Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for September 2, 2026

The Stars and Stripes first flew in battle on September 3, 1776 at Cooch’s Bridge, Delaware.

A fleet of 22 French ships arrived off the coast of Savannah on September 3, 1779 to help wrest control of the city from the British.

Congress created the United States Treasury Department on September 2, 1789.

With the ratification of the Constitution in 1789, the American government established a permanent Treasury Department in hopes of controlling the nation’s debt. President George Washington named his former aide-de-camp, Alexander Hamilton, to head the new office. The former New York lawyer and staunch Federalist stepped in as Secretary of the Treasury on September 11. Hamilton soon outlined a practical plan for reviving the nation’s ailing economy: the government would pay back its $75 million war debt and thus repair its badly damaged public credit.

On September 3, 1862, the writ of habeas corpus was suspended in Atlanta and within five miles of its border by the Confederate government. Two years later, September 3, 1864, General William T. Sherman would occupy Atlanta.

Atlanta Mayor James Calhoun surrendered the city to federal forces on September 2, 1864.

Calhoun’s two-sentence letter, directed to Brig.-Gen. William Ward stated: “Sir: The fortune of war has placed Atlanta in your hands. As mayor of the city I ask protection of non-combatants and private property.”

The Georgia General Assembly expelled 25 of 29 African-American members from the State House on September 3, 1868, arguing that Georgia’s constitution did not allow them to hold office.

The cornerstone of the Georgia State Capitol was laid on September 2, 1885.

Anne Frank, age 15, and seven other Jews who were hiding together in Amsterdam were the last Dutch prisoners transported to Auschwitz on September 3, 1944.

Japan surrendered to the United States on the deck of USS Missouri on September 2, 1945.

On Sunday, September 2, more than 250 Allied warships lay at anchor in Tokyo Bay. The flags of the United States, Britain, the Soviet Union, and China fluttered above the deck of the Missouri. Just after 9 a.m. Tokyo time, Japanese Foreign Minister Mamoru Shigemitsu signed on behalf of the Japanese government. General Yoshijiro Umezu then signed for the Japanese armed forces, and his aides wept as he made his signature.

Supreme Commander MacArthur next signed, declaring, “It is my earnest hope and indeed the hope of all mankind that from this solemn occasion a better world shall emerge out of the blood and carnage of the past.” Nine more signatures were made, by the United States, China, Britain, the USSR, Australia, Canada, France, the Netherlands and New Zealand, respectively. Admiral Chester W. Nimitz signed for the United States. As the 20-minute ceremony ended, the sun burst through low-hanging clouds. The most devastating war in human history was over.

Author John Ronald Reuel Tolkien died on September 2, 1973.

Having received the Democratic nomination for President, Jimmy Carter began the General Election with an address from his front porch in Plains, Georgia on September 3, 1976.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

The U.S. Department of Homeland Security plans a voter fraud investigation in Georgia, according to WRDW.

Georgia is among nine states where the Department of Homeland Security plans to launch a voter fraud investigation, according to a memo obtained by CNN.

The memo says the investigation will run until mid-October, ahead of midterm elections.

Earlier this year, the FBI raided the Fulton County elections office as part of an investigation into potential “irregularities” from the 2020 election. The county has denied any wrongdoing and is fighting back in court.

Police Blotter: A Georgia Department of Corrections officer found himself on the wrong side of the bars after alleged misuse of Flock surveillance cameras, according to 13WMAZ.

A Georgia Department of Corrections (GDC) official found himself behind bars, accused of misusing the Flock camera system in Central Georgia, according to a press release from the Georgia Bureau of Investigation (GBI).

The release says that, in August, the GDC asked GBI investigators to look into allegations that Robert Keim, 45, misused the GDC Flock safety system.

Keim, who lives in Eatonton, worked as a Special Agent in Charge with the GDC at the time he’s accused of misusing the system.

“Preliminary information indicates that Keim used the Flock Safety System for non-law enforcement purposes,” the GBI wrote in the press release.

Agents arrested Keim on Sept. 1, according to the release. He is charged with misuse of a license plate reader system. He’s been booked into the Putnam County Jail.

Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills says Keim turned himself in about 5 p.m. on Tuesday. Sills says he was released on $1,000 bond a short time later.

