Author Budget and Taxes Library Policy Areas Reports Wesley Tharpe Tax Plan Needs Course Correction February 4, 2015 / January 16, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe House Transportation Package Leaves out New Revenues, Could Harm Key Services Georgia needs a sustained commitment to transportation that includes new revenues or it will struggle to thrive in the 21st century. A funding proposal unveiled by House legislative leaders in January 2015 includes some reasonable reforms of Georgia’s gas tax system but could cause […] Read more » State Taxes
Author Budget and Taxes Cash and Safety Net Library Melissa Johnson Policy Areas Reports Overview of Georgia’s 2016 Fiscal Year Human Services Budget February 3, 2015 / January 16, 2020 by Melissa Johnson More for Child Welfare, but Other Services Still in Need The governor’s $547 million human services budget proposed for the 2016 fiscal year makes strategic additions to help protect Georgia’s children and adults, but falls short of meeting the many different needs of its growing population. The spending plan promises to take a solid step […] Read more » State Budget
Author Budget and Taxes Claire Suggs K-12 Education Library Policy Areas Reports Overview: 2016 Fiscal Year Budget for K-12 Education January 28, 2015 / January 16, 2020 by Claire Suggs Still About $470 Million Short of Funding Formula The $8.49 billion for public schools in Governor Deal’s budget proposal shrinks some of the austerity cut in state K-12 funding. Districts that still furlough teachers and cut instructional days should get enough money to address both. However school districts will receive between $450 and $500 million […] Read more » K-12 State Budget
Author Budget and Taxes Fact Sheets Library Policy Areas Wesley Tharpe Tax Facts: Georgia Gives Up Billions through the Tax Code January 27, 2015 / January 16, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe Georgia foregoes billions of dollars in state revenue each year through dozens of credits, deductions and other special preferences called tax expenditures. As with spending items in the state’s annual budget, tax expenditures are supposed to promote policy priorities that can range from economic development to support for working families. But while the budget sets […] Read more » State Taxes
Alan Essig Author Budget and Taxes Library Policy Areas Reports Overview of Georgia’s 2016 Fiscal Year Budget January 21, 2015 / January 16, 2020 by Alan Essig The $21.8 billion budget proposed for Georgia’s 2016 fiscal year projects revenue growth of about 4.2 percent in the state’s main account for services such as education and public safety, the general fund. That’s $834 million more than the recently revised 2015 revenue estimate. State revenues are above pre-recession levels, but the proposed budget still […] Read more » State Budget
Author Claire Suggs K-12 Education Library Policy Areas Reports Money Matters: Increased Education Investment Linked to Higher Achievement December 16, 2014 / January 15, 2020 by Claire Suggs Money invested in student learning matters. This is the conclusion most researchers reach after examining the relationship between funding and student achievement. It means Georgia is headed in the wrong direction as ongoing austerity cuts slashed $8.3 billion from state public school funding since 2003. Students across the state suffer the effects of these cuts, […] Read more » K-12
Author Library Policy Areas Reports Wesley Tharpe Worker Justice Better Pay for Honest Work November 12, 2014 / January 17, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe Raise Georgia’s Minimum Wage to Expand Middle Class, Strengthen Economy Georgia’s economy is increasingly tilted toward the types of jobs that don’t pay workers enough to make ends meet or keep their families out of poverty. They are food servers at local restaurants. Retail clerks selling products they can’t afford. Home health aides helping the […] Read more »
Author Claire Suggs K-12 Education Library Policy Areas Reports Cutting Class to Make Ends Meet 2014 October 16, 2014 / January 17, 2020 by Claire Suggs Schools across Georgia continue to scramble to meet students’ needs as they cope with years of deep cuts in state funding. A new Georgia Budget and Policy Institute survey of school systems finds districts raised class sizes and cut instructional programs in response to state cuts. A modest increase of $314 million in state funding […] Read more » K-12
Author Fact Sheets Health Justice Library Policy Areas Timothy Sweeney Medicaid Expansion a Shot in the Arm for Coastal Georgia September 8, 2014 / January 17, 2020 by Timothy Sweeney About 50,000 uninsured Georgians in the 10-county Coastal Georgia region could get guaranteed health coverage if Georgia accepts new federal money to expand Medicaid eligibility. That is about half the area residents between 18 and 64 without health coverage in 2012, the last year of available data. It’s the third largest number of residents of […] Read more »
Author Claire Suggs K-12 Education Library Policy Areas Reports The Schoolhouse Squeeze 2014 September 4, 2014 / January 17, 2020 by Claire Suggs State Cuts, Lost Property Values Still Pinch School Districts Georgia’s 180 school districts continue to face enormous financial pressures. The Georgia Legislature cut more than $8.4 billion in funding for public schools in recent years. At the same time, local funding for schools slipped precipitously following the plunge in property values triggered by the Great […] Read more » K-12
