Blog Health Justice Timothy Sweeney Health Care Overhaul is Good for Georgians with Pre-existing Conditions March 27, 2012 / January 16, 2020 by Timothy Sweeney | 3 Comments on Health Care Overhaul is Good for Georgians with Pre-existing Conditions While many provisions of the Affordable Care Act (ACA) haven’t taken effect yet, it’s clear the federal overhaul that changes how this nation handles health care is already paying big benefits to Georgians. In light of the second anniversary of the federal law, a new GBPI report highlights several ways Georgians are benefitting from the […] Read more » Affordable Care Act Blog health Tim Sweeney
Blog Budget and Taxes Wesley Tharpe Tax Bill Takes Small Steps in the Right Direction March 23, 2012 / March 18, 2021 by Wesley Tharpe | 2 Comments on Tax Bill Takes Small Steps in the Right Direction More Work Needed to Achieve Comprehensive Tax Reform The omnibus tax bill passed by the General Assembly this week, HB 386, is not perfect, but it is a small step in the right direction. Overall, the bill is a (mostly) prudent package of tax changes, including some important reforms that will help the state invest […] Read more » Blog HB 386 House Bill 386 State Taxes Wesley Tharpe
Blog Budget and Taxes Georgia’s Problems Go Deeper Than Fee Diversions March 16, 2012 / January 17, 2020 by Alan Essig Posted by: Alan Essig The controversy over fees being diverted from their intended purposes and instead used for other things is really a symptom of a bigger problem: Georgia lacks the money to invest in education, transportation, public safety and other building blocks of job creation and economic growth. Over the past few years, tens […] Read more » Alan Essig Blog Free Diversions HB 811 House Bill 811 State Budget
Blog Budget and Taxes Health Justice House Shows Promise in Restoring Health Funding March 8, 2012 / January 17, 2020 by Alan Essig Read more » Adult Addictive Diseases Program Blog Children’s 1st Program Clare Richie State Budget TANF Temporary Assistance for Needy Families
Alan Essig Blog Think Low Business Taxes Fuel Job Growth? Think Again. March 5, 2012 / January 16, 2020 by Alan Essig | 1 Comment on Think Low Business Taxes Fuel Job Growth? Think Again. Once again Georgia is shown to be a low tax state. The Tax Foundation, a conservative think tank in Washington D.C., released a national study that compares how much different companies pay in taxes. The study reveals that Georgia has the 3rd lowest business tax costs for mature operations and the 6th lowest for newly-established […] Read more » Alan Essig Blog Budget & Taxes job growth State Taxes taxes
Blog Health Justice Food for Thought on Georgia’s Medicaid Redesign March 1, 2012 / January 16, 2020 by Timothy Sweeney | 2 Comments on Food for Thought on Georgia’s Medicaid Redesign Although Georgia already spends less than most states on its Medicaid program, State leaders plan to “redesign” the program to save money. The state’s consultant (Navigant, Inc.) conducted a review of Georgia’s current Medicaid program and issued a report in January with redesign options for the state to consider. The Department of Community Health (DCH), […] Read more » Blog health medicaid Medicaid redesign Tim Sweeney
Alan Essig Blog Budget and Taxes Op-ed: So-called fix is a proven failure (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) February 22, 2012 / January 17, 2020 by Alan Essig | 2 Comments on Op-ed: So-called fix is a proven failure (The Atlanta Journal-Constitution) As posted in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution Plans to eliminate or drastically cut personal income taxes and replace them with other levies are in vogue in several states. Georgia policy makers would do well to ignore the siren’s call. Such a tax shift would do nothing to help the state’s economy. It would, in fact, hurt […] Read more » Alan Essig Atlanta Journal-Constitution Blog Op-Ed state income tax State Taxes
Alan Essig Blog Guest Blogger: Matthew Gardner | Reality Check: “High Rate” Income Tax States are Outperforming No-Tax States February 16, 2012 / January 17, 2020 by Alan Essig | 2 Comments on Guest Blogger: Matthew Gardner | Reality Check: “High Rate” Income Tax States are Outperforming No-Tax States The Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy (ITEP) recently released a report that destroys the myth that states without an income tax perform better economically than the states with high income tax rates. ITEP’s Executive Director Matthew Gardner is our guest blogger this week: Reality Check: “High Rate” Income Tax States are Outperforming No-Tax States […] Read more » Blog Budget & Taxes Guest Blogger Income Tax Institute on Taxation and Economic Policy ITEP Matthew Gardner
Blog Budget and Taxes Wesley Tharpe The Tax Foundation says Georgia’s got a Business Tax Problem. Do Not Pay Attention. February 10, 2012 / January 16, 2020 by Wesley Tharpe | 1 Comment on The Tax Foundation says Georgia’s got a Business Tax Problem. Do Not Pay Attention. If a car salesman told you that Fords are the highest ranked car, would you drive one off the lot without looking under the hood? A new report that ranks states on their “business tax climates” seems to hope you would. Put out earlier this month, the Tax Foundation’s 2012 State Business Tax Climate Index ranks Georgia […] Read more » Blog Budget & Taxes State Taxes taxes Wesley Tharpe
Alan Essig Blog Cedric Johnson K-12 Education Op-ed: Hope Reform 2.0 (Athens Banner-Herald) February 9, 2012 / January 16, 2020 by Alan Essig | 3 Comments on Op-ed: Hope Reform 2.0 (Athens Banner-Herald) Essig, Johnson: HOPE, pre-k need sustainable path As published in Athens Banner-Herald Understanding the realities of lottery funding in Georgia is as simple as a word problem in math class. Take a look: Train A departs Hope City station at 70 miles per hour. Train B departs from the same station 30 minutes later going […] Read more » Alan Essig Blog Cedric Johnson Education HOPE Scholarship Op-Ed Pre-K