13WMAZ has reached out to the GDC for more information about the investigation into Keim’s conduct. So far, they have not responded.

A now-former Hahira Police officer was arrested for alleged Flock surveillance camera misuse, according to WALB.

Former Hahira Police officer Daniel Lindsay was arrested in connection with allegations involving the misuse of the Flock Safety camera system, the Hahira Police Department (HPD) said.

The allegations report non-work-related searches conducted through the Flock Safety system. The conduct was identified during an audit of the system and is being addressed through investigative and legal processes, according to the department.

According to Lowndes County jail records, Lindsay was booked into the Lowndes County Jail on Aug. 31 and released the same day. He faces six counts of misuse of license plate data and six counts of violation of oath by a public officer. The Lowndes County Sheriff’s Office is listed as the arresting agency.

HPD previously said the conduct was identified during an audit of the system and was turned over for further investigation after officials determined some of the alleged violations could be criminal in nature.

Officials say Flock Safety camera technology can help law enforcement agencies locate stolen vehicles, identify vehicles associated with criminal activity, support investigations and improve response to threats. The technology’s value depends on responsible use, oversight and adherence to law and agency policy, according to the police department.

“Any misuse of this information for personal or non-work-related purposes is unacceptable and represents a breach of the trust placed in us by the communities we serve. Our residents expect that the information available to this agency will be accessed only for legitimate law enforcement purposes, and that expectation must be honored without exception,” Chief Stryde Jones said.

The Hahira Police Department said it remains committed to transparency, accountability and the ethical use of technology in public safety.

Three Hall County Sheriff’s Deputies resigned after an audit of Flock camera usage, according to AccessNorthGA.

Three more Hall County Sheriff’s Office deputies have resigned after an audit reportedly found they had misused Flock camera data.

The sheriff’s office on Tuesday, Sept. 1, announced the resignations of Jason Orellana, Taylor McArthur and Austin Scott Flanagan. Orellana reportedly submitted his resignation last Wednesday, Aug. 26, while McArthur and Flanagan submitted theirs on Thursday, Aug. 27.

“Orellana performed ten…unauthorized searches on the agency’s Flock safety system at the request of a co-worker who did not have access to the system,” a statement from the sheriff’s office said. “McArthur provided information to then-deputy Jason Orellana, requesting he check the Flock system for information on persons known to her.”

Flanagan had already been placed on administrative leave after he was arrested on Aug. 25 for making harassing phone calls, but was also reportedly found to have used the Flock system twice for personal reasons unrelated to law enforcement purposes.

The violations by the three are still being reviewed by the sheriff’s office. Once done, the sheriff’s office says it will then refer the cases to the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council for review.

The audit had also previously found misuses of the camera system by now-former investigators Michael Atkins and Justin Brown. Both were fired earlier in August. Similar instances have also been reported in Gwinnett County, Habersham County and the Town of Braselton.

The Hall County Sheriff’s Office said the audit is still ongoing.

Two Richmond County Sheriff’s Deputies were arrested and fired after allegations of camera misuse, according to the Augusta Chronicle.

Two Richmond County Sheriff’s Office deputies have been arrested and fired following an investigation into the unauthorized use of the Flock License Plate Reader system, authorities said. These latest incidents mark the fifth and sixth sheriff’s personnel arrested this year for the same actions.

The sheriff’s office Criminal Investigation Division concluded that Investigator Sean Morrow and Deputy Jose Ferrer knowingly accessed the Flock camera network to search license plate numbers for personal reasons unrelated to any official law enforcement duties, noted a news release. Investigators determined the searches were not connected to a criminal investigation, call for service, intelligence gathering, or any other legitimate law enforcement purpose.

Morrow and Ferrer were charged with misuse of license plate readers and violation of oath of office. Following their arrests, both were booked into the Charles B. Webster Detention Center.

Former sheriff’s Lt. John McKenzie, Inv. Curtis Hoskins and Deputy Joshua Johnson in July were also charged with misuse of license plate readers and with violating their oath of office. Former Deputy Jaquarius Yarbrough was charged with the same offenses in June. All also lost their jobs.

Moultrie Police Chief Chad Castleberry discussed their use of Flock cameras, according to the Moultrie Observer.

