July 2022 - Sightseers' Delight

Georgia officials unable to determine total amount spent on school supply program for teachers

July 29, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — Georgia plans to give a $125 supplement to teachers in the state to offset the cost of classroom materials and ostensibly help students rebound from learning losses suffered amid the COVID-19 pandemic. However, Georgia officials cannot say how much money in total the state plans to give public school teachers as part of the “Back-to-School Supply Supplement” program. Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, announced the initiative targeting full-time public-school teachers and

Georgia Lottery raised $25.3B for educational purposes in last three decades

July 29, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — The Georgia Lottery Corp. said it has raised more than $25.3 billion for education in Georgia since its inception nearly three decades ago. Numbers from the Georgia Lottery’s website indicate profits in fiscal 2022 were about $1.5 billion. That would roughly equal the Georgia Lottery’s announced profits in fiscal 2021, which marked the sixth consecutive year lottery profits exceeded $1 billion. Profits from the Georgia Lottery, which began in 1993, pay

Georgia Ports Authority had record freight volume in fiscal 2022 with 8% increase from 2021

July 28, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — The Georgia Ports Authority saw a record freight volume during fiscal 2022, reporting an 8% increase in container volumes In June, the Port of Savannah handled a record 494,107 twenty-foot equivalent container units in total cargo, an increase of 10.6% over June 2021. For fiscal 2022, the port reported more than 5.7 million TEUs. Port officials say that West Coast labor talks, delayed access to rail at those ports and trade

Georgia non-adjusted unemployment numbers increase as economy dips into possible recession

July 28, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — A week after reporting Georgia’s June seasonally adjusted unemployment rate hit an all-time low, new numbers show the state’s unemployment rate increased. Last week, officials said Georgia’s preliminary seasonally adjusted unemployment rate for June 2022 was 2.9%, below the national rate of 3.6%. The state’s rate decreased from 5.4% in June 2021. On Thursday, the Georgia Department of Labor said the state’s non-seasonally adjusted unemployment rate increased to 3.3% in June,

Georgia public schools rated poorly in quality and safety by new study

July 27, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — Georgia’s public schools rank among the worst in the nation, according to a new analysis, which identified low spending as a root cause. According to personal finance website WalletHub, Georgia’s schools are the 36th best in the country. Massachusetts topped the list, while New Mexico ranked at the bottom. “The key takeaway is that Georgia’s public school system ranks in the bottom 20, in accordance with its low spending,” WalletHub analyst

Georgia’s Ossoff says Atlanta federal prison was ‘extremely dangerous and insecure’

July 27, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — A U.S. senator from Georgia lambasted the federal penitentiary in Atlanta as “extremely dangerous and insecure,” saying that prison records show staff “acted with impunity and even lacked regard for human life.” On Tuesday, the U.S. Senate Permanent Subcommittee on Investigations held a hearing investigating corruption, abuse, and misconduct at U.S. Penitentiary Atlanta (USP Atlanta). “The facility was extremely dangerous and insecure,” U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Georgia, the subcommittee’s chair, said

Pro-choice groups file lawsuit to block Georgia’s fetal heartbeat bill

July 26, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

A group of pro-abortion doctors and advocates has filed a lawsuit in Fulton County Superior Court to block Georgia’s fetal heartbeat bill banning most abortions after six weeks.

Don’t overlook historic cemeteries when exploring a destination

July 26, 2022 Todd DeFeo

Cemeteries are nearly everywhere we look. Some are famous and popular visitor destinations, while others are more obscure and hidden in plain sight.

Georgia joins multistate $34.2M settlement agreement against jewelry store chain

July 26, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — Georgia has joined a multistate settlement agreement that recovered $34.2 million for more than 46,000 service members and veterans nationwide, officials said. Last week, the Federal Trade Commission and 18 states, including Georgia, sued Hauppauge, New York-based Harris Jewelry, saying the company violated state and federal laws, such as the Truth in Lending Act and the Military Lending Act. According to the lawsuit, Harris targets its “advertising, sales pitch, merchandise, pricing,

Georgia taxpayers to provide $1.8B in incentives to Hyundai for new Savannah electric vehicle plant

July 25, 2022 T.A. DeFeo | The Center Square contributor

(The Center Square) — Georgia governments and development authorities offered Hyundai Motor Group more than $1.8 billion in incentives. In May, Hyundai said it had selected Georgia for its first fully dedicated electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facility. The plan calls for Hyundai to invest more than $5.5 billion in building the facility in the 2,923-acre Bryan County Megasite along Interstate 16, while non-affiliated Hyundai suppliers plan to invest roughly $1 billion in the project.