by Dave Williams | Oct 2, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – The ports of Savannah and Brunswick were closed for a second day Wednesday, the result of a longshoremen’s strike affecting ports along the East and Gulf coasts from Maine to Texas.
The International Longshoremen’s Association (ILA) is seeking a significant pay raise from the United States Maritime Alliance (USMX), a shipping industry group representing terminal operators and ocean carriers, as well as an end to the use of automated cranes, gates and container-moving trucks in unloading or loading freight.
“USMX brought on this strike when they decided to hold firm to foreign-owned ocean carriers earning billion-dollar profits at United States ports but not compensate the American ILA longshore workers who perform the labor that brings them their wealth,” Harold Daggett, president of the 85,000-member ILA , wrote in a statement posted on social media.
“We are prepared to fight as long as necessary, to stay out on strike for whatever period of time it takes, to get the wages and protections against automation our ILA members deserve.”
The Georgia Ports Authority, which operates both the Savannah and Brunswick ports, said in a prepared statement it will reopen once the union and management reach an agreement.
“We enjoy a good working relationship with our local labor partners and are not involved in the contract negotiations in New Jersey,” the authority wrote.
The Port of Savannah is the second-busiest port on the East Coast and the fourth-busiest in the nation. The Port of Brunswick is the nation’s second-busiest for vehicle cargo.
If the first longshoremen’s strike since 1977 drags on for any length of time, prices on goods around the country could go up and potentially result in shortages at the start of the holiday shopping season.
by Dave Williams | Oct 1, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Georgia’s prison system is violating inmates’ constitutional rights by failing to protect them from widespread violence, the U.S. Justice Department announced Tuesday.
The agency released a 94-page report following a multi-year investigation that originally focused on whether the state was adequately protecting LGBT inmates from sexual abused and expanded to cover all inmates incarcerated at medium- and close-security prisons.
“Our findings report lays bare the horrific and inhumane conditions that people are confined to inside Georgia’s state prison system,” Assistant U.S. Attorney General Kristen Clarke of the Justice Department’s Civil Rights Division said during a news conference in Atlanta.
“Our statewide investigation exposes longstanding, systemic violations stemming from complete indifference and disregard to the safety and security of people Georgia holds in its prisons. … The Justice Department is committed to using its authority to bring about humane conditions of confinement that are consistent with contemporary standards of decency and respect for human dignity.”
Georgia has the fourth-highest state prison population in the country, with nearly 50,000 inmates incarcerated in 34 state-operated prisons and four private prisons.
The report attributed widespread violence in the prison system to understaffing and systemic deficiencies in physical plant, housing, control of contraband, and incident reporting and investigations. It also concluded that gangs are exerting improper influence inside prisons, including controlling entire housing units and operating unlawful and dangerous schemes inside and from prisons.
Clarke said the report documented incidents of assault, rape, and murder inside Georgia prisons, while inmates are relegated to fear, filth, and neglect.
“Individuals incarcerated by the Georgia Department of Corrections should not be subjected to life-threatening violence and other forms of severe deprivation while serving their prison terms,” said Ryan Buchanan, U.S. attorney for the Northern District of Georgia.
“We expect the state of Georgia to share our sense of urgency about the seriousness of the violations described in this report and to work cooperatively with the Department of Justice, our office, and our U.S. attorney partners in the Middle and Southern Districts to remedy these systemic deficiencies in Georgia prisons.”
The state has been working to come to grips with conditions inside Georgia prisons. The corrections department hired a consultant in June to conduct an assessment of the state’s prisons, while both the Georgia House and Senate have formed study committees to focus on prison conditions and consider funding recommendations aimed at improving safety.
Georgia Commissioner of Corrections Tyrone Oliver told a Senate study committee in August that reduced staffing and aging infrastructure are contributing to an influx of contraband that is driving an increase in criminal activity inside the prisons.
by Dave Williams | Oct 1, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Former President Donald Trump has opened up a solid lead over Vice President Kamala Harris in Georgia five weeks before the Nov. 5 election, according to a new poll.
A survey of 942 likely voters in Georgia conducted Sept. 25-29 by Quinnipiac University showed Republican Trump with 50% of the vote in the Peach State to 44% for Democrat Harris, well outside the poll’s margin of error of plus-or-minus 3.2%.
Libertarian candidate Chase Oliver and independents Cornel West and Claudia De la Cruz each received 1% support.
Trump held the edge on Harris in the Georgia poll on the economy and immigration, with 53% of the respondents saying they believe Trump would do a better job handling both key issues. Respondents also rated the former president higher than Harris 52% to 46% on how he would handle international conflicts.
“Harris confronts a troubling Trump trifecta,” said Tim Malloy, a polling analyst for Quinnipiac. “He leads her on the economy and immigration and has the edge when it comes to who would best handle a national crisis.”