Flock Safety is an Atlanta-based company that manufactures cameras used by law enforcement to identify and locate suspect vehicles and for other legitimate purposes. The cameras have raised opposition because of a perceived ability to “track” people — which Castleberry said they can’t do — as well as recent misuse of the system by law enforcement officers in other jurisdictions.

Flock produces three products, and they’re each named for birds. Moultrie police operate 16 Falcon roadside cameras, six Condor live video surveillance cameras, and approximately 76 Raven gunshot detectors, Castleberry said.

Castleberry and an assistant showed the council how the Falcon cameras could be used to locate a suspect.

First they showed how much information must be put in to be able to access the system: the user’s identity, a suspected offense, a case number and the reason for the search. That information is audited every 30 days, Castleberry said, because the system deletes information after that length of time. The audit — conducted by a person, not AI — can note discrepancies that a supervisor can then investigate.

As an example of a legitimate use of the technology, Castleberry presented a hypothetical scenario: A pedestrian is robbed by the side of the road; the robber jumps into a car and speeds away. The victim is able to give a description of the car and a partial tag number.

In that case, the user is able to put that information in and search for all vehicles that passed a Flock camera within a certain amount of time after the robbery. He can get a picture of the car (or cars) that match that description along with the exact time they passed one of the cameras.

Castleberry pointed to the photo of the car he was looking for, shot as it passed one of the Falcon cameras, and he asked city councilmen if they could tell where the car was going. They could not. Nor could they identify anything about the driver of the car.

“Can I see anything (in this picture) that I cannot see with the naked eye?” Castleberry asked.

Councilmen agreed they could not.

In fact, Castleberry said, he could not even determine who owned the car by the tag number using Flock’s system — although a separate, traditional system can provide an officer with that information.

He said the Flock photo provides a “point in time capture” — a snapshot of where the suspect vehicle was at a specific time — which allows officers to respond to that area to look for it.

“We still gotta find it,” he said. “It’s not going to pinpoint it or track it.”

Similarly, an investigator can set the system to alert him if it recognizes a suspect vehicle.

That helped the MPD solve a multi-jurisdiction “snatch and grab” theft ring recently, Castleberry said. The thieves had stolen from the Moultrie Walmart as well as other stores in Adel, Thomasville and Tifton. Their car was identified here, a Flock camera alerted to it as it passed by, and local law enforcement was able to locate it and make arrests.

Castleberry refused to criticize opponents to the Flock cameras, though. “They’re concerned about government overreach,” he said. “So am I.” But he argued that the cameras are a useful tool with safeguards to discourage its improper use.

State Senator John Albers (R-Roswell), Chairman of the Senate Public Safety Committee, also discussed Flock cameras, according to WALB.

State Sen. John Albers said Georgia will not follow Florida’s lead in banning Flock automated license plate reader (LPR) cameras, even as law enforcement agencies in both states investigate misuse of the technology by their own officers.

Albers, R-District 56, chairs the Georgia Senate Public Safety Committee. He said Flock cameras have helped solve major cases in Georgia, including the 2025 Midtown Atlanta shooting, when the technology helped authorities apprehend a suspect in Cobb County.

Albers also said 10,000 missing people were found nationwide last year with help from the cameras, including trafficking and kidnapping victims.

“Flock cameras have been one of the greatest advancements in crime fighting in the last probably 25 years,” Albers said.

A Tift County sheriff’s deputy was demoted and had his access to sensitive, confidential data systems revoked after an internal investigation found he misused the agency’s Flock system, according to the Tift County Sheriff’s Office.

Sheriff Gene Scarbrough said the issue was discovered during an audit of the agency’s data systems, which found discrepancies in the Flock system. The investigation determined the deputy had searched his own personal data.

Scarbrough’s administration issued a memo to the agency emphasizing a “zero-tolerance” policy for behavior that could damage community trust, and deputies were told to review policies on confidential data systems. The sheriff’s office has not released additional details about what information was searched or whether further discipline could follow.

Albers said it was sheriff’s departments and police departments themselves—not the state—that conducted the audits that uncovered the misuse.

“[The sheriff’s offices] immediately reacted. They brought in the right agencies. They made the right decisions to take care of their own house,” Albers said.

