by Dave Williams | Jul 24, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Georgia Power should delay building three new “dual-fuel” turbines at Plant Yates near Newnan to allow time to consider potentially less expensive alternatives, an independent energy consultant said Wednesday.
The Atlanta-based utility received bids late last week in an all-source procurement request for proposals (RFP) to expand its electrical generating capacity to meet Georgia’s rapidly increasing needs for power. Taking the time to evaluate those bids could help Georgia Power reduce its reliance on natural gas, Albert Lin testified during a hearing held by the state Public Service Commission (PSC).
“The amount of dependency on natural gas generation by Georgia Power is higher than the national average,” Lin said. “Further increasing the company’s dependence on natural gas will only expose the system and its users to greater incidence of price shocks. … It will show up in customers’ bills.
Georgia Power is seeking PSC certification to build the three turbines, which would run mostly on natural gas but switch to ultra low-sulfur diesel fuel when and if gas is unavailable, typically on cold winter mornings.
The project’s opponents are concerned not only about Georgia Power becoming more reliant on carbon emitting fossil fuels. They also argue natural gas prices are highly volatile.
“The monthly price swings for natural gas often exceed 50%,” said Lin, who testified Wednesday on behalf of the Sierra Club and the Southern Alliance for Clean Energy. “Moreover, the volatility is increasing over time.”
But Preston Thomas, a lawyer for the PSC’s Public Interest Advocacy Staff, said worries over price volatility with natural gas are exaggerated. The staff has recommended approval of the project.
“While there have been spikes, there have also have been sustained periods of low prices,” Thomas said.
Jeffrey Grubb, director of resource policy and planning for Georgia Power, testified that waiting until the company completes the all-source RFP process would delay its plans to add energy capacity that is sorely needed to service a growing number of power-hungry data centers cropping up in Georgia.
“Delaying the certification proceeding or decision is simply not an option,” Grubb said. “The RFP process, while generally beneficial, is time consuming and does not allow for the rapid deployment necessary to meet the company’s near-term capacity needs.”
Grubb also pointed out that the first of the new turbines Georgia Power plans to build would go into service during the winter of 2026/2027, while the RFP is geared toward the winter of 2029/2030 and beyond.
The PSC is scheduled to vote on the project on Aug. 20.
by Dave Williams | Jul 24, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – State School Superintendent Richard Woods Wednesday defended his decision not to recommend adding an Advanced Placement African American studies course to the state’s curriculum offerings during the upcoming school year.
Woods’ decision, which was announced Tuesday, drew a barrage of criticism from education groups and Democrats, who argued that failing to move forward with an AP course that was piloted in several school districts this year would deny students an inclusive education that tells the full history of America.
The Georgia Legislative Black Caucus condemned the decision as a “detrimental step backwards” in promoting diversity, equity, and inclusion in education.
“African American Studies play a pivotal role in fostering understanding, empathy and appreciation of our shared history and cultural heritage,” the group wrote in a statement released Wednesday. “Removing this course deprives our students of a vital opportunity to learn and engage with important aspects of our society.”
In a two-paragraph statement, Woods countered that schools will retain the ability to teach some or all of the standards in the AP African American studies course if they choose to do so.
“When I reviewed the AP course, I had concerns about the state endorsing the totality of the course,” he wrote. “It’s my position that districts should use the existing course code – which offers them the flexibility to develop their own curriculum based on local priorities – or to use standards from the AP course if they choose and in consultation with their communities.”
Woods also stated that districts that choose to use the African American Studies course code that has been in the Georgia Department of Education’s catalog since 2020 will receive state funding.
The superintendent’s decision touched a nerve with educators and Democratic lawmakers, who mounted intense opposition to “divisive concepts” legislation pushed through the General Assembly by Republican legislative leaders two years ago.
The 2022 bill, which passed along party lines, prohibited teaching U.S. history in a way that might make any student feel guilty or that they are superior or inferior to anyone else based on their race.
While Republicans argued the measure did not ban the teaching of slavery or the civil rights movement in Georgia schools, Democrats said the potential penalties included in the bill would have a chilling effect on teachers.
by Dave Williams | Jul 24, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Former President Donald Trump and Vice President Kamala Harris are locked in a tight race in Georgia, according to a new poll.
Trump held a slight lead over Harris among 400 likely voters surveyed by Landmark Communications, 48.0% to 46.7%. But that’s well within the poll’s 5% margin of error.
Harris, who has become the presumptive Democratic nominee for president since President Joe Biden dropped out of the race last Sunday, is polling better than the incumbent in Georgia. Before Biden quit the contest, he was trailing Trump in the Peach State by a solid margin.
Trump’s razor-thin advantage over Harris didn’t change significantly when Landmark gauged support for other candidates in the race. In a six-way contest, Trump led with 45.8% of the vote to 44.3% for Harris. Independent Robert Kennedy Jr. was next at 4.0%, with independent Cornel West at 1.1%, and Libertarian Chase Oliver and the Green Party’s Jill Stein each getting just 0.3% of the vote.
