Georgia Trend Daily – Feb. 24, 2022
Feb. 24, 2022 State Affairs
Do Georgia’s Low-Income Students Need More State School Funding?
Beau Evans reports that taxpayers spend billions of dollars each year on Georgia’s public k-12 schools, but none of the state’s education dollars goes specifically to kids from low-income families who often struggle in class, State Affairs has found. Georgia is one of only six states that do not factor low-income students into their annual school-funding formulas – even as roughly one-third of Georgia’s roughly 1.7 million students in county and city public schools were classified by the state as living in poverty last year.
Photo: Ben Rollins
Feb. 24, 2022 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Catching Up With … Sarah Riggs Amico
Susan Percy reports on the executive chair of the Jack Cooper transportation and logistics company as she talks about making the trucking industry green. Jack Cooper has committed to transitioning to zero emission Class 8 trucks [those with gross weight ratings over 33,000 pounds].
Feb. 24, 2022 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
GSU forecast: Georgia economy to stay in high gear despite inflation
Michael E. Kanell reports that despite the lingering pain of COVID-19, Georgia’s economy has been growing solidly and metro Atlanta is on track to add 77,900 jobs this year, more than two-thirds of the state’s growth, according to a prominent local forecaster. That growth should return the region to its pre-pandemic level of jobs in the next several months, said Rajeev Dhawan, director of the Georgia State Economic Forecasting Center, during the organization’s quarterly conference Wednesday.
Feb. 24, 2022 Valdosta Daily Times, Ga. Fla. News
Democrats: Georgia Senate-approved bill divisive for teachers, parents
Asia Ashley reports that Democrats have called the Georgia’s “Parental Bill of Rights” proposal an overreach, saying it disrespects teachers. The bill — approved by senators Tuesday — would require local school superintendents or principals to provide documents related to a teachers’ curriculum within three days after a parent submits a request for the information.
Feb. 24, 2022 Marietta Daily Journal
Gov. Kemp signs Vinings cityhood bill; referendum to go before voters May 24
Aleks Gilbert reports that Vinings residents will have an opportunity to create their own city this spring.
Feb. 24, 2022 Athens Banner-Herald, Augusta Chronicle
Local officials, residents condemn redistricting maps, raise possibility of lawsuit
Abraham Kenmore reports that local officials from Gwinnett, Dekalb and Athens-Clarke County gathered on Wednesday to condemn local redistricting proposals from Republicans in the state legislature. Mayor Kelly Girtz of Athens-Clarke County took the podium to condemn the state legislature redistricting of county commission and school board seats that overrode proposals put forward by local governments.
Feb. 24, 2022 Dalton Daily Citizen
Ossoff looks to expand federal Pell Grant for education
Charles Oliver reports that U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, said here Tuesday he and colleagues in the Senate are working to expand and reform a program that helps fund higher education for those in need. “I have launched efforts with my colleagues in the Senate to make the Pell Grant more accessible for young people in Georgia and more flexible for young people in Georgia,” Ossoff said in a press conference on the quad at Dalton State College.
Feb. 24, 2022 Cherokee Tribune, Capitol Beat News
Woodstock lawmaker sponsors bill to grant refugees in-state college tuition
Dave Williams reports that legislation that would grant in-state college tuition to refugees from Afghanistan resettled in Georgia last year drew bipartisan support in a state House committee Wednesday. House Bill 932 would waive the one-year residency requirement to qualify for in-state tuition at the state’s public colleges and universities that applies to students who have moved to Georgia from out of state.
Feb. 24, 2022 Georgia Recorder
Georgia legislators target COVID mask, vaccine precautions with mandate bans
Stanley Dunlap and Ross Williams report that Republican state lawmakers’ fight against COVID-19 mandates gained steam Wednesday, with committees advancing bills that would relax restrictions on school mask requirements and prohibit governments from requiring proof of vaccination at public buildings or to use services. A House committee advanced the Gov. Brian Kemp-backed bill that allows parents to opt their children out of masks requirements at public and charter schools.
Feb. 24, 2022 The Center Square
Georgia Senate to consider renewal of rural tax credit despite slow return on investment
Nyamekye Daniel reports that Georgia lawmakers could continue to fund the state’s rural tax credit, despite finding it would take more than seven decades to see a return. House Bill 500 authorizes a second round of funding of $100 million for the program, which provides capital funding for rural businesses.
Feb. 24, 2022 Georgia Health News
Health care day: Bills on HIV, pregnancy, vaping, lead, caregivers move on
Andy Miller reports that the Georgia House passed legislation Tuesday that could give Medicaid coverage to thousands of uninsured residents who have HIV. The chamber approved House Bill 1192 with a bipartisan 136-14 vote. If enacted by the General Assembly, the legislation would instruct the state’s Department of Community Health to apply to the feds for a waiver that would extend Medicaid to low-income Georgians living with HIV.
Feb. 24, 2022 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
The Jolt: Herschel Walker: ‘I don’t support either’ Brian Kemp or David Perdue
Patricia Murphy, Greg Bluestein and Tia Mitchell report, plenty of Georgia Republicans are happy to stay out of the messy primary between Gov. Brian Kemp and former U.S. Sen. David Perdue. But Herschel Walker is the first high-profile candidate to say he’s “mad” at both rivals – and that he won’t back either one of them.
