Keith Parker
Keith Parker is ending his first year as MARTA’s general manager with glowing remarks from the chair of the state Legislature’s committee that oversees MARTA.
“I really appreciate everything that is going on right now at MARTA and look forward to an excellent second year, as we have had an excellent first year under Mr. Parker,” said state Rep. Mike Jacobs (R-Brookhaven), who chairs the joint House-Senate committee known as MARTOC.
Jacobs delivered his remarks Friday, during MARTOC’s final meeting ...more
Coal-fired power plants, such as Plant Bowen near Cartersville, are supported by a majority of millennials, according to a poll by the Sierra Club’s Georgia chapter. Credit: panoramio.com (2008)
Young Georgia voters strongly favor the proposed Georgia Power rate hike and fewer than half support shifting from coal to renewables to generate electricity, according to a results of a poll by the Georgia chapter of the Sierra Club.
The polling company advised against reading too much into results from the millennials ...more
Hog waste is piped into lagoons, where it is stored until it’s sprayed on nearby land. Credit: jhenryfair.com
Environmentalists are praising a decision by state officials to delay consideration of a proposal to ease regulations on hog farming.
“We applaud the DNR Board for helping to put a stop to the shortsighted rollback,” Chris Manganiello, policy director for Georgia River Network, said in a statement.
The board that oversees the Georgia Department of Natural Resources has deferred action on a proposal that ...more
By David Pendered
A new report that calls for overhauling Georgia’s method of paying for K-12 education has landed near the starting gate of a potentially contentious gubernatorial campaign.
Sen. Jason Carter, as portrayed in his Senate photograph
State Sen. Jason Carter (D-Decatur) has put education reform at the front and center of his new platform. Gov. Nathan Deal responded immediately that he has increased the state’s contribution to school funding despite the recession.
The timing couldn’t be better for a report from ...more
The head of the Georgia branch of David Koch’s Americans for Prosperity announced her resignation Friday.
Virginia Galloway
Virginia Galloway, state director of AFP-Georgia, sent an email saying she will take a new position early next year with the Faith and Freedom Coalition. Ralph Reed serves as president of FFC.
Galloway leaves AFP as a major tax reform proposal is ramping up for debate in the 2014 session of the state General Assembly. Galloway has been a leading voice in the fair ...more
A new report on state funding for K-12 education raises some challenging questions about Georgia’s ability to provide a skilled workforce to businesses – especially in areas beyond metro Atlanta.
School districts are coping with funding cuts through measures including trimming days from the school year and assigning more students to each teacher, according to the report from the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute. School budgets are squeezed by shrinking state support and by the declining local tax base caused by ...more
A report released today on Georgia’s tax structure fuels a debate over proposed tax reform that advocates are increasingly pushing for the 2014 session of the state Legislature. The Georgia Budget and Policy Institute issued a tax analysis that contends the proposed “Fair Tax” reform would raise taxes on and hurt Georgia’s “families, businesses, communities and the economy.” The report follows a promise made last month by an advocacy group that said it would help convince Georgia voters to approve a fair ...more
A new commissioner took charge Thursday of the state department that oversees a number of programs that influence local planning and economic development. Gretchen Corbin replaces Mike Beatty as commissioner for the Department of Community Affairs. Corbin served most recently in the state’s Department of Economic Development – where she worked on teams that convinced Caterpillar and Baxter International to open manufacturing facilities in Georgia. Beatty will lead a non-profit organization engaged in workforce development. DCA’s most recent work in Atlanta was ...more
Georgia’s port in Brunswick is benefiting from a rise in the export of Georgia-grown wheat to Mexico, and the first vessel of the season sailed from Brunswick Thursday. Georgia farmers have bet heavy on wheat this year. The idea that Atlanta has an interest in Georgia’s wheat exports through a state port is fueled in part by Mayor Kasim Reed. Reed has linked Atlanta’s stature as a global logistics hub with a seaport capable of handling the world’s largest cargo vessels. To read ...more
The Army colonel who will take over the Savannah district Friday, and the sensitive task of the harbor deepening project, brings a wealth of experience managing complex engineering scenarios, according to his military resume. The change in command is a routine event, but it comes at a sensitive time. Federal funding for the planned harbor deepening project hangs in the balance, even as Georgia has committed $230 million toward the project. To read more, see the SaportaReport.com blog roll to the ...more