Harris’ showing was strongest among younger, Black and female voters. While she trailed Trump slightly among voters ages 18 to 35, she led among voters ages 36 to 50 by more than 3 points. Trump led Harris among voters age 51 and older.
The racial divide between the two was pronounced. Harris, vying to become the first Black woman elected president, led Trump among Black voters by 79.7% to 11.0%. Trump held a large advantage among white voters, 61.1% to 28.4%.
Trump held a slightly larger lead among male voters than Harris among women surveyed by Landmark. Among males voters, Trump dominated at 54.7% to 35.1% for Harris. She led among female voters, 52.1% to 38.1%.
Not surprisingly, each candidate cornered the market among voters affiliated with their party, with Trump favored by 87.8% of Republicans and Harris supported by 88.8% of Democrats. Harris led among independents, 40.9% to 31.8% for Trump.
by Dave Williams | Jul 23, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – State School Superintendent Richard Woods has decided not to recommend adding an Advanced Placement African American studies course to the state’s curriculum offerings during the upcoming school year.
Word of Woods’ decision came in a communication Monday from Gwinnett County Public Schools Chief Learning Officer DeNelle West to the district’s teachers. Gwinnett was among several school districts that piloted the course during the 2023-24 school year.
“This will necessitate schedule adjustments for the students impacted by this change,” West wrote. “Our commitment to a comprehensive and inclusive education remains unwavering, and students can still explore related content through other elective course available at their local schools.”
The decision not to move forward with the AP African American studies course marks the latest episode in a political dispute in Georgia over the value of diversity in the social studies curriculum offered in Georgia’s public schools.
Two years ago, the General Assembly’s Republican majorities passed controversial legislation prohibiting the teaching of U.S. history in a way that might make any student feel guilty or that they are superior or inferior to anyone else because of their race.
GOP lawmakers argued that nothing in the so-called “divisive concepts” bill banned the teaching of slavery or the civil rights movement in Georgia schools. But Democrats said the potential penalties included in the bill would make teachers reluctant to offer students the full reality of U.S. history, both good and bad.
“Woods’ decision truly stands out against the backdrop of the approval of the AP European History class!” Lisa Morgan, president of the Georgia Association of Educators, wrote in a statement released Tuesday. “What is our state Department of Education communicating to Georgia’s diverse student population?
“This ill-considered decision is in direct opposition to our integrity and professional duties as educators to ensure our students receive a honest inclusive education, which allows them to explore the full history of our world and its people.”
Woods, a Republican, was elected state school superintendent in 2014 and is serving his third term.
by Dave Williams | Jul 23, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Georgia’s law essentially banning abortions after six weeks of pregnancy is forcing women to endure high-risk pregnancies and driving OBGYN doctors out of the state, two OBGYNs and an OBGYN resident said Tuesday.
“There are a lot of political voices weighing in on this issue,” U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., said at the end of a field hearing of the Human Rights Subcommittee he chairs held at Decatur City Hall. “People need to hear from the doctors who are providing care every day, what this is really doing to pregnant women in Georgia.”
Republican Gov. Brian Kemp steered the “heartbeat bill” through the GOP-controlled General Assembly in 2019, prohibiting most abortions after a fetal heartbeat can be detected, typically about six weeks into a pregnancy. There are exceptions for rape, incest, and medical emergencies.
Courts blocked the law from taking effect until 2022, after the U.S. Supreme Court overturned the constitutional right to abortion that had been established in the Roe v. Wade ruling in 1973.
Abortion is a key issue in this year’s presidential election, with Democrats accusing Republicans of seeking congressional passage of a nationwide abortion ban, while Republicans argue the issue should be left to the states to decide.
At Tuesday’s hearing, Georgia OBGYNs said patients experiencing high-risk pregnancies are being forced to either continue carrying fetuses that have little chance of survival yet threaten the mother’s lives or leave the state to obtain abortions.
“High-risk pregnancies are unexpected, life-threatening, emotionally traumatizing, and life-changing for all involved,” said Dr. Suchitra Chandrasakeran, an OBGYN in Atlanta. “The current abortion ban in Georgia limits our ability to provide a compassionate and full spectrum of reproductive counseling and choices to our patients and only continues to worsen the overall future health of pregnant persons in Georgia.”
Dr. Aisvarya Panakam, a first-year OBGYN resident and native Georgian, said she decided after treating pregnant patients from Georgia who had traveled to Massachusetts not to return to Georgia to practice because of the state’s abortion ban.
“I want to practice and learn in a state where I can offer patients a full section of options,” she said. “I don’t want may hands to be tied by a law, by legislators who have very little understanding of medicine. … People without knowledge are restraining out ability to provide evidence-based care. As a result, real people are affected, real people are getting sick and having unwanted pregnancies, real people are dying.”
Atlanta OBGYN Dr. Nisha Verma said terms in Georgia’s abortion law dealing with exceptions to the ban including “irreversible” and “medically futile” are vague.
“There is no way to create a law that takes every individual, every medical situation, every family into account,” she said. “The exceptions don’t solve the problem. They don’t make sense.”
