB
2:00 PM HOUSE Ways & Means Sub. Tax Reform 133 CAP
2:00 PM HOUSE APPROP PUBLIC SAFETY 415 CLOB
2:00 PM HOUSE Judiciary (Civil) Fleming Sub 132 CAP
3:00 PM SENATE FINANCE – CANCELED MEZZ 1
3:00 PM HOUSE Judiciary (Civil) Kelley Sub 132 CAP
3:00 PM HOUSE APPROP EDUCATION 406 CLOB
4:00 PM SENATE JUDICIARY 307 CLOB
4:00 PM HOUSE APPROPRIATIONS TRANSPORTATION 406 CLOB
FEDERAL GOVERNMENT SHUTDOWN
Georgia’s U.S. Senators issued statements on the federal government shutdown:
U.S. Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., expressed frustration with the process, pointing to the lack of an agreement on the Children’s Health Insurance Program, or CHIP, as an example of the breakdown.
“It’s time to stop the theatrics and get to the business of governing,” Isakson said in a statement. “For too long we have been kicking the can down the road on an operating budget for our government. A continuing resolution is not the path I would choose for good governing.
“Now we can’t even put aside partisan differences and agree to move forward on a continuing resolution under which we all agree on the big, underlying priorities.”
Sen. David Perdue, R-Ga., also said he was frustrated with the lack of a long-term spending measure. Perdue said Democrats are to blame for the shutdown, though, and called it a “Schumer Shutdown,” a reference to Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y.
“It is totally irresponsible for the Democrats to use government funding as a bargaining chip,” Perdue said in a statement. “Democrats have created a false deadline by trying to tie illegal immigration to government funding. As I’ve consistently said, these are two totally different issues and should be dealt with separately.”
U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Sonny Perdue issued guidance on how his department will operate under the federal government shutdown.
The Food Safety and Inspection Service would continue working to ensure meat, poultry and egg products are safe as well as inspect food being slaughtered and processed for humans.
They’ll also still ensure imported products do not bring pests or diseases into the U.S. and furloughed personnel would come back to work immediately in the event of an outbreak.
Also, federal functions to maintain the core programs of the nutrition safety net — including the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), the Child Nutrition Programs and the Special Supplemental Nutrition Program for Women, Infants and Children (WIC) — would continue.
Perdue said those all have funding available to operate through February, and many have funds to continue operations through March, without additional appropriation.
In Middle Georgia, Robins Air Force Base is preparing to comply with the government shutdown.
Robins Air Force Base is “beginning the process for an orderly government shutdown,” according to a Facebook post on Saturday afternoon. More than 21,400 people are employed at Robins Air Force, with 13,300 appropriated-fund civilians, about 5,550 military members and more than 2,500 other employees, said Geoff Janes, with Robins Air Force Base Public Affairs.
It’s not clear how many of these employees will be impacted by the government shutdown, he said. Military and civilian personnel have been instructed to report to work Monday to receive more information and contact their supervisors with questions.
The Museum of Aviation, Airman and Family Readiness Center and the base’s main fitness center will be closed. The Travel Management Office will offer limited services; the Commissary will be open until Wednesday; and the Medical Group will be open but delays are expected.
The visitor center and Earth Lodge at Macon’s Ocmulgee National Monument will be closed, and scheduled programs will be canceled during the shutdown, according to a Facebook post Saturday. Employees will not be able to answer emails or phone calls or monitor social media accounts. Park roads and trails will still be open from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., but visitors use them at their own risk.
The U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Georgia will be open today.
The court will remain open because it has the funds to operate for about three weeks, Chief Judge Clay Land said in an email.
Congressman Rick Allen (R-Augusta) has asked ot have his federal paycheck withheld during the federal shutdown.
Congressman Sanford Bishop (D-Middle Georgia) told the Columbus Ledger-Enquirer he hopes for a quick resolution to the shutdown.
“There are a lot of concerns, and I’ve heard from the brass at Fort Benning and I’ve heard from the brass at the Pentagon,” U.S. Rep. Sanford Bishop, D-Ga., said Saturday. “They do not need this continuous, short-term funding. It’s uncertainty and can’t protect our country. We need to deal with it.”
Bishop, whose district includes Fort Benning and south Columbus, hopes the shutdown is short. “We hope this will be temporary,” he said. “Hopefully, the government will be open by Monday.”
Some state agency employees may be affected by the federal shutdown.
If the shutdown persists, state agencies will have to start making decisions this week about whether they have the money to continue paying state workers whose positions are at least partially funded through federal contracts or grants.
Deal’s budget director, Teresa MacCartney, sent state agencies a memo Friday detailing how state government would deal with the shutdown, letting officials know they would not get additional federal funds to operate their programs. It could mean furloughs of state employees who are paid at least in part with federal funding.
“For federal funds approved under a previous continuing resolution or fiscal year, reimbursements may be slowed as the federal government may be unable to process requests,” she wrote, “As a result, your agency must be prepared to curtail federal activities to meet available funds.
