Georgia News Stories Master Thread (Atlanta, Columbus: house, to buy, school)

[Born 2 Roll]

GA Supreme Court elects Presiding Justice David Nahmias as next Chief Justice

ATLANTA — Georgia’s Supreme Court justices voted unanimously Thursday to select the high court’s next leader.

Presiding Justice David Nahmias is set to become chief justice when Chief Justice Harold Melton leaves the
court on July 1.

The justices also unanimously elected Justice Michael Boggs to succeed Nahmias as the next presiding justice.

Georgia chief justices serve one four-year term as the head of the state’s judicial branch.

Georgia Supreme Court elects next chief justice - Presiding Justice David Nahmias is set to become Chief Justice when Chief Justice Harold Melton leaves the court on July 1. (11Alive WXIA-TV Atlanta)

GA Supreme Court has new Chief Justice, Presiding Justice (WALB News 10 Albany, GA)

[LynnHarris1]

ATLANTA — Governor Brian Kemp has signed two bills that could mean more money in Georgians’ paychecks.

Georgians should see those tax cuts starting next year. It will amount to $800 for single filers and $1,100 for people married filing jointly..."

https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/atl...BZPZTMFQUCCWY/

SOURCE: WSB-TV

[AnsleyPark]

Originally Posted by LynnHarris1

ATLANTA — Governor Brian Kemp has signed two bills that could mean more money in Georgians’ paychecks.

Georgians should see those tax cuts starting next year. It will amount to $800 for single filers and $1,100 for people married filing jointly..."

https://www.wsbtv.com/news/local/atl...BZPZTMFQUCCWY/

SOURCE: WSB-TV

Ridiculous! Instead of cut, he should be raising taxes to fight poverty and the healthcare crisis. Oh, well...

[Columbus1984]

Originally Posted by AnsleyPark

Ridiculous! Instead of cut, he should be raising taxes to fight poverty and the healthcare crisis. Oh, well...

Umm no. Cut taxes to grow business and give people more spending power. People invest and jobs are created.

[JMatl]

Originally Posted by Columbus1984

Umm no. Cut taxes to grow business and give people more spending power. People invest and jobs are created.

Last I checked, Reagan is no longer in office and 'trickle-down economics' are pure BS. They don't work.

[Born 2 Roll]

I don’t think that Governor Kemp and Georgia Republicans really care as much about the amount of money that people will save on their state income taxes (which will be marginal at best) as much as they likely care about using the headline of reducing state incomes taxes as a public relations tool to help the state generate more business investment.

That includes recruiting more business and corporate relocations and expansions from California and the Northeast, especially in the aftermath of the widespread power outages during the Arctic cold snap in February that gave Texas a little bit of a black eye from a public relations standpoint.

Other Republican-controlled states seem to be trying appeal to California businesses that normally might be looking to relocate large and meaningful parts of their corporate operations to Texas, but might be having some second thoughts after the power outages.

This seemingly small state income tax cut seems to be an attempt to help position Georgia at the top of the list to divert away at least some more of the business investment that might normally be headed directly to Texas from California.

In addition to likely intending to use the news of the state income tax cut as a tool to attempt to recruit more business to the state, Governor Kemp, Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan and Georgia House Speaker David Ralston most likely also (very desperately) want the state income tax cut headline to use to help them during what are expected to be some extremely bruising re-election campaigns next year.

Since they seem to have the misfortune of being on the opposing side of now-former President Donald Trump (who has vowed to come after defeat the Georgia state Republican leaders who did not agree to overturn and has already backed his first major primary challenger against Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger) and his movement, Kemp, Duncan and Ralston very likely want something (like a state income tax cut) that potentially might help them to overcome what potentially likely could be some excessively brutal Trump-backed challenges in their respective 2022 GOP primaries.

[Columbus1984]

Originally Posted by JMatl

Last I checked, Reagan is no longer in office and 'trickle-down economics' are pure BS. They don't work.

Lol stuck on that huh? It actually worked perfect. The 80s economy boomed under Reagan but I’m sure you are too young to remember....

[Need4Camaro]

Originally Posted by Born 2 Roll

I don’t think that Governor Kemp and Georgia Republicans really care as much about the amount of money that people will save on their state income taxes (which will be marginal at best) as much as they likely care about using the headline of reducing state incomes taxes as a public relations tool to help the state generate more business investment.

That includes recruiting more business and corporate relocations and expansions from California and the Northeast, especially in the aftermath of the widespread power outages during the Arctic cold snap in February that gave Texas a little bit of a black eye from a public relations standpoint.

Other Republican-controlled states seem to be trying appeal to California businesses that normally might be looking to relocate large and meaningful parts of their corporate operations to Texas, but might be having some second thoughts after the power outages.

This seemingly small state income tax cut seems to be an attempt to help position Georgia at the top of the list to divert away at least some more of the business investment that might normally be headed directly to Texas from California.

In addition to likely intending to use the news of the state income tax cut as a tool to attempt to recruit more business to the state, Governor Kemp, Georgia Lt. Gov. Geoff Duncan and Georgia House Speaker David Ralston most likely also (very desperately) want the state income tax cut headline to use to help them during what are expected to be some extremely bruising re-election campaigns next year.

