by Dave Williams | Oct 28, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – A leading agriculture industry executive urged Georgia lawmakers Monday to consider a constitutional amendment that would let the state government provide direct financial relief to farmers who suffered losses from Hurricane Helene.
The Georgia Constitution includes a gratuities clause that prohibits the state government from giving gifts to individuals without a benefit to taxpayers in return. Historically, state policy makers have supported the clause as promoting fiscal responsibility and preventing corruption.
But the damage wreaked by last month’s storm on Georgia farmers, ranchers, and foresters was so immense that the state needs the authority to provide direct disaster payments to victims, Will Bentley, president of the Georgia Agribusiness Council, told members of a Georgia Senate study committee meeting in Cedartown.
Helene caused at least $6.46 billion in losses to Georgia’s agriculture industry, according to estimates from the University of Georgia College of Agriculture & Environmental Science. That included $1.8 billion in direct losses to farms and $1.3 billion in direct forestry losses, Bentley said.
“Farmers need help,” he said. “If there’s ever a time to (abolish or limit the gratuities clause), now would be the time after the biggest ag hit we’ve ever had.”
Bentley said the state needs to act because federal disaster relief tends to be slow in coming. It took two years for federal relief to flow to farmers who sustained losses from Hurricane Michael in 2018, he said.
“If we have a two-year delay this time in recovery dollars from the federal government, we’re going to lose thousands of farms in the state of Georgia,” he said.
Bentley also recommended exempting disaster relief payments from state taxes, as was done in the aftermath of Hurricane Michael.
While getting rid of the gratuities clause in Georgia undoubtedly would be controversial, Senate Majority Caucus Chairman Jason Anavitarte, R-Dallas, said the idea is worth considering.
“If it’s a matter of putting food on the table and helping the No.-1 industry in the state … we need a serious discussion and debate,” he said.
Sen. Billy Hickman, R-Statesboro, chairman of the Senate Study Committee on Preservation of Georgia’s Farmlands, said he plans to hold one more meeting this fall before the panel issues its recommendations for the full Senate to take up during the 2025 General Assembly session starting in January.
by Dave Williams | Oct 25, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – A South Georgia woman has been sentenced to 12 years in prison for her role in a scheme to defraud the state Department of Labor out of more than $30 million in unemployment benefits.
According to court documents, Tyshion Nautese Hicks, 32, of Vienna and seven co-conspirators filed more than 5,000 fraudulent unemployment insurance claims from March 2020 through November 2022, a period marked by the COVID-19 pandemic.
To perpetrate the scheme, the defendants created fictitious employers and fabricated lists of employees using information from thousands of identify theft victims, then filed fraudulent unemployment insurance claims on behalf of those nonexistent people on the labor department’s website.
They then caused the benefits to be disbursed via prepaid debit cards mailed to addresses of their choice, many of which were in Vienna and Cordele.
Hicks pleaded guilty last February to one count of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and one count of aggravated identity theft. Her co-conspirators already have pleaded guilty or been sentenced.
The scheme was one of the largest episodes of COVID fraud ever prosecuted, said Nicole Argentieri, head of the U.S. Justice Department’s Criminal Division.
“The defendant and her co-conspirators exploited a program designed to alleviate pandemic-related economic hardship to enrich themselves at the expense of federal taxpayers,” Argentieri said Friday. “Yesterday’s sentence underscores the department’s commitment to investigating and prosecuting those who steal from the public.”
In addition to the prison sentence, Hicks was ordered to serve three years of supervised release following the prison term and pay restitution in an amount yet to be determined.
by Dave Williams | Oct 25, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – For more than a decade, Georgians have been able to sign up for health insurance coverage through the Affordable Care Act (ACA) on the federal government’s healthcare.gov website.
That’s about to change. Starting Nov. 1, a new state-based exchange – Georgia Access – will replace healthcare.gov as Georgia becomes the 20th state to trade in the federal exchange for a state-specific model.
“The ACA envisioned that each state would operate their own exchange,” said Whitney Griggs, health policy director for the nonprofit Georgians for a Healthy Future. “States know best how to reach their residents. … (Georgia) has a real opportunity to create something better than healthcare.gov.”
