Blog Timothy Sweeney North Carolina Mayor Makes Long Trek to Save Rural Hospitals June 4, 2015 / January 16, 2020 by Timothy Sweeney By Ann Hedges and Tim Sweeney On Monday, Belhaven, N.C. Mayor Adam O’Neal started a 283-mile walk to our nation’s capital to advocate for a way to reopen his community’s hospital. This is his second long trek to Washington, D.C. to draw attention to the struggles of rural health facilities since the Belhaven hospital shut […] Read more » Affordable Care Act health medicaid Medicaid Expansion Tim Sweeney
Blog Claire Suggs Education Reform Commission – Can We Talk About the Cost? May 27, 2015 / January 16, 2020 by Claire Suggs The Education Reform Commission established by Gov. Nathan Deal spent a lot of time talking about money in recent months. Its members considered an alternative approach to distributing state funds that gives districts greater flexibility in using those dollars. They also discussed differences in students’ needs and changing how funds are allocated based on those […] Read more » Education Governor Deal K-12 State Budget
Author Blog Cash and Safety Net Melissa Johnson Summer Brings Child Hunger Challenges May 26, 2015 / January 17, 2020 by Melissa Johnson It’s that time of year again. The school year is ending and Georgia children are leaving classrooms for summer break. For more than 1 million Georgia children who qualify for free- or reduced-price lunches, summer break also brings anxiety. Fewer than one in seven Georgia children who rely on subsidized school lunches receive free summer […] Read more » Economic Security Melissa Johnson Safety Net
Blog Wesley Tharpe Tax Policy a Quality of Life Topic in 2015 and Beyond May 20, 2015 / January 17, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe Taxes are nobody’s favorite expense. Most people view them as simply a nuisance bill to pay or as an added cost on a major purchase. Average Georgians rarely give state tax policy a second thought, especially compared to critical challenges like education and health care. But few issues matter more to the pocketbooks of Georgia […] Read more » Governor Deal State Budget State Taxes Wesley Tharpe
Author Budget and Taxes Library Policy Areas Reports Wesley Tharpe Adding Up the Fiscal Notes: Final 2015 Tax Recap May 20, 2015 / January 15, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe Governor Approves Big Transportation Package, Slew of Smaller Bills Gov. Nathan Deal approved several pieces of legislation that affect Georgia’s ability to meet its needs like roads and schools in future years. Georgia’s House and Senate passed 11 different tax bills this year, and the governor approved 10 of them. The largest by far is […] Read more » State Taxes
Blog Timothy Sweeney Georgia’s Medicaid “Experiment” a Tepid Response to Coverage Gap May 15, 2015 / January 15, 2020 by Timothy Sweeney State leaders at the Department of Community Health are reportedly working with a few Georgia hospitals to take advantage of language in the recently signed 2016 Georgia budget that allows the agency to seek a federal Medicaid waiver. The language included in the 2016 budget that authorizes the department to pursue a waiver appeared in […] Read more » Affordable Care Act health medicaid Medicaid Expansion State Budget Tim Sweeney
Blog Claire Suggs Reworking QBE, Teacher Compensation Weighed by Education Reform Panel May 8, 2015 / January 15, 2020 by Claire Suggs The funding committee of the Education Reform Commission is considering big changes to teacher compensation as it moves rapidly to meet the governor’s August deadline to recommend a new formula to distribute state dollars to public schools. At its late April meeting committee members also considered ways to calculate base funding for each student, which […] Read more » Education K-12
Blog Wesley Tharpe Georgia Moms Earn It May 7, 2015 / January 15, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe Working moms are the bedrock of so many Georgia families. Between raising kids, contributing to their communities and holding down one or more jobs, moms put in a lot more than a full day’s work. That’s one of the many reasons we’ll especially celebrate them this Sunday, on Mother’s Day. It’s also why the federal […] Read more » Economic Security Safety Net State Taxes Wesley Tharpe
Blog Claire Suggs Latest Tuition Hike Clouds Goal to Increase Graduates May 1, 2015 / January 15, 2020 by Claire Suggs A college education in Georgia just got less affordable. Tuition is going up again in the wake of cuts in state funds for the university system. Families now earn less than 20 years ago. The HOPE Scholarship covers far less than it used to and many students do not receive it. A college degree is […] Read more » Education HOPE Scholarship
Author Blog Health Justice Timothy Sweeney Mixed Bag for Georgians’ Health Care in 2015 Legislature April 27, 2015 / January 15, 2020 by Timothy Sweeney Georgia lawmakers left town earlier this month after producing a 2016 state spending plan that invests no more money overall for health care than the state did last year. Georgia ranks near the bottom of all states for health care investment and the consequences include hundreds of thousands of uninsured Georgians and hospitals that struggle […] Read more » health Tim Sweeney