Since they seem to have the misfortune of being on the opposing side of now-former President Donald Trump (who has vowed to come after defeat the Georgia state Republican leaders who did not agree to overturn and has already backed his first major primary challenger against Georgia Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger) and his movement, Kemp, Duncan and Ralston very likely want something (like a state income tax cut) that potentially might help them to overcome what potentially likely could be some excessively brutal Trump-backed challenges in their respective 2022 GOP primaries.

These businesses regardless of which state they’re packing up and heading too need to start paying their fare share to the community. They need to pay for public infrastructure rather than getting a free ride on our tax dollars to come and inhabit a place that’s easier for them to operate in. Several of these relocating businesses are using federal dollars, meaning you, me, everyone in the country is paying for these relocations but only a minute few actually benefit. Elon Musk is one of them. Add onto the lack of consumer and citizen protections some of these business friendly states are very notorious to enforce to swallow up businesses who only want tax breaks and less regulation. Texas gets away with this because the cost to run the state is put off on its citizens through high property taxes and tolling every new road they build. It’s good they have the infrastructure but being too business friendly is just as bad as not being business friendly at all. I feel all of these states need to attract businesses who ‘want’ to be in the area and not businesses who want to save a few bucks.

[JMatl]

Originally Posted by Columbus1984

Lol stuck on that huh? It actually worked perfect. The 80s economy boomed under Reagan but I’m sure you are too young to remember....

Wrong on all counts, as usual.

[Born 2 Roll]

Originally Posted by Need4Camaro

These businesses regardless of which state they’re packing up and heading too need to start paying their fare share to the community. They need to pay for public infrastructure rather than getting a free ride on our tax dollars to come and inhabit a place that’s easier for them to operate in. Several of these relocating businesses are using federal dollars, meaning you, me, everyone in the country is paying for these relocations but only a minute few actually benefit. Elon Musk is one of them. Add onto the lack of consumer and citizen protections some of these business friendly states are very notorious to enforce to swallow up businesses who only want tax breaks and less regulation. Texas gets away with this because the cost to run the state is put off on its citizens through high property taxes and tolling every new road they build. It’s good they have the infrastructure but being too business friendly is just as bad as not being business friendly at all. I feel all of these states need to attract businesses who ‘want’ to be in the area and not businesses who want to save a few bucks.

I definitely agree that it would be ideal if corporations would contribute more to infrastructure.

Though, I will not get too down on large corporations that relocate from higher-cost states like California, New York, etc., to lower-cost states like Texas, Georgia, etc.

That’s because, even with the strains that large corporations may place on infrastructure when they relocate, I think that the benefits and upside of having more economic activity (including more jobs of all different income levels) outweighs the downsides of increased infrastructure costs.

When a large corporation relocates from a higher-cost state (like CA, NY, etc.) to a lower-cost state (like TX, GA, etc.) that corporation does not just create jobs inside of an office.

That corporation creates jobs throughout the entire community that they relocate to, including design and engineering jobs (from when a new corporate facility is designed), construction jobs (from when a new corporate facility is built), to maintenance jobs (for maintenance of corporate and/or industrial physical facilities), to janitorial jobs (for when the facility needs to be cleaned on a daily basis), to jobs at other businesses in the community (from when employees at that new corporate facility spend money at restaurants, bars, grocery stores, convenience stores, retail shops, etc., in the community).

They even create new jobs at warehouses and distribution centers (including Amazon, etc.) when they make online retail purchases along with retail purchases at bricks-and-mortar stores.

And all of the people those jobs employ pay income taxes, property taxes (both directly on homes they own, and indirectly when they pay rents on leased dwellings) and sales taxes that fund government services when they make retail purchases.

Even if conditions are not perfect (which unfortunately they may not always be), it is infinitely better to have all of the economic activity that is created by those relocated corporate jobs than it is to not have the economic activity created by those relocated corporate jobs.

I understand the frustration of having to watch our governments politically cater to and even pander for new business, but it is difficult for me to fully agree with the statement that “being too business friendly is just as bad as not being business friendly at all,” especially when I have witnessed so many areas (like much of metro Atlanta, including areas like Cobb County, North Fulton County, Gwinnett County, Henry County, etc.) be able to lift themselves from poverty to overall prosperity with the direct help of all of the outside investment (both private and public) that has been brought into the area over the last 7 decades.

It would be great if all of the corporations that relocated here did so because they actually wanted to be here personally and not just for cost benefits. But in the scheme of things it really does not matter exactly why they are moving here as long as they are bringing investment that benefits our economy.

Those large corporations that relocate from higher-cost states to lower-cost states like Georgia also attract numerous smaller businesses (including and particularly restaurants and bars) that most often don’t make major news headlines but are just as important to the economy as the larger businesses are.

The cook, busboy, the waiter/waitress and dishwasher at a local restaurant; the construction worker, the janitor, the maintenance person, the security guard, the cashier, the Uber/Lyft driver, etc., those are all very important jobs that are created and supported by these big-name corporate relocations and expansions.