ATLANTA – First-time unemployment claims in Georgia fell last week even as the state Department of Labor warned recipients that the federal portion of their benefits is about to run out.
Jobless Georgians filed 19,183 initial claims with the labor department last week, down 9,905 from the previous week. The decline occurred after an increase in claims the week before that ran counter to a weeks-long downward trend.
Meanwhile, unemployment benefits distributed through several federal programs created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security (CARES) Act last March are due to expire during the week ending Dec. 26 for claims filed by individual Georgians and on Dec. 30 for employer-filed claims.
“We will continue to process and adjudicate all of the claims we receive, paying all eligible benefits as quickly as possible,” Georgia Commissioner of Labor Mark Butler said Thursday. “Congress will decide if a new program will be implemented or extensions will be put in place.”
Pressure is building on Congress to enact a new economic stimulus package before the holidays to replace the CARES Act, but the outcome of the current negotiations is far from certain.
The labor department is encouraging claimants of federal unemployment benefits to continue requesting the payments after the programs expire in case Congress either passes new legislation or extends the current programs.
Since last March 21, when the coronavirus pandemic began to hit Georgia’s economy hard, the labor department has paid out more than $16 billion in unemployment benefits to almost 4.1 million Georgia claimants, more than the last nine years combined.
During the last week alone, the agency paid out $120 million in state and federal benefits.
The job sector accounting for the largest share of initial unemployment claims last week by far was accommodation and food services with 5,716 claims. The administrative and support services sector was next with 2,059 claims, followed by manufacturing with 1.853.
More than 164,000 job openings are currently listed on EmployGeorgia. The labor department offers online resources for finding career opportunities, building a resume and assisting with other reemployment needs.
ATLANTA – The recession prompted by the coronavirus pandemic is likely over in Georgia, but the state remains far short of a full recovery, a University of Georgia economist said Thursday.
Georgia is on track for an economic growth rate of 4% next year, outperforming a national growth forecast of 3.5%, Benjamin Ayers, dean of UGA’s Terry College of Business, said during the university’s annual economic forecast. The event, usually held at the Georgia World Congress Center in downtown Atlanta, was livestreamed this year.
“Full recovery of the economy will arrive sooner in Georgia than in the United States,” Ayers said. “In Georgia, there’s relatively less economic debris to clean up.”
Ayers said consumer spending and a booming housing market will be key drivers in Georgia’s economic recovery. Logistics, distribution, business services, financial technology, education and health services are expected to return to full employment most quickly.
Jobs in entertainment and hospitality may see some of the fastest recoveries, but those industries are coming back from a near all-time low, he said.
With entertainment and hospitality ground to a standstill by the pandemic for much of this year, Georgia’s economy is expected to contract by 3.7% by the end of 2020.
However, the strong growth projection for next year means this year’s losses should be recouped by the end of 2021.
UGA’s forecast, developed by Terry College’s Selig Center for Economic Growth, is based on expectations that an effective COVID-19 vaccine will be widely available by the middle of next year.
As a result, Ayers said, most of the 2021 economic recovery will come during the third and fourth quarters of the year. Until then, Georgia still will be plagued by public anxiety over the virus, slow wage growth and low demand for entertainment services including restaurant dining and movie theaters.
“We are in the second phase of the recovery currently, which is an extended period of choppy economic growth that will linger until a vaccine is widely available,” he said. “It’s going to be a slog to get back to a period of steady, above-average economic growth.”
Ayers predicted a homebuilding boom next year, driven by low mortgage rates and the desire for larger, nicer homes on the part of current homeowners who have been cooped up for months.
However, commercial construction is not expected to share in that boom because the market is still absorbing an ample supply of existing retail and office space, he said.
Ayers said another factor buoying Georgia’s growth prospects is the likely culmination of major economic development projects now in the pipeline.
“Nine of the 10 largest projects announced in the first three quarters of 2020 were announced after the COVID-19 shutdown began,” he said. “This success reflects many factors that make Georgia a great state in which to do business.”
The Appalachian Regional Port near Chatsworth was built by the Georgia Ports Authority, Murray County and CSX Corp. as a public-private partnership.