Albers said he is participating in a task force formed by the Georgia Sheriff’s Association and the Georgia Association of Chiefs of Police to review policies and procedures around the cameras. He said the group is also talking with Flock, the camera manufacturer, about adding permission levels and protections to the system.

“There’s also a balance of privacy, transparency and people doing the right thing,” Albers said. “Both of these things can be true at the very same time.”

Albers said the following topics are being discussed:

• Adding warnings within the system about permitted uses
• Requiring a second person to approve a search before it can be conducted
• Additional training on policies and procedures.

“We are a little out of balance right now,” Albers said. “And we’re going to change that.”

According to Flock Safety, the cameras are designed to record vehicle sightings at a specific place and time, capture license plates and vehicle characteristics and provide leads for investigators to assess alongside other evidence.

The company says the cameras do NOT:

• Identify people by their faces
• Identify who is inside a vehicle
• Continuously track people or vehicles
• Replace investigators or human judgment
• Allow customers to access a live video feed.

No counties in Georgia currently have a formal, countywide legal ban on Flock cameras, though local pushback, contract cancellations and discussions about removal are occurring in some communities.

Albers said he does not believe Georgia should follow Florida’s approach.

“I think throwing the baby out with the bathwater is a really foolish idea,” Albers said. “And to take away the greatest crime fighting tool we’ve had in 25 years, a knee jerk reaction, I don’t think is very responsible or smart.”

Albers said a couple of “bad apples” should not change the overall use of the technology.

“In this case, I believe we can maintain the privacy, transparency that people deserve, but at the same time, make sure we’re using modern day tools to catch the bad guys,” Albers said.

Albers said he leads the Senate Public Safety Committee alongside Sen. Russ Goodman and others.

“We are very thoughtful, very cognizant of our citizens’ concerns, to make sure we are doing the right thing for them,” Albers said. “While at the same time, we’re all about backing the blue in Georgia, and making sure that we’re protecting our citizens… Criminals know that there’s no place to hide in our great state of Georgia.”

State Senator Drew Echols (R-Gainesville) also spoke about surveillance camera use, according to AccessNorthGA.

Hall County’s State Senator Drew Echols (R-49) has issued a statement after a second wave of Hall County Sheriff’s Office (HCSO) Flock Safety abuse has been reported.

“I’m committed to finding the middle ground of public safety and protecting privacy,” Echols said. “Flock cameras are ripe for abuse and we need checks and balances to prevent further distrust.”

Echols made the statement as three Hall County Sheriff’s Deputies resigned after an audit reportedly found they misused the data. That is the ninth reported instance in the region.

Echols continued, saying he understands the cameras’ usefulness but that public trust “must always be preserved.”

“I understand fully that these cameras are a huge help to law enforcement to catch criminals and keep our community safe,” Echols said. “When used correctly, they save lives and crack cold cases. Abused, they are the equivalent to a gun. Public trust must always be preserved.”

A Dougherty County Board of Assessors member who was charged with a felony will continue serving on the board for the time being, according to The Albany Herald.

The Dougherty County Commission sent an email earlier this week stating that Le’Nita Lane would stay on the board despite her arrest in July on charges that included theft by deception, forgery, computer theft and identity fraud. In the statement, the commission said that the charges are allegations and “do not constitute a finding of guilt” and that she is “presumed innocent unless and until proven guilty in a court of law.”

That assessment was shared by Commission Chairman Lorenzo Heard, who spoke to an Albany Herald reporter after the commission’s Monday meeting.

“I don’t know her story,” Heard said. “I do know everybody is innocent until proven guilty. If our attorney says that’s the way we need to handle it, then I support that.”

A decision on whether to retain or remove Lane from the tax board is up to commissioners, County Attorney Alex Shalishali said. While he did not make a recommendation on that decision, he did not find any legal requirement for her removal.

“I’m not aware of any rule that requires them to take action,” Shalishali said. “It’s up to their discretion.”

The tax assessor’s board consists of five members appointed by the County Commission. The board’s duties include appraising, assessing and equalizing the value of taxable real and personal property in the county.

The county will monitor the criminal proceedings and follow state law and county procedures in the matter, the statement said, and will not comment on the specific allegations, evidence or investigation.

“I think the statement speaks for itself,” Shalishali said.

