Alex Camardelle Blog Cash and Safety Net Planned Federal Food Assistance Changes a Threat to Georgians, Grocers March 20, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Alex Camardelle | 1 Comment on Planned Federal Food Assistance Changes a Threat to Georgians, Grocers The White House proposed a 2019 budget last month that makes steep cuts to one of the strongest lines of defense this country uses to fight hunger: the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP). The proposal calls for slashing food assistance, commonly known as food stamps, by $213 billion over the next decade. The plan is […] Read more » federal budget Food Assistance SNAP Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program work requirements
Blog Health Justice Laura Harker Legislation Proposes Steps to Improve Rural Health Care, Omits Major Coverage Solution March 12, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Laura Harker State lawmakers introduced several bills this year aiming to improve access to health care in rural Georgia. Six rural Georgia hospitals closed since 2013 and the state’s high rate of uninsured means many people in rural communities lack health coverage. The House Rural Development Council, created in 2017 to study the problem, traveled across the […] Read more » coverage-gap HB 769 HB 827 health health coverage health insurance medicaid Medicaid Expansion micro-hospitals Rural hospitals
Blog Budget and Taxes Inclusive Economy for Immigrants Wesley Tharpe Worker Justice All Georgians Stand to Lose from Immigrant Crackdown Measure March 9, 2018 / April 2, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe Georgia lawmakers are considering a bill that poses serious risk to the state’s immigrant community and could harm local governments and the state’s economy if enacted into law. Senate Bill 452 cleared the state Senate late last month and is now pending in the House Public Safety and Homeland Security committee. The measure requires Georgia’s […] Read more »
Blog Higher Education Jennifer Lee Bill Proposes Grant for Working Georgia College Students with Financial Need March 7, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Jennifer Lee Bill Analysis: Senate Bill 405 (LC 21 5954 S, AM 21 3929) Georgia needs more people with higher education to meet workforce needs. Georgia can better leverage its talent and its strong colleges and universities by knocking down financial barriers to student success and making common-sense investments in financial aid. The Georgia Senate recently passed […] Read more » college college-tuition Financial Aid Higher Education HOPE Scholarship Need-based Financial Aid SB 405 Technical College System of Georgia University System of Georgia
Blog Claire Suggs K-12 Education Lawmakers Push to Shift Public Money to Private Schools March 5, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Claire Suggs Georgia lawmakers seem determined to subsidize private schools with public dollars. Witness several bills in the 2018 General Assembly to create or expand schemes to shift public dollars to private schools. It’s better to provide public schools the resources needed to ensure all students reach the state’s ambitious learning goals before lawmakers consider these bills. […] Read more » Education Education Savings Account HB 217 HB 482 HB 664 K-12 private schools
Blog Budget and Taxes Higher Education John McCosh K-12 Education Crossover Day Delivers Mixed Bag for Education, Tax Policy March 1, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by John McCosh Legislation to allow the use of state money for private schools stalled on Crossover Day 2018, while a proposal to give students more time to qualify as HOPE scholars also now faces a more convoluted path to passage. Meanwhile, a risky tax cut package designed to reduce Georgia revenues by $1.4 billion once fully phased […] Read more » Budget & Taxes Crossover Day Education Georgia General Assembly HB 482 HB 918 HB 928 Higher Education HOPE Scholarship K-12 Legislature private schools State Taxes
Blog Claire Suggs K-12 Education Time for Lawmakers to Choose Students Over Tax Cuts February 26, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Claire Suggs Lawmakers are racing to pass a risky tax package that drains $1.4 billion a year from the state treasury once fully implemented. A better choice is to hit the pause button and send school districts the full amount of money the state’s own K-12 funding formula calculates they should get. The General Assembly is underfunding […] Read more » Budget Budget & Taxes Education education-funding funding-formula HB 918 K-12 public-schools tax cuts
Blog Higher Education Jennifer Lee Invest in College Students Like They Invest in Themselves February 22, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Jennifer Lee Lizzie Mathias balances a full-time course load at Middle Georgia State University’s campus in Macon, works about 40 miles from there in Cochran. And she is interning at a domestic violence shelter in her hometown of Dublin, about an hour’s drive from the college. She’s served in the Middle Georgia Student Government Association every year, […] Read more » college Education Higher Education HOPE Scholarship need-based aid tuition
Blog Higher Education Jennifer Lee Support Students by Removing HOPE Seven-Year Time Limit February 9, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Jennifer Lee – Update on Feb. 26: House Bill 218 proposes to extend the time that students have to use the HOPE Scholarship from seven to 10 years after high school. – Update on Feb. 20: House Bill 928 proposes to extend the time that students have to use the HOPE Scholarship from seven to 15 years after high […] Read more » college Higher Education HOPE Scholarship tuition University System of Georgia
Blog Claire Suggs K-12 Education Push to Expand Private School Tax Scholarships Disregards Lack of Evidence, Accountability February 8, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Claire Suggs Georgia’s Senate appears poised to act on an expansion of the state’s tax credit scholarship for private schools. This is despite a lack of reliable evidence on the existing program’s effectiveness or any proper safeguards to ensure it’s a good deal for taxpayers. House Bill 217 was introduced in 2017 and almost made it to […] Read more » Education Georgia Department of Education HB 217 K-12 Private School Scholarships
