Georgia Trend Daily – Sept. 11, 2026
Sept. 11, 2026 Capitol Beat News
Growth in income and sales taxes boosts state coffers in August
Ty Tagami reports that Georgia collected nearly $2.5 billion in net tax revenue in August, a 3.5% increase from August 2025, extending the overall year-over-year gains recorded in July. The August increase was driven by receipts from individual income taxes and sales taxes, according to figures released by Gov. Brian Kemp’s office this week.
Sept. 11, 2026 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Economic Development Around the State
Christy Simo reports that Highline Warren, known for automotive products like Rain-X wiper fluid and the Prime Guard brand, is opening a 1.1-million-square-foot logistics and operations center in Henry County. The $170 million investment will create 160 new jobs when it opens in late 2026.
Sept. 11, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
ICE faces $2M claim over unprecedented raid at Hyundai site in Georgia
Rosie Manins reports that a Colombian man who says he was unlawfully arrested alongside more than 400 other workers at a Hyundai factory in Georgia has filed a $2 million legal claim against U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement. ICE detained 475 workers, including more than 300 Koreans, in the Sept. 4, 2025, raid at the Hyundai Metaplant campus near Savannah.
Sept. 11, 2026 WSB TV
9/11 25 years later: Georgia first responders remember the fallen one step at a time
Scott Flynn reports, the University of Georgia is hosting a memorial stair climb at Sanford Stadium as a tribute to first responders. The event starts at 6 this morning, and first responders will enter through Gate 2 around 5:30 this morning.
Sept. 11, 2026 Georgia.gov
Gov. Kemp: Georgia Awarded $500 Million in Water Infrastructure Grants
Staff reports that Gov. Kemp on Thursday announced that the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded the state $499,385,000 to help communities impacted by Hurricane Helene strengthen the resilience of drinking water and wastewater infrastructure and respond to water-related emergencies. This funding is a result of the 2025 American Relief Act and will be administered by the Georgia Environmental Finance Authority (GEFA).
Sept. 11, 2026 WABE
Trump pulled the plug on EVs. Georgia EV makers are adapting and forging ahead
Emily Jones reports that a year ago this month, federal immigration agents raided an electric vehicle battery plant in coastal Georgia and arrested more than 400 people, most of them South Korean workers there to help get the new factory off the ground. It was a grim moment in what has been a challenging year-and-a-half for the industry in Georgia.
Sept. 11, 2026 Rough Draft Atlanta
Beltline rail discussion returns after Atlanta City Council member Kelsea Bond introduces resolution
Logan C. Ritchie reports that Beltline rail advocates are celebrating a small victory after Atlanta City Council member Kelsea Bond introduced a resolution in support of light rail transit along the 22-mile corridor. Matthew Rao, Beltline Rail Now co-chair, said the council’s recognition of light rail transit as a central component of the adopted Atlanta Beltline vision is “new and significant.”
Sept. 11, 2026 The Current
DNR plan disregards majority of public comments to propose wider, longer docks
Mary Landers reports, when the DNR proposed regulations in June that would allow private recreational docks in coastal waterways to be up to 1,000 feet long and 6 feet wide, scores of comments flowed into the agency’s inbox opposing the size as too large. The Coastal Resources Division responded not by heeding those concerns, but by proposing even larger docks.
Sept. 11, 2026 WABE
Voters and advocates parse Bottoms’ and Jackson’s platforms as health costs, coverage top election concerns
Jess Mador reports that health care, how to access it and how to afford it, is top of mind for voters heading into Georgia’s gubernatorial election. The state has one of the highest uninsured rates in the United States.
Sept. 11, 2026 Georgia Recorder
Georgia governor candidates target cost of living, but details remain murky
Alander Rocha reports, the two competing candidates for Georgia governor are both focusing on affordability but putting forward starkly different proposals aimed at easing household expenses. At a time when voters are anxious about the rising cost of living, Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms, the former mayor of Atlanta, is pitching a plan to allow local governments to exempt sales taxes on groceries, qualifying take-home family meals, baby formula, diapers and feminine hygiene products.
Sept. 11, 2026 GPB
U.S. Rep. Mike Collins touts his record on immigration at first GOP midterm convention
Chase McGee reports, on Wednesday, U.S. Rep. Mike Collins of Georgia addressed Republican voters at the party’s first-ever midterm convention, held in Dallas, Texas. Collins, who is running for U.S. Senate, spoke after a video featuring the family of Laken Riley, a nursing student murdered by an undocumented immigrant in Georgia in 2024.
Sept. 11, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Culture wars take a back seat in Georgia governor’s race
Greg Bluestein reports, Georgia Republicans haven’t abandoned hard-fought culture war issues. But the party’s nominee for governor isn’t leading the charge this campaign cycle. Eight years after Gov. Brian Kemp put gun expansions, abortion restrictions and immigration crackdowns at the center of his campaign for Georgia’s top job, GOP nominee Rick Jackson is betting that tax cuts, ethics overhauls and public safety measures are more potent November issues.
