Author: Alex Welch

Alex serves as a communications associate at GBPI, where he is primarily responsible for the organization’s print and digital publishing, including its website, email and social media.

GBPI Budget Town Hall

Budget and Taxes Community Impact Past Events

GBPI Budget Town Hall

/ by Alex Welch

COVID-19 created an economic crisis that led Georgia lawmakers to call for deep budget cuts to every state agency. But without an effort to raise revenues and fix budget shortfalls, our state faces a massive economic downturn that will severely underfund critical programs and services, harming the lives of millions of Georgians in every community […]

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GBPI In The News

State Rep. McLaurin joins push for tobacco tax hike to offset $3.5B budget shortfall

/ by Alex Welch

A state representative from Sandy Springs joined a colleague in suggesting Georgia should increase the cigarette tax to help cover a $3.5 billion budget shortfall that could cause at least 1,000 layoffs and an equal number of furloughed workers. Rep. Josh McLaurin (D-Sandy Springs) joined Rep. Angelika Kausche (D-Johns Creek) in a virtual town hall […]

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GBPI In The News

‘Cautiously optimistic but realistically pessimistic’: Georgia colleges prepare for unknowns of fall semester

/ by Alex Welch

Colleges across Georgia have assembled planning teams for what they say will be a return to in-person classes this fall after an abrupt switch to distance education in March to limit the novel coronavirus pandemic. Faced with changing data and guidance, and the many known factors about the future of the pandemic, they’re planning for […]

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GBPI In The News

First look at how Georgia lawmakers will try to cut 14% from coronavirus-depleted state budget

/ by Alex Welch

Georgia lawmakers will get their first look next week at how deep state agencies must cut their budgets to comply with spending reductions the legislature’s leading budget writers ordered in the wake of coronavirus. Revised fiscal 2021 budget proposals the agencies submitted this week would freeze vacant positions, furlough workers and scale back vital programs […]

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GBPI In The News

Reopening reality check: Georgia’s jobs aren’t flooding back

/ by Alex Welch

Georgia’s early move to start easing stay-at-home restrictions nearly a month ago has done little to stem the state’s flood of unemployment claims — illustrating how hard it is to bring jobs back while consumers are still afraid to go outside. Weekly applications for jobless benefits have remained so elevated that Georgia now leads the […]

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GBPI In The News

Georgia won’t thrive if the people do not survive

/ by Alex Welch

Since the coronavirus arrived in the United States, Georgia has seen some of the highest numbers of infections and deaths. Elected officials have attempted to mitigate the ongoing health and economic impact, but it’s clear our state must do more to put people first. […] Before COVID-19, many Georgians already endured poverty, limited economic mobility […]

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GBPI In The News

Gaping hole in budget to confront returning General Assembly

/ by Alex Welch

Georgia lawmakers due to reconvene the 2020 legislative session next month face a daunting task: plugging a projected budget shortfall of $3 billion to $4 billion inflicted by the coronavirus pandemic. “It’s a different world than it was three or four months ago,” said state Rep. Terry England, R-Auburn, chairman of the House Appropriations Committee. […]

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GBPI In The News

State agencies facing steep budget cuts in Georgia amid COVID-19

/ by Alex Welch

State agencies in Georgia are being asked to cut up to $3.8 billion from their budgets to absorb the economic downturn caused by the coronavirus pandemic. The deep cuts to Georgia’s roughly $27.5 billion original 2020 fiscal year budget lawmakers passed last year come as tax revenues are expected to plummet after weeks of statewide […]

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GBPI In The News

Georgia agencies told to slash budgets by $3.6 billion

/ by Alex Welch

State agencies are being told to slash their budgets by nearly $3.6 billion as legislators seek ways to mitigate the devastation to Georgia’s economy caused by the coronavirus pandemic that could include layoffs and furloughs. A memo from Gov. Brian Kemp’s budget director and chairs of the House and Senate Appropriation Committees went out May 1 to […]

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