The federal Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services approved a waiver in August allowing the state to launch Georgia Access. The state-based exchange will give the Georgia insurance department more flexibility to pursue innovative solutions, John King, the agency’s commissioner, said at the time.
“We are restoring control over our health coverage to the people of Georgia,” King said.
But Griggs said some aspects of ditching healthcare.gov for a state-based model are cause for concern. She said Georgia’s decision to sign up enrollees to Georgia Access through web brokers or insurance companies as well as the program’s own website could lead “bad actors” to enroll people in coverage plans that are not ACA-compliant.
“Other states are really pushing enrollment through their own websites,” Griggs said. “Georgia is going to be the only state relying on this model so heavily.”
But Cheryl Gardner, executive director of Georgia Access, said the direct-enrollment approach is one of the program’s advantages. She said more than 15,000 licensed and certified agents will be available to help steer enrollees toward the best coverage options for them.
“Agents offer consumers localized help and a personalized customer experience,” Gardner said. “They are integral in our mission to providing multiple pathways for consumers to enroll in health coverage and to reducing the number of uninsured residents in Georgia.”
Griggs said she’s also wary of the technical components that will have to fall in place for Georgia Access to successfully enroll the approximately 400,000 Georgians eligible for coverage who don’t have it. She and other health-care advocates who have worked in the field for years have long memories of the glitches that occurred when healthcare.gov was first rolled out in 2013.
“I still have PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) from trying to use the (federal) exchange,” Griggs said.
To address any trepidation that might occur with the new state-based exchange, Georgia Access will offer a preview of the program’s 2025 health insurance plan offerings beginning Oct. 28 at GeorgiaAccess.gov.
“We want the enrollment process to be as convenient and accessible as possible for Georgia consumers,” King said. “Plan preview provides consumers an opportunity to browse and determine which plan best fits their wallets and needs before open enrollment begins.”
Griggs said she is optimistic Georgia Access won’t go through the same growth pains as healthcare.gov experienced in its early days.
“Now, the technology is so commonplace,” she said. “People are used to using these websites.”
Coverage through Georgia Access will begin on Jan. 1 for those who select a plan by Dec. 16. For more information, visit GeorgiaAccess.gov or call the Georgia Access Contact Center at 888-687-1503.
by Dave Williams | Oct 24, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Vice President Kamala Harris went on offense against former President Donald Trump Thursday night at a star-studded Get Out the Vote rally in Clarkston, the most diverse city in Georgia.
In what has become the Democrat’s closing argument against Republican Trump just 12 days away from Election Day, Harris warned that an “unhinged” Trump poses a danger to American freedom. She cited a New York Times interview with retired Marine Gen. John Kelly, who served as Trump’s chief of staff, in which Kelly said Trump privately praised Nazi leader Adolph Hitler.
“He’s calling Americans ‘the enemy within’ and would use the military to go after them,” Harris said.
Harris painted a sharp contrast between what will happen three months from now with Trump in the Oval Office versus her.
“It is either Donald Trump stewing over his enemies list or me working for you, checking off my to-do list,” she told her cheering audience. “You have the power to make that decision.”
For the first time in the campaign, former President Barack Obama joined Harris on the stage. He, too, spent much of his speech attacking Trump and urging voters not to give in to the frustrations they have felt since a historic pandemic drove up prices and put many Americans out of work.
“I get that people are looking to shake things up,” Obama said. “What I cannot understand is why anybody would think Donald Trump will shake things up in a way that’s good for you.”
While Harris was sharpening her attacks on Trump, she also reemphasized policy positions she has taken throughout the campaign. She pledged to cut taxes for 100 million middle-class Americans as opposed to Trump’s plan to double down on the tax cuts primarily benefiting the wealthy that he pushed through Congress during his first year in office.
Harris also vowed to lower health-care costs.
“Health care should be a right, not just a privilege for those who can afford it,” she said.
The vice president also called for codifying into law the 1973 Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion. The current version of the high court overturned that ruling two years ago, leading many Republican-led states to enact strict limits on abortion.