“The state will not be able to advance allotments to offset reduced federal cash flow. Additionally, your agency should not assume that funds expended for federal activities conducted during the shutdown will be reimbursed by the state or the federal government once the budget is enacted.”
The federal government foots the bill for roughly two-thirds of the cost of Medicaid, the health care program for more than 1.5 million of Georgia’s poor, disabled and nursing home residents. Many other state agencies rely on at least some federal funding as well.
Savannah Republicans turned out to celebrate the one-year anniversary of the Trump Administration.
“We are all so excited to be here because (President Trump) has set our country on a great track,” said Marolyn Overton, president of SARW. “ He is helping everyone. We are all going to see it and feel it in February in our paychecks because there will be less taxes taken out of our paychecks.”
The rally was organized to celebrate the accomplishment achieved under the Trump administration and galvanize voters to hit the polls during 2018 midterm elections, she said.
“We are trying to present what Donald has done for our country,” she said. “But then we had a little kink put in our plan.”
U.S. representatives Rick Allen, Buddy Carter and Jody Hice were scheduled to speak at the rally but could not attend due to the government shutdown.
“I had every intention of being there with you today but as you know the Senate Democrats have thrown a wrench into things here and have really made a big mistake,” Carter said, eliciting applause from the audience. “What they have done is shut this government down and put illegal immigrants ahead of children’s health and ahead of paying our military. I just think that is despicable. I can’t believe that they have done this.”
Carter commended the president for a job well done on all of his accomplishments, including the appointment of Neil Gorsuch to the Supreme Court.
“I think he has done a wonderful job in his first. Let’s think about what (Trump) accomplished. .. It is just wonderful that we have another conservative in that court to serve us for years to come. Had we not gotten there who knows who we would have on that court. And second, lets look at our economy— it is going through the roof.”
Other Georgians are celebrating the Trumpiversary by running for office against the current administration.
The women’s movement ignited by Donald Trump’s election triggered a wave of political involvement from newly energized activists. But it faces its first true test later this year when Johnson and dozens of other women, many of them first-time candidates, seek elected office.
Trump’s presidential inauguration a year ago sent tens of thousands of women to the streets of Atlanta, filled town hall meetings with upset voters and helped elect a surge of women in last year’s votes. Many of them are Democrats with moderate or liberal views, though last year’s class of newly elected officials also featured several prominent Republican women.
The primary votes in May and general election contests in November offer the chance for bigger gains, with every state legislative seat and state constitutional office up for grabs. And Democrats are furiously recruiting candidates, eager to challenge GOP incumbents who haven’t faced opponents in years.
Georgia Chief Turnaround Officer Eric Thomas spoke to Bibb County Board of Education members.
During Thursday’s Bibb school board meeting, Thomas said the state will not be taking schools over but rather partnering with them to create and implement personalized improvement plans.
“We’re not talking about removing principals, we’re not talking about removing staff. It’s really more of a transformation model, more of a support model,” Thomas said. ”Our role really is to help schools and the district to stay focused on the things they identified they need to stay focused on. …. We’re not here to tell people, ‘This is what you should do in your school.’”
“It’s really about what are the two or three things at the school level or district level that’s going to make the difference and working to make a home run on those two or three things and trying to institutionalize and create a culture around those things,” Thomas said. “And then you bring in the next thing.”
Judge E. Trenton Brown, III of the Ocmulgee Judicial Circuit Superior Court will sit by designation on the Georgia Supreme Court today.
Brown has been appointed the designee to replace Justice Michael P. Boggs in hearing the arguments in the state’s High Court.
Designated judges are appointed when a justice must recuse himself or herself from a particular case. The Supreme Court of Georgia maintains a list of judges from around the state that they can select from when the such a need arises, and the High Court subsequently appoints the next judge on the list.
Specifically in the case that Brown and other justices will hear Monday, officials with Georgia Power Company are appealing a recent decision by the Georgia Court of Appeals that allows a lawsuit brought by some of the utility’s customers to go forward against the utility giant.
Brown also will participate in the court’s decision regarding that particular case, according to a press release from Supreme Court of Georgia Jane Hansen, public information officer.
Tide Gates on the Savannah River were demolished as part of the Savannah Harbor Expansion Project.
The Savannah River behind Hutchinson Island — known as the Back River — is looking like its old self again after the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers removed a more than 40-year-old concrete water-control structure called a tide gate.
“The Back River hasn’t looked this fly since bell bottoms were cool (the first time),” the corps tweeted Tuesday.
The $21.3 million demolition, completed by Miami-based DeMoya/Continental Joint Venture, is the latest mitigation feature completed in the nearly $1 billion Savannah Harbor Expansion Project.
“By removing the tide gates we restored the Back River to its natural state,” Spencer Davis, Project Manager for the SHEP, said. “This is the first part of the flow re-routing measures in the SHEP, designed to protect freshwater marshes in the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge from saltwater intrusion.”
Hall County Commissioners are considering raises for some law enforcement employees.
