by Ty Tagami | Jul 15, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — Delta Air Lines has paid the federal government $8.1 million to settle claims that it misused a portion of the $11.9 billion in taxpayer dollars it received as emergency aid during the pandemic, according to the Justice Department.
The U.S. Attorney for the Northern District of Georgia investigated after a whistleblower alleged Delta had violated executive pay limits connected with the federal funding, $8.2 billion of it in the form of grants that didn’t have to be repaid.
A $425,000 cap on executive pay was supposed to be in effect between March 2020 and April 2023. Federal attorneys concluded Delta had paid some executives more than that, the U.S. Attorney’s Office announced Tuesday, adding that Delta then allegedly falsely certified its compliance with the caps and failed to notify the Treasury Department of its breach of the agreement.
If true, this would have been a violation of the rules of the Payroll Support Program established by Congress under the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act.
Delta’s payment settled the allegations without determining liability, prosecutors said, noting that the whistleblower got a cut of the settlement money.
Still, U.S. Attorney Theodore S. Hertzberg suggested the company misused public dollars.
“When companies accept federal assistance, especially generous pandemic-relief funds like those at issue here, they owe a duty to the American people to respect the conditions placed on those funds,” Hertzberg said. “We will continue to enforce all available laws to punish the misuse of taxpayers’ money.”
by Dave Williams | Jul 15, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Georgia energy regulators Tuesday unanimously approved Georgia Power’s plan to keep burning coal and gas to generate electricity, a move critics warned will increase rates to meet the unsubstantiated needs of data centers.
The state Public Service Commission (PSC) signed off on the Atlanta-based utility’s 2025 Integrated Resource Plan (IRP), outlining the mix of energy sources the company intends to rely on for power generation during the coming years. Although Tuesday’s vote took place with virtually no discussion, it followed months of hearings on the plan, which Georgia Power submitted in January.
The IRP authorizes Georgia Power to produce at least 6,000 additional megawatts of generating capacity through 2031 and up to 8,500 megawatts if the utility demonstrates a need for it. To help meet that demand, the company plans to continue operating coal-burning plants at Plant Bowen near Cartersville and Plant Scherer near Macon and boost natural gas production at Plant McIntosh near Savannah.
The plan also commits Georgia Power to increasing its use of renewable energy through new utility-scale and rooftop solar projects as well as battery storage.
“As our state continues to grow and thrive, the approval of this comprehensive plan helps to ensure we have the resources and programs we need to reliably and economically meet the future energy needs of our customers,” Kim Greene, chairman, president and CEO of Georgia Power, said after Tuesday’s 5-0 vote.
“I’m grateful to everyone who helped develop this plan and participated in the process over the last six months, and to the Georgia PSC for its careful consideration and approval of a strategy that will help us deliver the energy Georgians need and deserve.”
The company had planned to close all of its coal plants but decided the two Georgia plants and an additional coal plant in Alabama are still needed to help meet an unprecedented increase in generating capacity required to serve the rapid growth of power-hungry data centers springing up across Georgia.
“As data center construction continues in Georgia, this IRP puts us in a safe and secure spot to meet that energy demand,” commission Chairman Jason Shaw said. “This long-term plan continues to strike a balance between reliability and affordability.”
The PSC passed a rule in January aimed at making sure data centers and other “large-load” customers pick up the costs of the additional capacity they need rather than pass on those expenses to residential and small-business ratepayers. But legislation that would have given that mandate the authority of state law failed to gain traction in the General Assembly this year.
Two weeks ago, the commission approved Georgia Power’s plan to freeze base rates for the next three years. However, the company still will be allowed to recover from customers its storm damage costs from Hurricane Helene as soon as next year.
Environmental groups that have opposed the IRP said Tuesday’s vote will drive up electric rates while continued use of fossil fuels will harm both the environment and human health.
“The commissioners’ reckless vote today means devastating costs and impacts are coming for the people of Georgia,” said Neil Sardana, senior policy manager for the nonprofit Georgia Conservation Voters. “In 10 years, bills really could double if we continue down this path.”
Opponents also argued the plan is based on unreliable projections of the need for a huge increase in generating capacity. They cited language in an agreement Georgia Power and the PSC’s Public Interest Advocacy Staff reached last week endorsing the IRP that acknowledged the projections used to justify the utility’s continued need for fossil fuels are uncertain.
Environmental advocates also charged Georgia Power with violating the terms of a previous agreement by abandoning a pledge to expand “demand-side management” programs through energy conservation initiatives.