In Georgia, abortions are prohibited after a fetal heartbeat is detected, typically about six weeks into a pregnancy.
“Women are being denied care during miscarriages,” Harris said. “Some are only being treated once they develop sepsis.”
As she did at a rally in Atlanta last week, Harris cited the case of Amber Thurman, a pregnant Georgia woman who died two years ago after seeking an emergency abortion. Medical care for Thurman was delayed because her doctors were worried about violating the Georgia law.
Thursday night’s rally featured several stars from the entertainment world, including actor Samuel L. Jackson; film director Spike Lee, an Atlanta native; and Tyler Perry, an Atlantan who rose from poverty to become an actor and filmmaker and now owns a large movie studio. Rock legend Bruce Springsteen performed three songs.
The Trump campaign criticized Harris for bringing in the entertainers, calling it a sign that the Harris campaign is struggling. Polls show Trump leading Harris in Georgia, although in many cases it’s within the margin of error.
“The Trump-Vance campaign is winning because, unlike Kamala Harris, we aren’t relying on out-of-touch celebrities to deliver our message,” said Anna Kelly, a spokesperson for the Republican National Committee. “From bars to football games to manufacturing facilities, President Trump and Senator (JD) Vance meet people where they are and speak about the issues that matter like rising prices, the open border, and violent crime.”
by Dave Williams | Oct 24, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – Georgia environmental regulators have revoked a permit for a wood pellet manufacturing plant in Telfair County following a legal challenge opposing the project.
The state Environmental Protection Division (EPD) approved a modification of Telfair Forest Products’ air-quality permit last July without requiring the company to install legally required pollution controls or conduct air impact analyses.
The Southern Environmental Law Center (SELC), representing the environmental group Georgia Interfaith Power and Light, challenged the permit amendment, arguing it would double the Lumber City plant’s emissions of pollutants in violation of the federal Clean Air Act.
The EPD revoked the amendment this week at the request of the company, according to a news release from the SELC. As a result, the environmental group announced it would withdraw its legal challenge filed with the Georgia Office of Administrative Hearings after the revocation is legally final.
“Telfair Forest Products was poised to be the posted child for how air quality regulations have failed communities surrounding biomass wood pellet plants,” said Jennifer Whitfield, a senior attorney in the SELC’s Georgia office.
“It is troubling that it took the threat of litigation for the EPD to do the right thing,” added G Webber, director of the Sierra Club’s Georgia chapter. “Still, it is gratifying to know that the residents of Telfair County will not face such an unhealthy level of air pollution.”
The biomass industry is booming in Georgia, the nation’s No.-1 state for the forestry industry. Wood pellets produced by cutting down trees are shipped to markets in Europe and Asia, where they are burned for power.
While environmental groups oppose the process because of the unhealthy air emissions, the industry’s supporters say wood pellet plants create jobs in rural counties with chronically high unemployment rates.
by Dave Williams | Oct 24, 2024 | Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA – A multinational manufacturer of transformers for a wide range of industrial applications will expand its footprint in Georgia by investing $15.3 million during the next five years in a plant in Waynesboro, Gov. Brian Kemp announced Thursday.
TMC Transformers USA Inc. – which is based in Italy and has 500 employees and offices in Europe, America, and East Asia – will create at least 110 jobs in Burke County with the new facility.
“When we lead economic missions overseas and meet with companies like TMC, we do so to bring more opportunities back to hardworking Georgians,” Kemp said. “Job creators like them can build a strong foundation alongside communities like Waynesboro.”
TMC established its first U.S. production plant early last year in Burke County.
“The launch of the new plant highlights TMC’s strategic plans for substantial growth in North America,” said Cristiano Palladini, president of TMC USA. “We’re excited that Waynesboro will be a welcoming base for us.”
The new plant is expected to begin operations in 2026. The company is now hiring for roles in management, administrative staff, production technicians, operators, testers, sales, and quality control.
Interested individuals can learn more about careers with TMC at tmctransformers.us.
The state Department of Economic Development’s Global Commerce term worked on the project in partnership with the Development Authority of Burke County.