A proposed 2.5 percent pay increase and pay range adjustments for officers up to the rank of captain is on the table. Commissioners also will consider a $1 per hour increase for staff that work overnight shifts.
“In recent months, vacancies have ranged between 55 and 65 positions on average,” Sheriff Gerald Couch said in a press release Friday. “The vacancy rate and turnover, if unaddressed, will jeopardize our ability to fulfill our constitutional duties and our ability to provide the level of service that Hall County citizens deserve.”
If approved, the cost of the pay increases would be about $377,000 for the current fiscal year.
Albany City Commissioners are considering privatizing operations of the Albany Civic Center.
Cobb County Commissioners may consider a sales tax hike to fund public safety.
Cobb commissioners are expected to consider a resolution that would push forward Commissioner Bob Weatherford’s proposal for a county sales tax increase from 6 to 7 cents on the dollar to fund public safety. The resolution would task Cobb’s legislative delegation to introduce and get passed a bill to create a referendum to be taken to county voters, who would ultimately decide whether they would see creation of the new sales tax, which is being referred to as an Other Local Option Sales Tax or OLOST.
“Everybody gets to vote on it. We’re not trying to impose it — everybody has the opportunity to say ‘yea’ or ‘nay,” Weatherford said. “I feel comfortable that once they see the merits of it and the benefits, they’ll say a ‘penny for public safety’ would be a good thing for Cobb County.”
A penny tax in Cobb collects about $130 million a year. After the county’s six cities were given their cut, the county would be left with $96.2 million — enough, Weatherford previously said, to cover the county’s general fund expense for public safety, minus the Sheriff’s Department, of $71 million.
When asked whether they would support the resolution, most commissioners Friday would not commit to a definitive answer. Chairman Mike Boyce, however, said in principle he was generally supportive of putting such a county matter before voters.
“Without hearing all the commissioners, my general thought is this is something that we would take to the voters as a referendum, and as a matter of policy, I think that’s always the way to go, because then they give us clear guidance as to how they want us to use their money,” Boyce said. “I think the concept has a lot of merit, but I also want to wait to hear the other thoughts from commissioners.”
HEALTH & HUMAN SERVICES
Twelve Georgians have died during the current flu season, according to Georgia Health News.
Seven more Georgians have died from the flu, bringing the total to 12 deaths across the state this influenza season, Public Health officials said Friday.
There were 40 hospitalizations in metro Atlanta due to influenza infection during the week of Jan. 7 through Jan. 13, the state Department of Public Health said. So far this season, area facilities have seen 404 hospitalizations due to flu.
“We’re seeing about a 50 percent increase every week that goes on,” said Dr. James Yost with Peachtree Immediate Care in Cumming. He explained that when winter storms confine most of the public to their homes or shelters, “people crowd together and more spreading [of flu] goes on.”
The flu impact remains severe across the country. The geographic spread of influenza in Puerto Rico and 49 states (all but Hawaii) was reported as widespread, the CDC said.
Dr. Dan Jernigan, the director of the Influenza Division of the National Center for Immunization and Respiratory Diseases, warned last week that this flu season was very active and was “probably peaking.” Whether or not it has passed its peak, it remains intense.
Jernigan and CDC Director Brenda Fitzgerald attribute the high flu activity to the prevalence of the H3N2 flu.
H3N2 is associated with more severe illness, especially among children and the elderly. Flu seasons during which H3 viruses are prevalent are usually worse and come with more hospitalizations and deaths.
The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has furloughed about 2/3 of its workers nationwide.
Before the shutdown took place, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, which runs the CDC, put out a contingency plan. That plan called for the CDC to keep more than 8,500 of its 13,000-plus staff members at home. That works out 63% of the agency’s employees. Since the CDC is headquartered here in the metro area, our area is feeling the brunt of those furloughs.
The plan said the CDC would “continue minimal support to protect the health and well-being of U.S. citizens here and abroad.” But added the shutdown would lead to “significantly reduced capacity to respond to outbreak investigations, processing laboratory samples and maintaining the agency’s 24/7 emergency operations center.”
Of course, all of this is happening as the CDC helps fight the current flu outbreak, which is being called one of the worst in years. The shutdown won’t stop those efforts. The CDC plans to continue to monitor the disease by collecting data from states, hospitals, and other agencies. It will also keep reporting any critical information needed to track, prevent and treat the flu.
Piedmont Healthcare is moving forward with the acquisition of Columbus Regional Hospital.
Piedmont has agreed to put a significant financial commitment into Columbus Regional, as well as assume all of the local organization’s debt, according to the terms on file with the Georgia Attorney General’s Office.
The organization’s name will change to Piedmont Columbus Regional when the deal is finalized, which is targeted for March 1.
The deal must be approved by Attorney General Chris Carr’s office before it can be completed. Terms of the merger were submitted to the attorney general in late October. They have up to 120 days to review it. Officials from Columbus Regional and Piedmont have met with the attorney general’s office during this process, Columbus Regional Health President and Chief Executive Officer Scott Hill said last week.
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