Party in-fighting: Gwinnett County Democrats criticized a Jewish state legislator from their party, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

An issue over the date of the Gwinnett County Democratic Party’s Bluetopia Gala has erupted into party infighting, an attack on a Jewish lawmaker and now a condemnation of the Gwinnett Young Democrats by state and county party leaders.

In the last few weeks, there has been a lot of back and forth — some of it playing out in private and some playing out publicly on Facebook — over the Bluetopia Gala, which is a fundraiser for the Gwinnett Democratic Party.

Some of it, publicly at least, concerned Democratic activist David Hogg’s place on the speaker lineup. But, it quickly escalated to the Gwinnett Young Democrats telling state Rep. Esther Panitch, a Democrat from north Fulton and the state’s only Jewish lawmaker, to “mind her own business” and accusing her of being racist.

A week after the Gwinnett Young Democrats issued that statement, however, the Democratic Party of Georgia and Gwinnett Democratic Party came down hard on the group and condemned its actions.

“The Gwinnett County Democratic Party along with the Democratic Party of Georgia did not approve and does not endorse the Gwinnett Young Democrats’ statement regarding our Bluetopia Gala that veered into personal accusations,” the state and county parties said in a joint statement.

“We remain committed to working in good faith with the DPG Jewish Council to ensure Jewish voices are welcomed, respected, and included in our events and engagement moving forward and extend the same commitment to all the various spiritual and religious communities in our diverse county.”

The whole issue over the Bluetopia has become a sordid affair with varying sides expressing different takes on what has happened.

The Gwinnett Young Democrats struck first.

“Her fascination with our county is truly remarkable and only helps Republicans maintain power by attacking a key county’s (stet) fundraising event,” the group wrote in its statement.

“Gwinnett County is home to the most diverse group of Georgians in the state. Our county is one of the most diverse in the entire nation, and this latest obsession with us is a great reminder of Representative Panitch’s history — one filled with transphobia, racism and Islamophobia.”

That was followed by a statement from state Rep. Ruwa Romman, D-Duluth, who called Panitch a “lying bigot.”

Romman is of Palestinian descent and one of a small group of Muslim lawmakers in the Georgia General Assembly.
“The response by members of our party are specifically because of her sending out media blasts that David Hogg was uninvited (not true),” Romman said.

Panitch responded to it on Facebook by saying the group owed an apology to every Jewish person in Georgia.

“Jewish Democrats are being asked to make ourselves small in a party we helped build,” Panitch said in the post. “Don’t raise it. Don’t be difficult. Don’t make this about you. And when we ask anyway — about a date, about a speaker, about a definition — the answer comes back that we are the problem.”

“I am not leaving. This is my party. I have knocked the doors, raised the money, and passed multiple significant pieces of legislation as a member of the minority party.”

Democrat Everton Blair was sworn in to Congress to fill the remaining term of the late U.S. Rep. David Scott, according to the AJC.

The newest member of the U.S. House, Everton Blair, had little time to celebrate with his family after being sworn into office.

After taking pictures and having a brief chat with House Speaker Mike Johnson, Blair hustled back to the House floor where a vote was underway to extend government funding through December and avoid a September shutdown.

Blair, who is 34, is Georgia’s first openly gay member of Congress. He is also the second youngest member currently serving in the House.

His time in Washington will be brief; he finishes the term of U.S. Rep. David Scott, who died in April. In his inaugural floor speech, Blair said he will use his brief tenure to try to make life better for his constituents.

“It’s getting a lot harder for way too many of us, especially in younger generations, to fulfill that American dream,” the Lilburn Democrat said. “And so, my mandate here is clear: I will do everything in my capacity to make life more affordable for the hardworking Americans in Georgia’s 13th Congressional District.

Blair, the former chairman of the Gwinnett County School Board, is the son of Jamaican immigrants. His parents and other family members traveled with him to Washington on Tuesday.

Blair defeated Marcye Scott, the late congressman’s daughter, in last week’s special election to decide who would finish Scott’s term through the end of the year.

Changing state laws on cannabis legality may pose a challenge for law enforcement, according to 13WMAZ.

Georgia’s medical cannabis laws have changed. Now, law enforcement agencies across the state are getting a firsthand look at what those changes mean on the ground.

