Georgia Trend Daily – Sept. 29, 2026
Sept. 29, 2026 Capitol Beat News
Another fuel tax suspension as gas prices continue to hit pocketbooks
Ty Tagami reports, for the third time this year, Gov. Brian Kemp ordered a suspension of Georgia’s fuel tax, as prices at the pump keep rising with no sign of relief. The 30-day suspension order, which Kemp signed Monday, goes into effect at 12:01 a.m. Tuesday and runs through Oct. 29.
Sept. 29, 2026 Georgia Trend – Exclusive!
Catching up with… Tomer Zvulun
Kenna Simmons reports, since taking the reins in 2013 as general and artistic director of the Atlanta Opera, Tomer Zvulun has grown the opera’s budget and productions to make it one of the largest in the country. His mission and that of the organization is “breaking the boundaries of opera.”
Sept. 29, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Coca-Cola taps Monster Energy executive for a top role
Amy Wenk reports that Rob Gehring, the chief executive of Monster Energy’s Americas business, will depart the energy drink company for a top role with an Atlanta beverage giant. Coca-Cola announced Friday that Gehring will become president of the company’s North America operating unit, effective Dec. 1.
Sept. 29, 2026 USA Today
Newest NWSL expansion club will be called Atlanta City FC
Seth Vertelny reports that the NWSL expansion franchise coming to Atlanta in 2028 will be named Atlanta City FC, the club announced on Monday, Sept. 28. The club also released its brand identity, colors and crest, which features a red phoenix surrounded by a dogwood blossom.
Sept. 29, 2026 Athens Banner-Herald
New $21 million public safety campus opens in Oconee County
Wayne Ford reports that Gov. Brian Kemp attended a ribbon-cutting ceremony on Monday for the dedication of a new Georgia State Patrol Post 32 headquarters and a new Department of Driver Services office at a location near Georgia Highway 316 in Oconee County.
Sept. 29, 2026 Capitol Beat News
Most Georgia school districts graduated at least nine out of 10 students
Ty Tagami reports, the public high school on-time graduation rate continued its nearly nonstop rise last school year, reaching an 88.5% statewide rate, the Georgia Department of Education announced Monday. That is more than a percentage point higher than the statewide “four-year adjusted cohort graduation rate” for 2025, which was 87.2%.
Sept. 29, 2026 Augusta Chronicle
Savannah River Site builds final nuclear waste vault for cleanup
Joe Hotchkiss reports, Savannah River Site workers are building a storage space the size of a four-story building to contain the last of the site’s Cold War-era nuclear waste. Being built with concrete and steel, Saltstone Disposal Unit 12 is expected to be the last large storage container for the U.S. Department of Energy’s Office of Environmental Management to safely dispose of the waste, according to Savannah River Mission Completion.
Sept. 29, 2026 WABE
Drawdown GA drops educational toolkit for communities navigating Georgia’s data center boom
Dormiya Vance reports that a new educational guide could help Georgia communities navigate one of the state’s fastest-growing businesses: data centers. Members of the statewide climate initiative, Drawdown GA, have released a data center toolkit to help citizens understand the facilities and their impact as more come to the state.
Sept. 29, 2026 Georgia Recorder
Debate over data center growth in Georgia heats up race for governor
Alander Rocha reports, as Georgia becomes a national leader in new data center construction, debate over how to regulate the booming industry has become a hot issue in the race for governor. The two candidates have proposed contrasting visions for how to deal with the massive, power-hungry facilities that help power and advance artificial intelligence, but voters don’t seem entirely sold on either’s plan.
Sept. 29, 2026 Columbus Ledger-Enquirer
What separates the four Georgia Public Service Commission candidates in the 2026 election
Kala Hunter reports that two pairs of Republican and Democratic candidates are competing to claim an open seat in District 5 or continue to claim or return to an old seat in District 3 on the Georgia Public Service Commission for a 6-year term.
Sept. 29, 2026 The Current
Georgia probes House candidate for allegedly voting in two states
Margaret Coker reports that Georgia’s secretary of state is investigating allegations that David Dillie, a Democratic candidate for state House District 161, may have voted in two state primaries this year in a violation of state law. Dillie, a 24-year-old mechanic for Gulfstream who lives near Pooler Parkway, has denied the accusation, first reported by The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, that he voted in both Georgia’s May primary and a month later in a primary in Nevada.
Sept. 29, 2026 State Affairs
Foster children with autism face Medicaid cuts in Georgia
Beau Evans reports that a key Medicaid insurer in Georgia has made significant cuts to funding for children with autism in foster care, further stressing local clinics after recent state budget deficits. The cuts took effect earlier this month when Amerigroup, which is the state’s only Medicaid insurance provider for foster-care services, slashed reimbursement rates by 30% for behavioral specialists who provide therapy for children with autism.
Sept. 29, 2026 Georgia Recorder
Georgia election panel asks Trump administration to help push for election system updates
Maya Homan reports that members of Georgia’s State Election Board have advanced a resolution calling on the secretary of state’s office to update the state’s voting machines and urging the U.S. Department of Justice and U.S. Department of Homeland Security to step in to ensure the update takes place. The resolution was introduced by the board’s GOP appointee, Carolyn Roddy and cited a Sept. 2 letter from Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to U.S. Attorney General Todd Blanche which said QR code-based voting systems may potentially violate the federal Help America Vote Act.
Sept. 29, 2026 Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Feds are seeking noncitizen voters. They’ve found three in Georgia
Caleb Groves and David Wickert report that federal prosecutors are targeting three alleged noncitizen voters in Georgia as part of the Trump administration’s campaign to seek and prosecute people who are noncitizens ahead of the midterms. Two of the three were among the 13 voters for whom the U.S. Department of Homeland Security demanded voting records in a subpoena issued to the Secretary of State’s office earlier this month, according to the secretary’s office.
