GBPI In The News Mayor Bottoms, Councilmember Farokhi explore guaranteed income for citizens July 4, 2020 / July 17, 2020 by Caitlin Highland Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms has joined a new group of mayors calling for a guaranteed income to their citizens. The Mayors for a Guaranteed Income coalition “will explore cash payment programs in their cities for guaranteed income programs,” according to a city press release. The idea of a guaranteed income is an unrestricted cash […] Read more » COVID-19 income-inequality racial equity
GBPI In The News Tobacco tax increase surfaces in General Assembly July 1, 2020 / July 17, 2020 by Caitlin Highland […] “Lifting the tobacco tax will simultaneously help our state fund critical priorities, such as health and education, and boost health outcomes,” said Danny Kanso, a GBPI policy analyst. “GBPI commends Chairman Chuck Hufstetler, R-rome) and the Senate Finance Committee for their leadership in passing legislation that will generate several hundred million dollars per year […] Read more » Budget Budget Cuts Higher Education Unemployment
GBPI In The News Kemp signs $26 billion budget as Georgia faces uncertain fiscal future June 30, 2020 / July 17, 2020 by Caitlin Highland A day before the start of the new fiscal year, Gov. Brian Kemp on Tuesday signed a $26 billion budget that cuts $2.2 billion in spending amid an uncertain financial future for the state. […]Danny Kanso, a budget analyst for one of the groups promoting the cigarette tax hike — the Georgia Budget and Policy […] Read more » 2020 legislative session Budget Budget Cuts danny kanso raise revenue
Blog Budget and Taxes People Powered Prosperity Sine Die 2020: More Work Needed to Address Georgia’s Revenue Crisis June 29, 2020 / July 6, 2020 by Caitlin Highland After a three-month hiatus due to COVID-19, the 2020 legislative session ended Friday, June 26. When lawmakers returned in mid-June, the world had shifted. A steep revenue shortfall, high levels of unemployment, an ongoing public health crisis and a global anti-racist movement underscored the long-standing truth that the status quo could not advance prosperity for all Georgians. By the end of legislative session, known as sine […] Read more » Budget Cuts Childcare assistance COVID-19 film tax credit K-12 maternal mortality Medicaid Expansion raise revenue Sine Die Unemployment Insurance
GBPI In The News Considerable action on health bills puts cap on interrupted session June 28, 2020 / June 30, 2020 by Caitlin Highland State Rep. David Knight had a triumphant look Friday when talking about his quest for more oversight and restrictions on the PBM industry. Pharmacy Benefit Managers are basically corporate middlemen between health insurers or large employers and drugmakers in handling pharmaceutical benefits. The Georgia General Assembly approved a group of bills in recent days to […] Read more » Budget health-care Laura Harker revenue Tobacco Tax
GBPI In The News Lawmakers Approve Vaping Tax, Raises Age For Tobacco Products To 21 June 26, 2020 / June 30, 2020 by Caitlin Highland Lawmakers on the last day of the legislative session passed a bill taxing vaping products for the first time and raising the age to purchase tobacco products to 21. The move, when signed by Gov. Brian Kemp, means an estimated $9.6 million and $14.5 million in extra revenue for the state. However, that is far […] Read more » Budget danny kanso revenue tobacco tac vaping tax
GBPI In The News Georgia lawmakers approve more generous jobless benefits June 24, 2020 / August 6, 2020 by Caitlin Highland Workers in Georgia would be allowed to earn several hundred dollars more a week while keeping their full unemployment benefits under a bill that passed the General Assembly on Wednesday. Employees also would potentially be eligible to receive benefits for a longer period of time under Senate Bill 408, which the Senate sent to Gov. […] Read more » Alex Camardelle COVID-19 jobs and economy Unemployment
GBPI In The News ‘Enough is Enough’ rally in Forsyth Park draws hundreds of diverse community members June 7, 2020 / June 26, 2020 by Caitlin Highland Hundreds of diverse community members gathered in Savannahs Forsyth Park for the Enough is Enough rally aiming to transform recent protests into a movement with speeches by varied local leaders on Saturday, June 6. [Nick Robertson/SavannahNow.com] […] Amanda Hollowell with the Georgia Budget and Policy Institute speaks before hundreds of diverse community members who gathered […] Read more » Amanda Hollowell racial equity
GBPI In The News Georgia health care facilities opening up, with some COVID-19 guidelines here to stay May 28, 2020 / June 26, 2020 by Caitlin Highland Like the rest of Athens, the health care industry is opening up after the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic. […] But it’s not business as usual and won’t look the same again, say healthcare authorities. “The impact of COVID-19 will be with us far into the future, and we won’t be returning to a pre-COVID-19 […] Read more » COVID-19 health-care Laura Harker
GBPI In The News Georgia public health agency among those proposing to furlough staff May 21, 2020 / June 26, 2020 by Caitlin Highland While Georgia’s Department of Public Health is battling the coronavirus pandemic, its leaders say it will have to furlough staffers — including those working in infectious disease control and epidemiology — one day a month to meet state-mandated spending cuts. The agency would also slash grants to county health departments by almost $18 million and […] Read more » Budget Budget Cuts danny kanso health Tobacco Tax