Officials from multiple state and local agencies gathered Tuesday at Fine Fettle’s Macon cultivation and production facility for a first-of-its-kind tour designed to give officers a closer look at the state’s expanding medical cannabis program.

For the first time, the state’s medical cannabis program partners gathered at a licensed operation to see firsthand how cannabis is grown, processed, packaged and secured — and to talk through what the changing law means for their agencies.

Officers threw hair nets, scrubs and disposable foot coverings over their uniforms before stepping into the production areas — with some even pulling the coverings over their gun holsters.

K-9 handlers were also part of the tour, with some asking how their dogs might respond to cannabis products that are now legal under Georgia law.

As the group toured the facility’s kitchen, where gummies were being prepared, one K-9 handler asked: “How would my dog react to this?”

The visit comes as Georgia’s medical cannabis program enters a new phase following a major change in state law.
Senate Bill 220, also known as the Putting Patients First Act, took effect July 1 and expanded the types of medical cannabis products available to registered patients.

Previously, Georgia law limited patients to low-THC oil products. The new law allows registered patients to purchase regulated cannabis flower and vape products.

The change is also creating new questions for law enforcement, particularly during traffic stops.

Andrew Turnage, executive director of the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission, said officers need to be able to distinguish between legal medical cannabis and illegal cannabis when making decisions in the field.

“One of the most critical moments that we see with the medical cannabis program is that roadside traffic stop,” Turnage said. “When an officer comes into a vehicle and they realize that there’s a controlled substance in that vehicle, they have to make a judgment call about people’s rights and about what they have that’s lawful or not.”

Turnage said getting that distinction right is one of the reasons the state brought law enforcement representatives inside a licensed cannabis operation.

The tour included representatives from agencies across Georgia, including the Georgia Bureau of Investigation, Georgia Peace Officers and Training Council, Georgia State Patrol, Georgia Ports Authority, Savannah Police Department and Georgia Department of Public Health.

Members of the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission were also on site.

Turnage said Tuesday’s gathering marked the first time all of the state’s medical cannabis program partners had been together at a licensed facility.

“Everybody that’s in this room, it’s the first time that all of our program partners for the medical cannabis program have been together under one roof, on site with our licensees, and that’s a long journey to get from start to here,” Turnage said.

The timing comes as Georgia’s medical cannabis patient registry continues to grow.

The registry increased from 36,595 patients in late June to more than 45,000 as of Sept. 1, an increase of more than 8,000 patients in roughly two months.

Fine Fettle’s Macon facility has operated for about two years. The operation currently has about 10 grow rooms, with two or three in full use, and company officials said it has enough capacity to meet the current market while allowing room for future expansion.

During the tour, Fine Fettle representatives explained the security and tracking measures used throughout the facility.

Company officials said every gram of cannabis is tracked from the plant through the production process. They also said nearly every square inch of the facility is covered by cameras, with the exception of areas such as restrooms and break rooms.

Fine Fettle is also preparing to open its first Macon dispensary this fall.

The company’s Macon cultivation and production operation is part of a medical cannabis industry that state officials expect to continue growing as more Georgians become eligible for and seek access to the program.

Turnage, who has led the Georgia Access to Medical Cannabis Commission for six years, described Georgia as part of a broader national shift toward regulated cannabis programs.

Georgia was the 37th state to regulate cannabis and the 41st to establish what he called a comprehensive marketplace.

State Rep. Robert Dickey (R), who has long worked on medical cannabis legislation, thanked agencies and stakeholders for their continued feedback on the growing program.

“It was not a straight line process,” Dickey said. “A lot of education had to go to my members, House and Senate, on what was the best way forward… and we’ll continue to look at this to make it better.”

Effingham County commissioners voted to reduce their property tax millage rate, according to the Savannah Morning News.

Effingham County commissioners lowered the millage rate from 5.596 to 4.976 Tuesday night, a decision that will reduce the tax burden for homeowners while moving closer to fulfilling Project Zero, an initiative to eliminate county property taxes. The vote was approved 4 to 1.

Commissioner Beth Helmly said she was in favor of reducing the millage rate but that she would like to postpone the vote because she wanted more information and voted no against approving it.

