November 23, 2018

GA General Assembly completes special session, approves hurricane relief & jet fuel tax credit

The Georgia General Assembly completed their special legislative session on Saturday with the Senate approving the $470 million of emergency and tax incentives for the victims of Hurricane Michael. The $40 million in tax breaks for jet fuel for the airlines also was approved.

The Georgia Senate unanimously voted to approve two hurricane relief bills, which previously made it through the House earlier in the week. The Senate also included $69 million to help state and local agencies cover emergency response costs, $55 million to assist farmers suffering crop losses and $20 million for cleanup efforts on commercial timberland.

The House did not meet on Saturday but instead paid respects for their deceased colleague Rep. John Meadows from Calhoun, GA who died on the eve of the special session. Meadows was chairman of the House Rules committee.

Timber growers in 28 Georgia counties that were declared disaster areas by Gov. Nathan Deal can claim $200 million in tax credits intended at helping them to replant acreage of uprooted trees. The tax credits will also be available to area pecan farmers whose groves were heavily impacted by the storm.

Read more: https://www.allongeorgia.com/georgia-state-politics/ga-general-assembly-completes-special-session-approves-hurricane-relief-jet-fuel-tax-credit/

November 23, 2018

Democrats Release New Ad "Problems"

Democrats released a new television ad on Friday and it’s already airing around the state.

The ad focuses on Election Day problems and encourages voters who had problems – be it wait times, misinformation, or general problems with machines – to contact the Abrams for Governor campaign.

From a press release accompanying the ad:

The ad was release just ahead of Abrams’ acknowledgement that Brian Kemp would be Governor, a speech she said was ‘not a concession.’ Abrams vowed to launch a voter protection initiative following the election and says a lawsuit will be filed against the state of Georgia for ‘gross mismanagement.’

Read more: https://www.allongeorgia.com/georgia-state-politics/democrats-release-new-ad-problems/

November 23, 2018

Operation Vanilla Gorilla charge over 40 white supremacists 'Ghost Face Gangsters': drug trafficking

Operation Vanilla Gorilla charge over 40 white supremacists ‘Ghost Face Gangsters’: drug trafficking, firearms


On Monday, more than 40 associates of the notorious Ghost Face Gangsters criminal street gang have been indicted on federal charges related to drug trafficking and firearms possession throughout eastern Georgia and beyond.

A 93-page, 83-count federal grand jury indictment unsealed Nov. 16 in U.S. District Court in Savannah lists the charges against 43 men and women for a multitude of offenses involving trafficking methamphetamine, cocaine and heroin, announced Bobby L. Christine, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of Georgia. Federal, state and local agencies cooperated in the investigation dubbed Operation Vanilla Gorilla.

The indictment alleges that the narcotics-trafficking conspiracy began as early as 2015 and continued until the present, operating in Bryan, Chatham, Effingham, Emmanuel, Evans, and Tattnall Counties, in the Southern District of Georgia, and elsewhere. Members of the conspiracy associated with the Ghost Face Gangsters, a violent, white supremacist street gang operated largely from inside prisons, and with other criminal street gangs to aid in the distribution of controlled substances, for protection, and to promote a climate of fear.

Operation Vanilla Gorilla represents one of the largest takedowns of Ghost Face Gangsters associates to date, and follows the March 2018 arrests of 23 gang members in the Northern District of Georgia on federal charges, and multiple arrests in October 2018 on state charges in Spalding County, Ga.

Read more: https://www.allongeorgia.com/georgia-state-news/operation-vanilla-gorilla-charge-40-white-supremacists-ghost-face-gangsters-drug-traffickingfirearms/

November 23, 2018

Bill would end Georgia gun carry permits, called 'Constitutional Carry'

In the past, Constitutional Carry legislation has been filed in Georgia but has basically gone nowhere. However, that may all change with Georgia’s new governor-elect, Brian Kemp, who has said he would support measures related to Constitutional Carry.

A new bill, HB 2, was pre-filed on November 16, 2018 during the special session by State Representative Matt Gurtler (R-Tiger). Gurtler is known in the Georgia House of Representatives as a staunch gun rights conservative.

In Georgia, you can carry a concealed gun but it requires a background check and a valid carry permit. The bill looks to eliminate the carry permit, which cost about $85 and is good for five years once issued. However, HB 2 looks to allow Georgia to offer carry permits for those gun owners who want to carry their firearms to other states through reciprocity agreements.

Only legal law-abiding citizens would still be able to carry a gun under the “Constitutional Carry” bill, HB 2, and it would still restrict unlawful individuals such as convicted felons from having a gun. The bill would remove the permit requirement and background checks for law abiding citizens.

Read more: https://www.allongeorgia.com/2nd-amendment/bill-would-end-gun-georgia-carry-permits-called-constitutional-carry/

November 23, 2018

Town bans church from holding services in the public civic center, church fights back, DOJ releases

Town bans church from holding services in the public civic center, church fights back, DOJ releases statement


A Southern Baptist Church was not allowed to rent space to hold church services at a publicly funded town civic center.

Now, the U.S. Justice Department filed a Statement of Interest in U.S. District Court in South Carolina on Thursday supporting a church’s claim that the Town of Edisto Beach violated its rights under the First Amendment when the town barred it from renting space at the Town’s Civic Center.

“The Constitution protects the right of individuals and groups to exercise their religion without discrimination because of their religion,” said Acting Attorney General Matthew Whitaker. “The First Amendment requires that religious individuals and groups have the same opportunity to rent public facilities as other members of the community. The Department of Justice is committed to protecting the First Amendment rights of Americans, including fostering the religious expression of members of all faiths.”