ATLANTA – Georgia is going to need $135 billion to $150 billion during the next 30 years to keep up with the demand for freight capacity of a fast-growing state, a logistics industry executive said Wednesday.
That’s far too much money for the state government to cover, Brad Skinner, a board member at Denver-based freight railroad operator OmniTrax, told members of the Georgia Freight & Logistics Commission. Georgia is going to have to turn to the private sector for help, he said.
“There’s not enough money to do some of the things Georgia needs to do,” said Skinner, who also serves as a member of the commission. “You have to find private investors with deep pockets.”
Georgia has experience with public-private partnerships in the transportation sector. The interstate toll lanes that have begun to pop up across metro Atlanta during the last several years are being built and financed by private consortiums that are recovering their investments from toll revenues.
Another example is the Appalachian Regional Port near Chatsworth, an inland terminal built by the Georgia Ports Authority, Murray County and CSX Corp.
A subcommittee headed by Skinner recommended Wednesday that the commission submit legislation to the General Assembly expanding the role of the State Road and Tollway Authority (SRTA) – which oversees the toll lanes – to negotiating public-private partnerships for freight infrastructure projects across the state.
“There’s a lot of money out there that I believe can be captured,” Skinner said.
Rep. Kevin Tanner, R-Dawsonville, one of the commission’s co-chairmen, said financing freight infrastructure improvements through public-private partnerships would give the state a new economic development tool.
“Expanding the role of SRTA could really be a game-changer, especially for rural Georgia,” he said.
While the state courts private investment in freight projects, some public funding will also be required.
Tanner said he and state Sen. Brandon Beach, R-Alpharetta, the commission’s other co-chairman, plan to meet with officials from the Georgia Department of Revenue this month to talk about potential sources, including creating a dedicated trust fund for freight improvements.
But Stephanie Smith, senior vice president of supply chain and delivery for The Home Depot and a commission member, warned against imposing any taxes that might damage the state’s reputation for welcoming corporate investment.
“Georgia is a very business-friendly state,” she said. “We need to be careful not to do anything that makes Georgia less competitive.”
The commission, formed last year to look for ways to move freight more efficiently through Georgia, is expected to deliver its recommendations to the General Assembly before the 2021 legislative session begins next month.
Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger (Photo by Beau Evans)
ATLANTA – Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger defended his top election manager Wednesday, one day after Gabriel Sterling criticized President Donald Trump for continuing to pursue claims of massive fraud in last month’s election.
“He spoke with passion and he spoke the truth,” Raffensperger told reporters during a news conference at the Georgia Capitol. “It’s about time more people out there were speaking the truth.”
Sterling, a Republican, took Trump and Georgia’s two GOP U.S. senators, David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, to task on Tuesday for not doing more to calm a political atmosphere that has led to threats against elections workers.
Despite losing to President-elect Joe Biden in Georgia by more than 12,000 votes, a result that was formally certified last week, Trump has continued to post claims on Twitter of massive fraud. Perdue and Loeffler have called for Raffensperger’s resignation.
“This is exactly the kind of language that is at the base of a growing threat environment for elections workers who are simply doing their jobs,” Raffensperger said. “We will continue to do our jobs, follow the law and follow the process.”
Raffensperger, also a Republican, suggested it’s time to move forward to the Jan. 5 runoff elections for Georgia’s two Senate seats. He said his office has received 983,735 requests for absentee ballots thus far.
“I believe Jan. 5 is where people should be expending their energy” he said. “We need to look ahead. Control of the United States Senate and a [state] Public Service Commission seat are at stake.”
Perdue and Loeffler are being opposed by Democrats Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock, respectively, in next month’s runoffs. The results will decide whether Republicans keep their majority in the Senate.
Lauren “Bubba” McDonald, a Republican member of the Public Service Commission, is also on the runoff ballot. He is being challenged by Democrat Daniel Blackman.
Also on Wednesday, Raffensperger announced he has launched an investigation into several groups he said have repeatedly and aggressively sought to register ineligible, out-of-state, or deceased voters ahead of the runoffs.
“I have issued clear warnings several times to groups and individuals working to undermine the integrity of elections in Georgia through false and fraudulent registrations,” he said. “We have received specific evidence that these groups have solicited voter registrations from ineligible individuals who have passed away or live out of state.
