Last week news broke that an ethics investigation into some $630,000 of missing campaign cash belonging to former state Sen. Don Balfour was being dismissed due to a loophole that said too much time had passed since he left office in 2015. Not so fast, said Jake Evans, chairman of the state ethics commission, who this week made the motion to reject that dismissal, reopening an ethics investigation into hundreds of thousands of campaign dollars that by law must be accounted for – leftover money must be returned to donors or donated to other campaigns or non-profits. Now Balfour’s campaign account sits empty, but with no record of where the money went, observers are calling foul play. More to come on this story as it continues to DRIFT…
Dr. Timothy Coolong on Growing Industrial Hemp in Georgia
An entire new agricultural industry springing up essentially overnight, predictably, comes with quite a few hoops to jump through. That’s what farmers and industry workers have had to deal with following the legalization of the growing of industrial hemp...Senate committee on law enforcement reform holds first meeting today
A newly formed Senate study committee on law enforcement reform will hold its first meeting today to begin gathering information and identifying areas where state laws might need to be revised. The committee is being chaired by Sen. Bill Cowsert (R-Athens) and...New law will require appeals process for teacher evaluations
Teacher performance evaluations have been an issue of concern recently among education advocates and teacher support groups. State officials hope a bill signed by Gov. Brian Kemp will help alleviate some of their concerns. With the stroke of the Governor’s pen,...Atlanta City Council approves legislation looking to reel in tax abatements
On Monday, the Atlanta City Council approved legislation that calls on the Development Authority of Fulton County to cease acting as the issuer of lease purchase taxable revenue bonds for property within Atlanta’s city limits. The legislation was introduced by...USG Post Tenure Review Committee to work on policy review
A committee charged with looking at the University System of Georgia’s (USG) 24-year-old post-tenure policy plans has begun its work and hopes to have a report ready for the Board of Regents in January. “We held an organizational meeting last Friday, and the...