The case, Redeemer Fellowship of Edisto Island v. Town of Edisto Beach, involves a small Christian congregation that sought to rent space for Sunday worship in the Civic Center, which is available for rental by community groups to hold events and activities. The town responded by enacting a policy barring worship services at the Civic Center, citing separation of church and state concerns. The town claimed that it wanted to avoid appearing as though they endorsed a religious group. As a result, the church filed a First Amendment lawsuit to allow it to rent space at the facility.

Read more: https://www.allongeorgia.com/1st-amendment/town-bans-church-from-holding-services-in-the-public-civic-center-church-fights-back-doj-releases-statement/

November 22, 2018

Annelie Klein spearheads first union for public university employees in Georgia

The United Campus Workers of Georgia is the first union for public university employees in Georgia. Key members point to Annelie Klein for spearheading its creation, but Klein said she’s had difficulties seeing the activist in herself.

Klein is a student affairs specialist and graduate coordinator assistant at the University of Georgia. She described her job as guiding Ph.D. students in two programs in the school of pharmacy from their application to the time they graduate or matriculate. She is also in charge of a residency program of 20-22 students.

As far as leisure time goes, Klein doesn’t have much since she helped found and lead UCWGA as a member on its steering committee. Tom Smith, the lead organizer for United Campus Workers, who worked and continues to work closely with Klein attested to this.

“If this work was easy, it would have happened already. Everything that she’s been involved in doing has been stuff that, in so many other contexts, people would say is impossible. People would tell you it’s impossible for state workers in Georgia to build a union,” Smith said.

Read more: https://www.redandblack.com/athensnews/annelie-klein-spearheads-first-union-for-public-university-employees-in/article_f12e5810-ea1b-11e8-84ad-131d0f8eae10.html

November 22, 2018

Georgia leaders try to stem Hollywood revolt after Kemp's win

Georgia’s top politicians tried to stem a revolt from some Hollywood executives who threatened to boycott the state’s booming film industry after Brian Kemp won the race for governor, urging moviemakers not to take their frustration out on thousands of workers who depend on their investments.

“The hard-working Georgians who serve on crews and make a living here are not to blame,” wrote Democrat Stacey Abrams, whose campaign for governor benefited from the filmmaking industry’s support, in a message on Twitter. “I promise: We will fight – and we will win.”

And the governor-elect’s campaign tried to tone down the rhetoric, with a statement Sunday reinforcing his support for the film tax credit and asserting that “it’s time to move past divisive politics and work together toward a safer, stronger Georgia.”

The threats came from a handful of prominent movie industry insiders after 10 days of post-election drama ended with final vote tallies showing Kemp edged out Abrams by roughly 55,000 votes. Abrams ended her campaign with a fiery speech in which she announced a new group to challenge Kemp’s “gross mismanagement” of the election in court.

Read more: https://www.ajc.com/news/state--regional-govt--politics/georgia-leaders-try-stem-hollywood-revolt-after-kemp-win/G4AaMZAmdTKrSvqglSQdIM/

November 22, 2018

Jimmy Carter joins the Georgia Agricultural Hall of Fame

He’s easily the most famous peanut farmer in history, and he is now the first president of the United States to be inducted into the Georgia Agricultural Hall of Fame.

President Jimmy Carter was inducted into the Georgia Agricultural Hall of Fame, housed at the University of Georgia, last week at the 64th UGA College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences Alumni Association Awards.

“This has been the highlight of my life in agriculture, my induction tonight,” Carter told the crowd gathered at the ceremony.

“It’s my honor to join all of my friends who are here, and those who are not here, as a member of Georgia Agricultural Hall of Fame. I’m very thankful to everybody here.”

Read more: https://www.onlineathens.com/news/20181113/jimmy-carter-joins-georgia-agricultural-hall-of-fame

November 22, 2018

Lawmakers tackle transit problems in rural Georgia

Fresh from igniting what could be a major expansion of public transportation in metro Atlanta, state lawmakers are taking aim at a more difficult task: fixing transit in rural Georgia.

Across large swaths of the state, seniors struggle to make it to medical appointments, workers can’t get to jobs and college students can’t find a ride to class. Many don’t own cars. And unlike their peers in metro Atlanta, their public transit options and private services like Uber and Lyft are limited or nonexistent.

Now a state House of Representatives commission is exploring options to meet rural Georgia’s unique transit needs while also limiting state spending. The commission is considering various private sector incentives, such as tax credits for employers, as well as transit subsidies for the unemployed in rural areas and small cities.

“I’m excited to see what can come out of something like that, creating a competitive environment,” said Rep. Kevin Tanner, R-Dawsonville, who chairs the House Commission on Transit Governance and Funding. “We want to create an environment for innovation.”

Read more: https://politics.myajc.com/news/local-govt--politics/lawmakers-tackle-transit-problems-rural-georgia/Y7ifs5CB6UOCOcWdXlpgOK/

November 22, 2018

South Carolina has $1 billion more to spend in 2019. How teachers, college students might benefit

COLUMBIA, SC -- S.C. lawmakers don’t return to Columbia until January, but the race for hundreds of millions of dollars in up-for-grabs money has already started.

Raising teacher pay, addressing the state’s underfunded pension system and replacing old voting machines are three top contenders, as state agencies and special interest groups try to win over lawmakers for their causes.

But even while the state appears flush with money, lawmakers aren’t free to spend all $1 billion in new state money, House budget chief Brian White said. Of that amount, only $546 million is one-time money, which lawmakers note can’t be spent on yearly costs, like employee pay.

The state still must pay for necessary costs like the REAL ID update, Medicaid and Hurricane Florence recovery, the Anderson Republican said on Monday.

Read more: https://www.heraldonline.com/latest-news/article221881105.html