“I am shocked that Georgia Power did not honor its commitment and heartbroken the commission did not step up and defend billpayers in this moment,” said Jennifer Whitfield, a senor attorney in the Southern Environmental Law Center’s Atlanta office. “The commission had an opportunity to give this plan a silver lining but instead left meaningful relief for Georgians on the table.”
by Dave Williams | Jul 15, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Gov. Brian Kemp is ordering state agencies to hold their spending at current levels during this fiscal year and fiscal 2027.
“While the governor remains committed to meeting the needs of our growing state, conservative fiscal management means prioritizing spending to live within our means and keeping more tax dollars in the pocketbooks of our citizens,” Rick Dunn, director of the Governor’s Office of Planning and Budget (OPB),” wrote state agency heads in letter dated last Friday.
Kemp’s order comes amid uncertainty over the potential impacts of President Donald Trump’s budget bill on states. The Republican-controlled Congress passed legislation July 3 containing about $1.5 trillion in spending reductions aimed at partly offsetting a $4 trillion tax cut Democrats argue will primarily benefit the wealthy. Those cuts are expected to filter down to the state and local levels of government, affecting among other things health-care services and education programs.
Dunn’s letter calls on state agency heads to develop plans for dealing with potential losses in federal funding.
“While we believe our current revenue projections are sufficient to meet our spending requirements, prudent fiscal management requires that agencies be prepared if conditions were to change,” the budget director wrote. “We are asking that all agencies internally prepare thoughtful plans for a state funds holdback contingency as we continue to monitor economic trends and policy changes at the national level.”
There will be some wiggle room in the governor’s order. Agencies with “mandatory” needs that cannot be met by redirecting fund from the current fiscal year without hurting service delivery will be allowed to discuss those needs with the OPB.
Some legislative Democrats are calling on Kemp to call a special session of the General Assembly to consider providing state funds to fill the gaps caused by federal spending reductions. However, the Republican governor thus far has shown no inclination to reconvene lawmakers under the Gold Dome before the start of the 2026 legislative session in January.
The state began fiscal 2026 July 1 with a budget of $37.7 billion. State agency heads must submit their spending requests for the 2026 mid-year budget and the fiscal 2027 spending plan by Sept. 5.
by Ty Tagami | Jul 15, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — Georgia’s top elected education official will face a third challenger in next year’s Republican primary election when he seeks a fourth term.
In early June, State School Superintendent Richard Woods announced he was seeking re-election as two others were contesting the seat. Now, Fred “Bubba” Longgrear, the superintendent of the Candler County School District, has entered the race.
Longgrear is the only local public school employee in the running. Randell E. Trammel, who lives in Cartersville and is CEO of the Center for Civic Engagement, announced his candidacy in June, nearly a year after Nelva M. Lee, a Locust Grove entrepreneur whom Gov. Brian Kemp had appointed to a two-year term on the state Board of Community Health in 2021.
Woods previously worked as a local educator but has led the state superintendent’s office since 2015.
Longgrear touts his experience as a teacher, coach and principal, plus 11 years as a superintendent, currently for the 2,000 students in Candler County, straddling I-16 between Macon and Savannah. His campaign website emphasizes safe learning environments, literacy and career development.
by Ty Tagami | Jul 14, 2025 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA — The campaigns of the two announced Republicans for Georgia’s U.S. Senate seat held by Democrat Jon Ossoff are disclosing similar amounts of outside campaign money raised.
The unofficial reports from the two GOP candidates, U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter, R-St. Simons, and John King, Georgia’s elected insurance and safety fire commissioner, had Carter slightly ahead of King in drawing money from donors. But both of their campaign accounts were dwarfed by incumbent Ossoff, the most prodigious fundraiser in the Senate.
Ossoff’s campaign announced raising more than $10 million over the three months from April through June, ending the second quarter with $15.5 million in the bank.
The Federal Election Commission filing deadline is not until Tuesday, but a source close to the Carter campaign said the congressman will be reporting that he raised $1.1 million from donors and loaned himself another $2 million.
King’s campaign said he had raised $518,000 plus another $150,000 for his political action committee, or PAC. King also reportedly rolled another $350,000 from his state election campaign funds into that PAC, bringing his total haul to about $1 million.
Carter and King will spend some of their money battling each other for the Republican nomination, but so far Ossoff has drawn no Democratic challengers and can continue amassing his war chest for the 2026 general election.