“I don’t want to make that decision tonight,” she said.

Commissioner Roger Burdette argued the need to approve it, saying the matter is time sensitive.

“With the time limitations that we have and an opportunity to lower the taxes, I don’t want to miss the vote on this,” said Burdette.

Effingham County property owners will now see up to six mills of tax relief under a proposal that combines a county millage rate reduction with the suspension of the Effingham County Industrial Authority’s 2-mill property tax levy, as well as a two mill reduction from the Effingham County School District.

Augusta-Richmond County Commissioners will adopt a property tax millage rate next week, according to WRDW.

Augusta-Richmond County leaders will decide the community’s 2026 property tax millage rate at a public meeting next week.

As required by Georgia law, the county also released its current-year tax digest and a five-year history of its property tax levy.

Property tax bills in Georgia are based on the millage rate.

• A “mill” is one‑tenth of a cent — or $1 of tax for every $1,000 of a property’s taxable value.

• To estimate your city/county tax bill, officials take your property’s assessed value (usually 40% of market value in Georgia), subtract any exemptions, then multiply by the millage rate.

When commissioners raise the millage rate — or when property values rise while the rate stays the same — total property tax collections go up. When they lower the rate, collections can decrease or grow more slowly, depending on how property values are changing.

The five-year history table released by Augusta-Richmond County is meant to show residents how both the tax digest (overall taxable value in the county) and the total property tax levy have changed over time, and how much of that change is tied to the millage rate itself.

Macon-Bibb County says homelessness is down based on a Point in Time survey, according to 13WMAZ.

Macon-Bibb County says that homelessness here has dropped compared to 2024, based on the bi-annual Point-In-Time count.

The Point-in-Time count — which seeks to count every homeless person — was overseen by the Georgia Department of Community Affairs. Their goal is to give a one-night snapshot of homelessness in a community.

They say 448 people were counted during the January 2026 Point-In-Time Count. That includes 166 who were completely unsheltered and 282 staying in homeless shelters.

That was down roughly 34% from 2024, where they counted 682 people. That included 307 people who were unsheltered and 375 people sheltered.

“This much of a change speaks to the compassion of our community, of its ability to create more safe and secure spaces to house people in their time of need, to provide the needed support services, and to make sure people know where they can go for help,” Mayor Lester Miller said in a statement.

Columbus City Council member Dr. Cathy Cook hosted her first Town Hall, according to WTVM.

Department heads from waste management, transportation, and codes and inspections attended, along with the city manager and deputy city managers.

Former “Dean of the state House” Calvin Smyre, the mayor pro tem, and school board member Pat Frey were also among those in attendance.

During her campaign, Cook promised to hold regular forums to engage local citizens. The goal is to give residents the chance to voice their concerns and be informed.

Georgia’s ports have a great economic impact on the state, according to the Statesboro Herald.

Georgia’s ports support 605,616 full- and part-time jobs in Georgia, yielding $44 billion in annual income, according to the latest study from the University of Georgia’s Terry College of Business.

“This report confirms what we’ve seen for years: our Ports are exceptional drivers of job creation and economic activity, both in the booming coastal region and in communities across Georgia,” said Gov. Brian Kemp. “As we continue to invest in these unrivaled assets statewide and our broader logistics network, we will build on the positive momentum of recent years and further promote opportunities for hardworking Georgians. On behalf of a grateful state, I want to congratulate and thank all those who work for the ports system for making this another record-breaking year of economic benefit.”

The total economic impact of Geogia’s ports increased 4 percent or $7 billion in FY2025, compared to the previous fiscal year.

Between FY2021 and FY2025, employment supported by port activity has increased by more than 44,500 jobs.

“Twelve percent of statewide employment, or almost one out of every eight Georgia jobs, is in some way dependent on the ports,” said Jeff Humphreys, director of the Selig Center for Economic Growth at the University of Georgia’s Terry School of Business, who conducted the study.

Port activity now supports $181 billion in annual sales across the state, according to the UGA study.

Port customers, their suppliers and the businesses supported by port-user payrolls now account for 12 percent of Georgia’s total output, up from 11 percent in FY2024.

Business conducted through the ports also results in $10 billion in federal taxes, $3 billion in state taxes and $3 billion in local taxes.