Georgia Trend Daily – Jan. 30, 2024
Jan. 30, 2024 The Brunswick News
Experts cautiously optimistic for economy in 2024
Gordon Jackson reports that Georgia’s economy is expected to continue to grow by 1.1% in 2024, lower than in 2023 but more than the projected growth rate for the nation. That was part of the forecast presented Monday at the Jekyll Island Convention Center by Ben Ayers, dean of the Terry College of Business at the University of Georgia.
Jan. 30, 2024 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Catching up with… Keith Parker
Karen Kirkpatric reports on Keith Parker, who has served as president and CEO of Goodwill of North Georgia (GNG) since 2017. Prior to that, he was general manager and CEO of MARTA.
Jan. 30, 2024 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Church keeps faith in its ‘God-sized vision’ for affordable housing
Zachary Hansen reports that one of downtown Atlanta’s oldest churches is moving forward with an ambitious plan to provide hundreds of affordable homes and educate children in need. Atlanta First United Methodist Church recently began the first permitting phase for its mixed-income housing project at 360 Peachtree Street, which also includes two schools and retail space.
Jan. 30, 2024 Saporta Report
Temple Sinai becomes first synagogue in Atlanta to install solar system on rooftop
Mark Lannaman reports that Temple Sinai, located in Sandy Springs, just became the first synagogue in Atlanta to incorporate a solar system to power their operations. The system was installed by Cherry Street Energy, which has been installing solar systems throughout the city in partnership with the local government.
Jan. 30, 2024 Savannah Morning News
White House official visits Savannah to announce additional funding to help end homelessness
Evan Lasseter reports that Marcia Fudge, U.S. Secretary of Housing and Urban Development, visited Savannah, and announced $4.1 million in Continuum of Care money, which aid people experiencing homelessness, to the Chatham-Savannah Interagency Council on Homelessness. The investment was part of $3.1 billion in Continuum of Care money announced by HUD in summer 2023.
Jan. 30, 2024 Capitol Beat News
Okefenokee Swamp supporters pitch anti-mining bill
Dave Williams reports that supporters of legislation banning mining near the Okefenokee Swamp held a news conference at the Georgia Capitol Monday to urge Georgia lawmakers to pass the measure. “The threat of mining is very real,” said Alice Miller-Keyes, vice president of coastal conservation for the Brunswick-based environmental organization 100 Miles.
Jan. 30, 2024 The Current
With election season, Coastal Georgia lawmakers turn attention to libraries
Craig Nelson reports that Savannah’s five-term state senator, Ben Watson, has joined 18 other Georgia Republicans in the state’s upper house as a sponsor of legislation that takes aim at the oldest and largest library association in the world. The measure, SB 390, would bar city, county, and regional library trustees and the State University System of Georgia from using “any public or privately donated funds on any materials, services or operations offered by the American Library Association or any of its affiliates.”
Jan. 30, 2024 Marietta Daily Journal
GOP-Drawn Cobb School Board Map Heads to Governor’s Desk
Jake Busch reports that the Georgia House of Representatives approved a Republican-drawn Cobb Board of Education map Monday morning, sending it to Gov. Brian Kemp to be signed into law. The map, Senate Bill 338, is sponsored by state Sen. Ed Setzler, R-Acworth.
Jan. 30, 2024 Gwinnett Daily Post
Bill Expanding Naloxone Presence In Schools Pending in Georgia Senate
Curt Yeomans reports that months after a series of nearly fatal opioid overdoses at a Gwinnett high school, a senator from the county has filed legislation that would give teachers and school administrators across Georgia the authority to carry an overdose-reversing drug in their schools. State Sen. Clint Dixon, R-Buford, has filed Senate Bill 395, which would expand the group people who would be allowed to carry overdose-reserving drugs on a school campus.
Jan. 30, 2024 Savannah Morning News
Georgia Republicans pass bill to remove Brad Raffensperger from State Election Board
Maya Homan reports that the push to oust Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger from the State Election Board intensified Friday as a bill calling for his removal from the body passed on the state Senate floor. The vote was sharply divided along partisan lines, with 30 Republicans voting to pass the measure and 19 Democrats voting against it.
Jan. 30, 2024 New York Times
Georgia Senators Press Biden for Tougher Tariffs on Chinese Solar Panels
Jonathan Weisman reports that a bipartisan quartet of senators, led by two Democrats from the critical swing state of Georgia, are asking President Biden to toughen up tariffs on Chinese solar panels or face a glutted market just as the president’s clean-energy tax credits hit the market. The issue goes to the core of one of Mr. Biden’s arguments for re-election: that his economic policies have begun transforming the U.S. energy economy while combating climate change.
Jan. 30, 2024 Capitol Beat News
Prosecutors oversight bill clears Georgia House
Dave Williams reports that the Republican-controlled Georgia House of Representatives approved legislation Monday that would let a newly created oversight board for prosecutors set its own rules. House Bill 881, which passed 95-75 along party lines, is a follow-up to legislation the General Assembly’s GOP majorities passed last year creating the Prosecuting Attorneys Qualifications Commission to investigate complaints lodged against local district attorneys.
Jan. 30, 2024 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
In Georgia, Trump’s GOP skeptics are beginning to embrace him
Greg Bluestein reports that U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick was once the most prominent Republican official in Georgia to openly back one of Donald Trump’s GOP rivals. The Suwanee Republican stumped for Ron DeSantis in Iowa and the Atlanta suburbs, and he said he was in wait-and-see-mode after the Florida governor quit the campaign last week.
