Georgia Trend Daily – June 13, 2019
June 13, 2019 New York Times
Once Threatened, Sea Turtle Nests Thrive Along the Georgia Coast
Jacey Fortin reports, they are not much bigger than silver dollars when they hatch, struggle out of sand and stumble toward the sea, and most do not survive until adulthood. But if their mothers are any indication, these loggerhead sea turtles, once in such trouble they were designated as “threatened” by the federal government four decades ago, are making a comeback off the coast of Georgia.
June 13, 2019 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Business Casual: Georgia, Georgia
Susan Percy writes, a few years ago, when I was helping move my daughter into her freshman dormitory in our nation’s capital and busily unloading boxes from the car, a man who had just alighted from his New Jersey-tagged vehicle with a yippy little dog wandered over, nodded hello, looked at my license plate and said astutely, “Oh, you’re from down there in Georgia.”
June 13, 2019 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
SunTrust and BB&T merger: Here’s the name of the new bank
Scott Trubey reports that the biggest bank in Atlanta is getting a new partner — and a new name. The combined SunTrust and BB&T will be known as Truist Bank, officials announced Wednesday.
June 13, 2019 Atlanta Business Chronicle
Ex-Patrón CEO joins medical marijuana company
Mark Meltzer reports that Atlanta-based medical marijuana company Surterra Wellness has landed another big-name talent. Ed Brown, former CEO of The Patrón Spirits Co., has joined the company as executive director. Surterra is led by billionaire CEO William “Beau” Wrigley Jr., great-grandson of the chewing gum company’s founder.
June 13, 2019 Valdosta Daily Times
Report: Georgia losing $750 million in online taxes
Reports that a new report says Georgia is missing out on hundreds of millions of dollars in sales tax revenue because of a loophole that allows online retailers to skirt a new state law. As of this year, online retailers are required to collect the tax in Georgia, but the report from the Faith, Justice and Truth Project found that so-called “marketplace facilitation” – on online sites that connect consumers with a seller’s products and services – are hosting tax-free transactions that should be generating revenue for state and local governments.
June 13, 2019 Macon Telegraph
Fort Valley native creates ‘a community of people around a peach’ with traveling business
Wayne Crenshaw reports that the Peach Truck is a national farm-to-table phenomena conceived, as great ideas often are, from a chat on a front porch. Stephen Rose spent his childhood in Fort Valley and was close friends with the Pearson family that operates Pearson Farm. He grew up eating their big, juicy peaches in the summer but when he moved to Nashville, Tennessee, in 2010 he found peaches there disappointing.
June 13, 2019 Brunswick News
Jekyll raising entrance, water and sewer fees
Wes Wolfe reports that it’s going to cost a little more to drive onto Jekyll Island, and for those with housing or businesses on the island, water and sewer costs are going up as well. “Adjustments in parking fees, which have not increased in seven years, are necessary to continue providing the high-quality experiences our visitors have come to expect and to fulfill our responsibility to protect the island’s vibrant natural habitats,” Jekyll Island Authority Executive Director Jones Hooks said in a statement.
June 13, 2019 Athens Banner-Herald
Recycling costs rise as China ban ripples out to Athens
Lee Shearer reports that recycling has gotten sharply more expensive in Athens this year. Athens-Clarke County’s Solid Waste Department has made $225,688 in revenue this year, but has paid the company that operates its recycling facility $445,559 in processing fees, the highest amount ever, said county Waste Reduction Administrator Joe Dunlop.
June 13, 2019 Georgia Health News
Stahl picked to head Anthem plan in Georgia
Andy Miller reports that Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield announced Wednesday that Pam Stahl has been named president of the Georgia health plan. She replaces Jeff Fusile, who is stepping down to spend more time with his family in Savannah.
June 13, 2019 GPB
Kemp Names New Insurance Commissioner During Beck’s Suspension
Robert Jimison and Karlee Browder report that Gov. Brian Kemp has named a new insurance commissioner to take over during the suspension of Jim Beck. John King will take over at the Georgia Department of Insurance while Beck faces an indictment on federal charges of fraud and money laundering.
June 13, 2019 Brunswick News
WOTUS debate moves to Senate committee
Wes Wolfe reports that members of the U.S. Senate Environment and Public Works Committee obliquely debated each other Wednesday morning in a hearing regarding the impacts of the Waters of the United States rule — or Clean Water Rule — on the country’s agricultural operations and environment. The 2015 Obama administration rule is in effect in some states but not in others, as federal court rulings coast-to-coast result in different outcomes. The state of Georgia is party to a lawsuit that currently resides in the federal court in Brunswick.
June 13, 2019 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Former lawmakers named for charter school agency
Ty Tagami reports that two former legislators will help shape education in Georgia if their appointments to the State Charter Schools Commission win final approval Thursday. Hunter Hill, who served in the Georgia Senate, and Buzz Brockway, who was in the state House of Representatives, are in line for seats on the seven-member commission.
