Georgia Trend Daily – July 6, 2026
July 6, 2026 Valdosta Daily Times
Survey seeks input from Georgia farmers on economic challenges
Staff reports that the Georgia Foundation for Agriculture (GFA), Georgia Farm Bureau (GFB), and the University of Georgia College of Public Health have partnered to launch the Georgia Farm Profitability Survey, a statewide effort to measure the economic challenges facing Georgia farmers. The survey is designed to collect Georgia-specific data directly from farmers to better understand the factors affecting profitability and identify opportunities to strengthen agriculture statewide.
July 6, 2026 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
2026 Legal Elite: Deadline Extended to July 10
Staff reports that the The 2026 Legal Elite nomination period has been extended through 5 p.m. Friday, July 10, 2026. Each December, Georgia Trend magazine’s annual Legal Elite listing highlights the state’s most effective lawyers, as chosen by their peers, in 15 different practice areas. To nominate, you must be an attorney who lives and practices in Georgia and is a member of the State Bar of Georgia.
July 6, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Robots are everywhere in Hyundai’s Georgia plant, but they can’t do everything
Zachary Hansen reports, car bodies glide across polished factory floors from one assembly station to another, as if thrust by telekinesis, in a mechanical dance. Automated sleds ferry stamped metal to lines of robotic arms, lifting everything from car doors to engine blocks as if they were weightless.
July 6, 2026 Savannah Morning News
$486 million I-16 widening expected to begin 2027
Latrice Williams reports that the Georgia Department of Transportation has announced the bid for the state’s largest infrastructure project in state history. Matthews-McLendon Joint Venture/Infrastructure Consulting & Engineering, LLC was selected for the $468.35 million I-16 widening project.
July 6, 2026 Albany Herald
New commander takes helm as Marine Corps logistics adapts to evolving battlefield
Kathryn Crockett reports, as the Marine Corps prepares for an era of contested logistics and great-power competition, one of its most important logistics organizations officially welcomed new leadership July 2. Brig. Gen. Kevin G. Collins assumed leadership of Marine Corps Logistics Command during a change of command ceremony at Marine Corps Logistics Base-Albany.
July 6, 2026 Decaturish
Business leaders, advocates betting on south DeKalb
Zoe Seiler reports that a recent tax allocation district (TAD) grant award is sparking economic development on Memorial Drive in DeKalb County after the Belvedere Plaza Kroger closed last year. The award is one of a few initiatives Decide DeKalb is taking to encourage growth in the southern portion of the county.
July 6, 2026 Gainesville Times
Hall County is getting its data center rules in order. Here’s what developers would have to do
Danny McArthur reports that Hall County put data centers on hold in February. Now, with that moratorium set to expire in August, the county is proposing an ordinance that would regulate where they can go and what they have to do to get there.
July 6, 2026 Union-Recorder
Sandra Deal Center expanding Reading Clinic to Greene County
Staff reports that the Sandra Dunagan Deal Center for Early Language and Literacy at Georgia College & State University has expanded its Reading Clinic to include Greene County Elementary School. “Supporting striving readers with additional instruction and practice helps to bridge academic gaps without sacrificing day-to-day lessons,” said Executive Director Dr. Lindee Morgan.
July 6, 2026 The Current
Liberty County wrestles with water, wastewater planning
Robin Kemp reports, managing water and wastewater is a challenge for the growing City of Riceboro, and it’s an example of what’s facing Liberty County’s cities and other entities. County planners are in the early stages of assessing whether to consolidate some or all of those required systems for the sake of growth.
July 6, 2026 GPB
State legislative commission finishes study of maternal and infant health outcomes in Georgia
Sofi Gratas reports that a state legislative commission studying maternal and infant health outcomes in Georgia has released its final recommendations. Georgia ranks just outside the top 10 for high rates of infant mortality, the report said.
July 6, 2026 Athens Banner-Herald
New medical cannabis laws in GA now in effect. How to find dispensaries
Miguel Legoas and Irene Wright report that Senate Bill 220, a.k.a. the “Putting Georgia’s Patients First Act,” removes the previous 5% THC potency cap on medical cannabis products, allowing patients to keep 12,000 milligrams if it’s labeled in a pharmaceutical container. The new law expanded the list of conditions eligible for a cannabis card to include lupus, autism, Stage III HIV, severe Alzheimer’s disease, and inflammatory bowel disease.
July 6, 2026 Georgia Recorder
A last-minute change to Georgia’s ballot QR code bill could steer voting in a new direction
Maya Homan reports that Georgia’s ballot QR code crisis is resolved for now, but a late change to an elections bill passed during last month’s special session adds a new twist to the question of how future elections across the state will be run. Under a state law passed in 2024, Georgia could no longer use QR codes to count ballots after July 1, but state lawmakers repeatedly failed to appropriate the funds needed to make the switch ahead of the self-imposed deadline.
July 6, 2026 Capitol Beat News
Lawmakers question Medicaid access as therapists for children face rate cuts and state updates provider directories
Ty Tagami reports that Georgia Medicaid recipients are likely to find outdated directories for doctors, therapists and other medical providers as the state finds thousands of them have failed to revalidate their eligibility to receive payment for services. Nearly 8,000 faced suspension starting this month, according to a state report in June that noted more than 60,000 others could follow in coming months.
July 6, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Here’s how Rick Jackson spent $108 million in the Republican race for governor
Greg Bluestein reports that Republican Rick Jackson shattered records in Georgia by pumping more than $108 million of his own money into his campaign for governor. An Atlanta Journal-Constitution analysis shows the executive spent roughly three-quarters of that — more than $83 million — on television and cable advertising.
