Georgia Trend Daily – Sept. 15, 2026
Sept. 16, 2026 Georgia Ports Authority
Savannah exports up 4 percent in August
Staff reports, the Port of Savannah moved 529,523 twenty-foot equivalent container units in August which was flat with less than a 1 percent decline compared to the same month last year. Export loads totaled 117,242 TEUs in August, up nearly 4,700 TEUs or 4.2 percent.
Sept. 16, 2026 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Whose Economy Is It, Anyway?
Tharon Johnson writes, all you have to do is turn on the news, check social media, or even walk outside your door to see that we are living in one of the most divisive periods in American history. In most cases, that division is discussed in terms of politics, with the rise of the far-right testing this country’s capacity to resist authoritarianism.
Sept. 16, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Coca-Cola, bottling partners have $10B of U.S. projects in the works
Amy Wenk reports that Coca-Cola and its bottling partners announced Tuesday some $10 billion in U.S. infrastructure investments they are collectively planning through 2030. The investments span new or expanded production, distribution and office facilities, according to a news release, which did not detail the plans.
Sept. 16, 2026 Rough Draft Atlanta
Report: Atlanta eviction rate is three times the national average
Logan C. Ritchie reports that Metro Atlanta landlords filed 140,000 eviction cases in 2025, a rate researchers say is more than three times the national average and higher than any other major metro area in the country. Researchers at Princeton University-based Eviction Lab spoke to attorneys, judges, elected officials, and nonprofit leaders on Sept. 10, shocking many audience members with statistics about Atlanta’s skyrocketing eviction filing rates.
Sept. 16, 2026 Gainesville Times
What regional planning agency says about proposed multi-use development in south Habersham
Jeff Gill reports, a proposed south Habersham County development featuring a grocery store and other retail and housing “does not present any potential adverse interjurisdictional impacts,” according to a report released Monday, Sept. 14. “This finding is advisory only and assumes the project will proceed as presented … and will comply with all applicable state and federal rules and regulations,” states the report issued by the Georgia Mountains Regional Commission.
Sept. 16, 2026 Albany Herald
Lee County hospital financing plan proposes up to $200 million in bonds, with county-backed portion still to be defined
Kathryn Crockett and Carlton Fletcher report that the Lee County Hospital Authority will hold a public hearing Sept. 22 on a proposal to issue up to $200 million in financing for a planned acute-care hospital. Lee County Commissioner Billy Mathis said the debt is intended to be repaid from hospital revenues rather than by taxpayers.
Sept. 16, 2026 GlobalAtlanta.com
JapanFest Atlanta Celebrates Georgia’s Enduring Connection to Japan
Leigh Villegas reports that “Timeless Japan,” the theme of this year’s JapanFest Atlanta, captures a relationship that has endured for decades in Georgia but one that continues to evolve alongside Japan’s expanding business presence in the state and Japanese culture reaching new generations.
Sept. 16, 2026 Columbus Ledger-Enquirer
‘Environmental racism.’ That’s what a Georgia advocacy group calls this EPA decision
Kala Hunter reports, during the G20 summit Monday night in Houston, Environmental Protection Agency Administrator Lee Zeldin, declared power plants in America should “unleash their full potential” by removing greenhouse gas emission standards and limits from the power sector.
Sept. 16, 2026 Macon Telegraph
Essential information for voting in Georgia in 2026
Sundi Rose reports that Georgia’s Nov. 3 general election is closer than it feels, and the voter registration deadline is Oct. 5. For those who have recently moved to the state, turned 18 or are new to voting can feel like a tricky process.
Sept. 16, 2026 WABE
Dr. Oz visits Atlanta to promote Georgia’s new employee health insurance tool
Marlon Hyde reports that Georgia is launching a new way for businesses to provide employee health insurance, with the Trump Administration pushing this initiative while premiums are set to rise again. Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner John King announced the new program, Georgia Access for Business, on Monday.
Sept. 16, 2026 Capitol Beat News
Georgia candidates sharpen contrasts in campaign events ahead of early voting
Ty Tagami reports, at separate events over the past few days, contenders atop Georgia’s general election ballot pushed their campaigns ahead of the final weeks of electioneering. With control of the U.S. Senate at stake, the two contenders attacked each other as dangerous for the country.
Sept. 16, 2026 GPB
Governor candidates trade barbs over data centers with less than a month until early voting starts
Sarah Kallis reports, both Georgia candidates for governor are attacking each other over data centers and transparency with less than a month to go until early voting. At a Monday press conference in Marietta, Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms slammed Republican Rick Jackson for his investment in a Texas data center, and reiterated her plan for a pause on new data center construction.
Sept. 16, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Bottoms, Jackson clash over data centers. Both have history with the industry.
Greg Bluestein reports that Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms on Monday targeted Republican Rick Jackson’s investments in data centers, calling on her rival in the race for governor to “pledge to divest in every data center project that you are involved in.” Jackson responded with a demand of his own, demanding that Bottoms disclose her client list from a stint as a consultant, with a campaign spokesperson calling Bottoms a “two-faced, double-talking politician.”
