Georgia Trend Daily – Dec. 6, 2024
Dec. 6, 2024 Georgia.gov
Gov. Kemp Announces Three Rural Workforce Housing Awards from the OneGeorgia Authority
Staff reports that Gov. Kemp, on Thursday, announced the next round of grant recipients for the Rural Workforce Housing Initiative, totaling more than $5 million in infrastructure development and supporting 140 housing units in three communities. All award recipients demonstrated strong collaboration and partnership with real estate developers.
Dec. 6, 2024 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Ups, Downs and In-betweens
Karen Kirkpatrick reports that Rockdale County officials have filed a federal lawsuit against chemical plant BioLab, after a September fire spewed a chemical haze into the air that covered the surrounding area with a murky, toxic plume. County schools were closed for weeks, thousands of nearby residents were evacuated and those who stayed were told to remain indoors.
Dec. 6, 2024 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Inside the Georgia orchard trying to bring back the South’s lost apples
Drew Kann reports, with the fall foliage of the North Georgia Mountains showing off on a late October Friday, Josh Fuder and Ray Covington were busy sinking their teeth into apples, enjoying the literal fruits of their labor. With names like Swiss Limbertwig, Terry Winter and Yates, the heirloom varieties they tasted were once common across the Southeast, part of a vibrant, regional apple industry that existed in the early 20th century.
Dec. 6, 2024 Gainesville Times
Meet Matt Hanley, who takes over for Carol Burrell, NGHS’ retiring leader
Jeff Gill reports that a St. Louis health care executive will replace Carol Burrell, who is retiring as president and CEO of the Gainesville-based Northeast Georgia Health System. Matt Hanley, MD, whose more-than-20-year career includes first-hand experience from the bedside to the boardroom, will take the reins in April.
Dec. 6, 2024 Georgia Recorder
Mining company vows to forge ahead when permitted despite feds’ Okefenokee Refuge expansion plan
Jill Nolin reports that the federal government is seeking public input on a proposal that would allow the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service to acquire property near the Okefenokee National Wildlife Refuge that could soon be mined. The proposal is for a “minor expansion” of the refuge’s existing boundaries to bolster protections of the unspoiled freshwater wetland system and wildlife habitats found in the largest blackwater swamp in North America.
Dec. 6, 2024 Rome News-Tribune
Solarcycle Deal Earns Georgia Developers Association Award
Jeremy Stewart reports that the work that went into bringing a solar panel recycling company to Polk County has been recognized by one of the top economic groups in the state. The Development Authority of Polk County was awarded the 2024 Mid-size Community Deal of the Year by the Georgia Economic Developers Association for its role in securing the deal to bring Solarcycle to Cedartown.
Dec. 6, 2024 WABE, KFF Health News
Georgia’s work requirement slows processing of applications for Medicaid, food stamps
Andy Miller, Renuka Rayasam and Sam Whitehead report that for years, Georgia’s public benefits system has been plagued by problems like a glitchy website that’s often down for maintenance, a shortage of staff to process applications, and technology that malfunctions, according to consumer advocacy organizations, former state employees, and researchers. But a KFF Health News analysis shows processing times have worsened since July 2023, when Georgia launched the nation’s only active Medicaid work requirement program, “Georgia Pathways to Coverage.”
Dec. 6, 2024 WSB TV, WSB Radio
Atty General Chris Carr wants FCC to allow jammers in jails, get cell phones out of inmates’ hands
Staff reports, there is an ongoing standoff between Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr the Federal Communications Commission about the use of jammers inside local jails and state prisons. Carr is concerned about public safety.
Dec. 6, 2024 Capitol Beat News
Ossoff grills postmaster general over continuing delays in mail delivery
Dave Williams reports, the U.S. Postal Service has failed to deliver on Postmaster General Louis DeJoy’s pledge to restore on-time mail delivery in Georgia, U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff said Thursday. While DeJoy promised last April to fix the problem within 60 days, mail is still being delivered on time only 75% of the time, Ossoff said during a hearing held by the Senate Homeland Security Committee.
Dec. 6, 2024 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Donald Trump’s appointment boosts David Perdue’s political comeback
Greg Bluestein, Tia Mitchell, Patricia Murphy and Adam Beam report, call it the revenge of Donald Trump’s Georgia loyalists. The president-elect’s late Thursday announcement that he would nominate former U.S. Sen. David Perdue to serve as ambassador to China made him the third Georgia Republican defeated in 2020 named to a key post in Trump’s incoming administration.