“I will investigate these claims thoroughly and take action against anyone attempting to undermine our elections.”
The targeted groups include America Votes, Vote Forward and The New Georgia Project. All three groups have denied the secretary of state’s allegations.
Gabriel Sterling, Georgia’s election system implementation manager, gives an update on the presidential election recount on Nov. 18, 2020. (Secretary of State video)
Georgia’s top election manager ripped into President Donald Trump Tuesday, as well as U.S. Sens. David Perdue and Kelly Loeffler, for not doing more to tamp down unfounded claims of voting fraud after a local election worker was threatened with a noose.
Gabriel Sterling, the state’s election implementation manager, called on the Republican president and Georgia’s GOP senators to “step up” after Trump supporters took video of a 20-year-old election-system contractor, threatened him with a noose on Twitter and tracked down home addresses for members of his family.
“I can’t begin to explain the level of anger that I have right now over this,” Sterling, who is a Republican, said of the recent threat. “And every American, every Georgian, Republican and Democrat alike, should have that same level of anger.”
Sterling also denounced threats that have been made against his supervisor, Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger, including “sexualized threats” sent to Raffensperger’s wife’s cell phone.
“This is our elections,” Sterling said. “This is the backbone of our democracy. And all of you who have not said a damn word are complicit in this. It’s too much.”
Raffensperger and his family have been threatened several times recently including when someone broke into a home owned by a family member, his office said. Caravans of Trump supporters waving flags from pickup trucks have also been cruising around and honking horns in Raffensperger’s neighborhood.
On Monday, Raffensperger said certain people are misleading Trump and his supporters with “fantastic claims” of election fraud aimed at “exploiting [their] emotions.”
A top deputy in Raffensperger’s office, Sterling has held multiple news conferences in recent weeks as state and county election officials worked through two separate recounts of the 2020 presidential election results in Georgia. The second recount is on track to wrap up by midnight Wednesday.
Certified election results show Trump lost to President-elect Joe Biden in Georgia by 12,670 votes, a margin that narrowed by around 1,500 votes after uncounted ballots were located during the state’s first recount. That margin is not likely to shrink enough to reverse the final outcome, Sterling has said.
That has not stopped Trump from taking to Twitter repeatedly in recent days to slam Raffensperger and pressure Gov. Brian Kemp to intervene in the president’s favor. Attorneys allied with Trump have filed federal lawsuits seeking to de-certify the election that contain claims echoing many of his mail-in ballot and voting-machine fraud allegations.
In an impassioned plea, Sterling on Tuesday urged Trump to back off the divisive language he’s used to spread doubt about the election results while the second recount continues and lawsuits wind through court, adding: “Mr. President, it looks like you likely lost the state of Georgia.”
“Stop inspiring people to commit potential acts of violence,” Sterling said. “Someone’s going to get hurt. Someone’s going to get shot. Someone’s going to get killed. And it’s not right.”
Sterling also lashed out at Perdue and Loeffler, both staunch Trump supporters who called for Raffensperger’s resignation last month and have refused to back off that position. Their push for Raffensperger to resign prompted Trump to describe Georgia’s secretary of state as “an enemy of the people.”
On Tuesday, Sterling said those actions by the Trump, Loeffler and Perdue worked to incite violence and helped open a “floodgate of crap” related to fraud conspiracies and threats.
“We need you to step up,” Sterling said, singling out Perdue and Loeffler by name. “And if you’re going to take a position of leadership, show some. It has to stop.”
Campaign spokespersons for Loeffler and Perdue said both senators condemn violence but added they also would continue pushing for “accountability” of Georgia’s election system.
“Like many officials, as someone who has been the subject of threats, of course Senator Loeffler condemns violence of any kind. How ridiculous to even suggest otherwise,” said Loeffler campaign spokesman Stephen Lawson.
“We also condemn inaction and lack of accountability in our election system process – and won’t apologize for calling it out.”
Perdue and Loeffler are competing against Democrats Jon Ossoff and Rev. Raphael Warnock in runoff elections set for Jan. 5.
