Republican Steven McNeel wins Middle Georgia runoff for state Senate
ATLANTA — Republican Steven McNeel won a runoff for a Macon-area Georgia Senate seat Tuesday, holding off Democrat LeMario Brown, who had sought to flip the district. Democrats had hoped to gain ground in the Republican-dominated Senate after victories in statewide...
Lawmakers seek restraints on corporate home ownership
ATLANTA — Georgia lawmakers are again targeting corporate landlords in a bid to address housing costs during an election year when voters are concerned about affordability. "I have a grave fear that we are becoming a nation of renters and not homeowners," said Sen....
Georgia Power says it can reduce electricity bills despite storm damage repair costs
ATLANTA — Georgia's main electric power monopoly filed requests with state regulators Tuesday to set new billing rates for customers that will recover the cost of storm-related repairs and adjust for changes in fuel prices. The company said its new rate requests will...
Bill limiting data center costs from being passed on to residents clears Georgia House
ATLANTA — The Georgia House approved a bill Tuesday that aims to protect residential and retail customers from bearing the costs of data centers, but critics said the legislation won’t do enough. The proposal is the first of several pending data center bills to pass...
Democratic state Rep. Sharper set to plead guilty to pandemic unemployment fraud
ATLANTA — Another Democratic state legislator, state Rep. Dexter Sharper, is expected to plead guilty to COVID-19 unemployment fraud charges. Sharper, D-Valdosta, allegedly obtained $13,825 in unemployment insurance benefits even though he was still earning income in...
Republican Pridemore not running for reelection to PSC
ATLANTA — A Republican incumbent on the Georgia Public Service Commission announced Tuesday that she will not stand for reelection, just months after two Democrats ejected two GOP incumbents with decisive electoral victories. Tricia Pridemore, appointed in 2018 and up...
Tax cut for low wage workers would slow construction of apartments for low wage workers
ATLANTA — An income tax cutting proposal designed by Georgia's Senate Republicans to address the election year affordability issue would also cut into the supply of new housing for low wage earners, potentially harming some of the same people it would help. Senate...
Georgia lawmakers support measure to let pharmacists provide HIV prevention medicines
ATLANTA — People who worry about exposure to the HIV virus may soon be able to walk into a Georgia pharmacy and buy preventative medicines. Bipartisan legislation that would allow pharmacists to order and dispense or inject preventative HIV drugs passed the Georgia...
Georgia Senate Republicans approve lower income taxes as their answer to affordability
ATLANTA — The Republican-led state Senate adopted an historic income tax cut plan Thursday that Democrats decried as an election year ploy that would undermine the state budget. There was no official estimate of the cost of Senate Bill 476, which calls for no income...