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
Budget and Taxes Reports Wesley Tharpe Lawmakers Might Come to Regret Georgia’s Risky Tax Plan February 22, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe | 1 Comment on Lawmakers Might Come to Regret Georgia’s Risky Tax Plan Bill Analysis: House Bill 918 Substitute (LC 34 5383-ECS); Feb. 22, 2018 Georgia leaders are now rushing a massive tax package through the state’s General Assembly with limited debate and without a clear tally of the plan’s true cost. Gov. Nathan Deal and legislative leaders introduced a revised tax package Feb. 20, 2018, designed to […] Read more » Budget & Taxes general-assembly Gov. Nathan Deal HB 918 Income Tax State Budget State Taxes tax cuts taxes
Cash and Safety Net Reports Taifa Smith Butler Overview: 2019 Fiscal Year Budget for Human Services February 13, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Taifa Smith Butler Foster Care Services Get Increases for Foster Parents, Child Placement Agencies Gov. Nathan Deal’s proposed $788 million Department of Human Services budget for the 2019 fiscal year includes new support to meet the growing needs in the state’s foster care system and to help ensure the safety and protection of Georgia’s most vulnerable children. The […] Read more » Budget Department of Human Services Division of Family and Children Services foster-care Safety Net Taifa Smith Butler
Health Justice Laura Harker Reports Overview: 2019 Fiscal Year Budget for Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities February 13, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Laura Harker Gov. Nathan Deal’s budget proposal for the 2019 fiscal year adds $50.6 million more than last year’s budget in state general funds for the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. The budget directs $14.9 million in state funds toward waiver programs and community support services. This helps continue implementation of a 2010 settlement with […] Read more » Budget Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities health opioids substance abuse
Claire Suggs K-12 Education Reports Shrinking State Funds Trigger Student Bus Safety Concerns February 12, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Claire Suggs Shrinking state funding for student transportation and rising costs are making it more difficult for school districts across Georgia to get children to and from school safely. The worsening financial pinch leaves districts with aging bus fleets on the road past their intended life, concerns about student safety and far fewer dollars to invest in […] Read more » Budget bus Claire Suggs Education K-12 Transportation
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
Higher Education Jennifer Lee K-12 Education Reports Overview: 2019 Fiscal Year Budget for Lottery-Funded Programs February 9, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Jennifer Lee Gov. Nathan Deal’s proposed 2019 budget includes $70.5 million in added lottery funds, bringing the total for Georgia’s lottery-funded Pre-Kindergarten and HOPE financial aid programs to $1.2 billion. About $834 million is for HOPE and $367 million is for Pre-K. The biggest changes from last year include a $68 million increase for HOPE Scholarships. The […] Read more » Education Higher Education HOPE grants HOPE Scholarship Lottery Zell Miller Scholarship Program
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
Health Justice Laura Harker Reports Overview: 2019 Fiscal Year Budget for the Department of Community Health February 6, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Laura Harker Gov. Nathan Deal proposes a 2019 budget of $2.79 billion in state general funds for the Department of Community Health. This is an increase of $249.2 million from the 2018 fiscal year, mostly to replace non-recurring court settlement funds in last year’s budget and to offset a decrease in the federal matching rate for Medicaid. […] Read more » Budget Department of Community Health health medicaid Medicaid Expansion PeachCare Rural hospitals
Claire Suggs K-12 Education Reports Overview: 2019 Fiscal Year Budget for K-12 Education February 5, 2018 / January 14, 2020 by Claire Suggs Gov. Nathan Deal’s budget proposal for fiscal year 2019 provides nearly $9.8 billion to educate Georgia’s 1.7 million public school students, a boost of nearly $353 million over current funding. Most of the increase goes to student enrollment growth, routine adjustments in teachers’ salaries, and the Teachers Retirement System of Georgia. Districts will continue to […] Read more » Claire Suggs Education Georgia Department of Education K-12 State Budget teachers Teachers Retirement System of Georgia