Harris rated above Trump only on the issue of abortion in the Georgia poll, with 50% of those surveyed saying she would do a better job on that issue to 43% for Trump.
Poll respondents were evenly divided on how they view Trump, with 48% viewing him favorably and 48% unfavorably. Harris was underwater in that category with 43% of the respondents rating her favorably and 50% unfavorably.
by Dave Williams | Oct 1, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Voting rights advocates and local election officials Tuesday criticized new rules the Republican-controlled State Election Board has approved in recent weeks as unnecessary mandates that will only throw doubt into the voting process.
“This State Election Board has unleashed a Pandora’s box of chaos and confusion,” Isabel Otero, Georgia policy director for the Southern Poverty Law Center, told the state Senate’s Urban Affairs Committee, a panel made up entirely of Democrats. “[The new rules] are going to give them an excuse to deny certification [of results] and cause unnecessary delays. … Our voters deserve better.”
Specifically, Otero cited three rules changes the board has approved since early August allowing county election officials to certify results only after a “reasonable inquiry” ensures their accuracy, requiring those same officials to reconcile the total number of ballots cast in each precinct with the total number of voters, and requiring counties to hand-count the number of ballots cast at polling places on Election Night.
“Those three rules in combination allow bad actors to deny election results,” Otero said.
The three board members who voted for the rules changes have denied taking part in a conspiracy to help former President Donald Trump carry Georgia’s 16 electoral votes by sowing uncertainty in the election results and delaying certification of the vote. Instead, they have argued the changes are aimed at ensuring the integrity of the results.
But Chris Bruce, policy and advocacy director for the ACLU of Georgia, said the board has overstepped its legal authority by passing the new rules just weeks ahead of Election Day.
“The State Election Board is trying to become a legislative body,” Bruce said. “All this is doing is spreading mistrust and voter apathy.”
Milton Kidd, director of the Douglas County Board of Elections, said the requirements the new rules will impose on local election workers after the polls close on Election Night are so burdensome he’s afraid many won’t be willing to serve in the future.
“There’s no legitimate purpose to having poll workers do this,” Kidd said. “It’s chaos from an administrative perspective.”
The Cobb County Board of Elections recently adopted a resolution opposing the rules changes.
“It’s a solution looking for a problem,” said Tori Silas, who chairs the Cobb board.
Cindy Battles, policy director with the Georgia Coalition for the People’s Agenda, said the new requirements are forcing counties to spend more money on municipal elections without help from the state. Some have even considered cutting their emergency services budgets to pay for elections, she said.
The State Election Board may not be through with rules changes. The board has additional meetings scheduled for Oct. 8 and Oct. 15 ahead of the Nov. 5 election.
by Dave Williams | Oct 1, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – President Joe Biden has approved a major disaster declaration for Georgia in the aftermath of Hurricane Helene.
The Biden administration’s action means funding through the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will be available to affected residents in 41 counties in South Georgia hit hardest by last Friday’s storm.
The list of counties includes Atkinson, Appling, Bacon, Ben Hill, Berrien, Brooks, Bulloch, Burke, Candler, Chatham, Clinch, Coffee, Colquitt, Columbia, Cook, Echols, Emanuel, Evans, Glascock, Irwin, Jeff Davis, Jefferson, Jenkins, Johnson, Lanier, Laurens, Liberty, Lincoln, Lowndes, McDuffie, Montgomery, Pierce, Richmond, Screven, Tattnall, Telfair, Toombs, Treutlen, Ware, Washington, and Wheeler.
Residents of those counties may be eligible for grants for temporary housing and home repairs, low-cost loans to cover uninsured property losses and other programs to help them recover from the effects of the storm.
With recovery efforts still in full swing, Gov. Brian Kemp Tuesday extended the state of emergency in Georgia for another week. Under the order, federal rules and regulations limiting operating hours for commercial truck drivers have been suspended to let an uninterrupted supply of goods and services be dispatched to areas in need of assistance. The new order will run through Oct. 9 unless the governor renews it again.
The governor also issued an executive order Tuesday suspending collection of the state sales tax on gasoline and other motor fuels for the duration of the emergency.
Meanwhile, work crews for Georgia Power and the state’s Electric Membership Corporations (EMCs) reported that about 370,000 customers were still without electricity as of Monday. More then 1.3 million lost power at Helene’s peak.
The hurricane made landfall Thursday night in the Big Bend area of Florida’s Gulf Coast before roaring into Georgia early Friday morning, bringing high winds and heavy rain that caused extensive flooding. Gov. Brian Kemp reported Monday that 25 Georgians died in the storm, many inside homes hit by fallen trees.
The victims included a first responder, Vernon “Leon” Davis, a part-time assistant fire chief in Blackshear.
Individuals and business owners who sustained losses in the 11 counties covered by the federal disaster declaration can begin applying for assistance by registering online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov, by calling 1-800-621-3362, or by using the FEMA App.
