Georgia Trend Daily – May 7, 2020
May 7, 2020 GPB
Georgia’s April Tax Revenue Down $1 Billion As Coronavirus’ Economic Toll Continues
Stephen Fowler reports that Georgia’s tax collections for the month of April were down more than $1 billion from last year, signaling a budgetary shortfall that could force state agencies to slash already lean budgets by more than 10% for the next fiscal year. Gov. Brian Kemp’s office said the state’s net tax collections totaled about $1.84 billion, 36% lower than April 2019’s $2.87 billion.
May 7, 2020 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Metro Atlanta | Perimeter: Big Transformations
Kenna Simmons reports, “Dunwoody is hot,” City Manager Eric Linton said just before COVID-19 struck. It’s not a word that you would have associated with the area a few years ago, when the city’s name often served as shorthand for any of Atlanta’s comfortable ’burbs. But it was an apt description of the whole Perimeter area, including not just Dunwoody but neighbor cities Brookhaven and Sandy Springs, a few months ago and it will be again.
May 7, 2020 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Some big Georgia employers aren’t rushing to end pandemic teleworking
Matt Kempner reports that some businesses have turned their lights back on in Georgia: Restaurant dining rooms and hair salons have reopened, and malls are inviting in customers. Yet many corporate offices in metro Atlanta remain eerily quiet.
May 7, 2020 Atlanta Business Chronicle
Exclusive: Hotels shut their doors in ‘the most challenging crisis the industry has ever endured’
Jessica Saunders reports that the novel coronavirus has done to the Atlanta hotel industry what 9/11, the Great Recession and the dot-com bust didn’t: dozens of hotels have temporarily closed their doors. It’s unprecedented, as far as the collective knowledge of industry sources consulted by Atlanta Business Chronicle.
May 7, 2020 Washington Post
Smartphone data shows out-of-state visitors flocked to Georgia as restaurants and other businesses reopened
Katherine Shaver reports that one week after Georgia allowed dine-in restaurants, hair salons and other businesses to reopen, an additional 62,440 visitors arrived there daily, most from surrounding states where such businesses remained shuttered, according to an analysis of smartphone location data.
May 7, 2020 Rome News-Tribune
Rome manufacturers getting back into action
Doug Walker reports that local industries are easing back into production after experiencing varying levels of down time related to COVID-19 and, in one case, a devastating fire. F&P Georgia, at 88 Enterprise Drive, is a supplier to Honda and Nissan automotive assembly plants in Alabama.
May 7, 2020 11 Alive
Dragon Con still plans to move forward despite legislation regarding permits
Jason Braverman reports that recent legislation by the Atlanta City Council amidst the coronavirus pandemic caught the attention of event organizers planning large gatherings this year. The newly-passed legislation ratified the Department of Parks and Recreation and Mayor’s Office of Special Events to continue to not accept special events permits.
May 7, 2020 Macon Telegraph
Georgia put some COVID-19 testing on ‘pause’ to allow labs to catch up, a health official said
Nick Wooten reports that state and private labs in Georgia have more than doubled the total number of coronavirus tests they’ve processed in the last two weeks as officials work to determine just how many people are sick. But increased sample collections, coupled with efforts needed to inform patients of their results and the need for supplies to process the tests, have overwhelmed labs across the state.
May 7, 2020 Georgia Health News
The ‘last responders’: A new normal for funeral directors
Madeline Laguaite reports that funeral directors are in uncharted territory as the novel coronavirus continues to spread across the country. More than 30,000 Georgians have tested positive for COVID-19 as of Wednesday, and more than 1,300 have died as a result, according to the latest figures.
May 7, 2020 Saporta Report
Georgia medical cannabis commission hires leader
Maggie Lee reports that the Georgia commission that would set up rules to authorize medical cannabis production in the state is getting first staff member — more than a year after Gov. Brian Kemp signed a bill to start the process. The job of executive director will go to Andrew Turnage, who has been the leader of the state boards that regulate cosmetology and nursing.
May 7, 2020 Georgia Recorder
Ga. Supreme Court considers allowing some court cases to proceed online
Stanley Dunlap reports that Georgia could move some non-jury civil trials proceedings online or over broadcast for half a year to ease an expected backlog created by fears the new coronavirus could spread during hearings in crowded courtrooms. The Georgia Supreme Court is considering a rule proposed by the Georgia Council of Superior Court Judges to allow video conferencing in cases when oral arguments and other in-person interaction isn’t necessary. T
May 7, 2020 The Center Square
Lt. Gov. Duncan offers to take a salary cut as Georgia looks to fill revenue gaps
Nyamekye Daniel reports that Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan said Wednesday he will take a 14 percent pay cut as Georgia agencies look for ways to roll back spending amid the COVID-19 economic downturn. State lawmakers have until June 30 to finalize a budget for fiscal year 2021, which starts July 1. Financial strain from the coronavirus pandemic points to hundreds of millions of dollars in revenue shortfalls.
May 7, 2020 Capitol Beat News
FAA orders more environmental review of Spaceport Camden project
Dave Williams reports that the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) has decided to revisit part of the environmental review process required to approve a controversial commercial spaceport in Camden County because of a major change in the project’s design. While revising the environmental impact study (EIS) will require a second public comment period, sponsors of Spaceport Camden say the new development actually represents progress for their plans.
May 7, 2020 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Abrams burnishes foreign policy chops in pursuit of VP nomination
Greg Bluestein reports that no potential Democratic nominee for vice president has jockeyed more publicly for the position than Stacey Abrams. And now the former Georgia legislator is trying to shore up one of her biggest perceived weaknesses — foreign policy — as Joe Biden nears his decision.
