Morning, y’all! Beef prices have climbed to record highs, as evidenced by the fact my husband and I got unreasonably excited over a bulk ground beef deal this weekend. But seriously, the price of ground beef has risen 12% this year, up to $6.12 a pound. At this point, you have to take your savings victories when you can.
Let’s get to it.
DEKALB’S SCHOOL EMAIL MISTAKE
DeKalb County School District leaders apologized after an email was sent to 22,000 (!) families claiming they’d need to pay tuition to keep their kids in the county’s public schools.
- The message, marked “urgent,” notified recipients their address was outside of DeKalb County, and students could continue to attend school only if the household paid a $7,000 tuition.
- Leaders apologized for the mix-up, attributing it to CLEAR, a new software used to verify students’ addresses.
- The school board paid tech company Thomson Reuters $142,000 for a one-year contract with CLEAR.
🔎 READ MORE: Why schools say address verification is critical to their operations
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ALLEGED PONZI SCHEME PREYED ON CONSERVATIVE INVESTORS TO ENRICH CONSERVATIVE FAMILY WHO DONATED TO CONSERVATIVE POLITICIANS
The family at the center of an alleged Georgia Ponzi scheme donated $1.4 million to far-right political causes, most of it money taken from scammed investors.
It’s a complicated story, but AJC reporters have been all over it for weeks, scouring state and federal campaign data to put together a bigger picture.
- Brant Frost IV and his Newnan-based firm, First Liberty Building & Loan, are accused by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of orchestrating a $140 million Ponzi scheme.
- The Frost family spent more than $570,000 of that money on campaign contributions to Republican figures like Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, U.S. Speaker of the House Mike Johnson and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis.
- The biggest proportion, however, went to the Georgia Republican Assembly, a far-right conservative faction.
- The Frost family used its donations to build up clout in Republican circles and drive investors to First Liberty Building & Loan on the promise of being a “patriot” business.
🔎 READ MORE: Alleged scheme preyed on ‘patriot brothers and sisters’
- Following the SEC’s allegations, some recipients are debating whether or not to keep the money. Several have already said they will.
🔎 READ MORE: Where else the money went and how the Frost family used its influence
IT’S STILL IN THE AIR
Four Atlanta-area sterilization plants that use a known carcinogen in their processes will be able to skirt new regulation standards thanks to a reprieve from President Donald Trump.
Trump is temporarily exempting medical sterilization facilities that use ethylene oxide from tighter emissions standards, giving them two more years to comply with regulations.
The facilities in Georgia include:
- Becton Dickinson (BD) facilities in Covington and Madison
- Sterigenics plant in Cobb County
- Kendall Patient Recovery near Augusta
- Sterilization Services of Georgia
The colorless gas ethylene oxide is linked to several cancers. In the last few years, hundreds of suits have been brought against sterilization facilities, with nearby residents claiming the chemical contributed to cancer or other health damages. In 2023, Sterigenics paid $35 million to settle dozens of such claims.
🔎 READ MORE: Why proponents say the extension is necessary
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
⚖️ A group of Democratic state attorneys general filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration challenging restrictions on social programs for children in the U.S. with no legal status.
🚇 Business leaders hope the next MARTA chief will tackle the embattled agency’s many issues, from low ridership to SNAFUs during high-traffic events like concerts.
💰 The State Ethics Commission dismissed a complaint over a $10 million loan Lt. Gov. Burt Jones made to his own campaign for governor. Attorney General Chris Carr wanted an investigation into the source of the loan.
DON’T BE A BOAR
When senior business editor J. Scott Trubey said his team was working on a story about “marauding wild hogs,” I was hooked. You had me at wild hogs.
Unfortunately, the hogs are a problem.
- An invasive species of feral hogs is laying waste to crops in southwestern Georgia, causing more than $100,000 in damage a year.
- Also known as wild pigs, swine or boars, these critters aren’t native to North America and have no natural predators.
- That leaves them free to reproduce, trample plants, uproot seeds and chew on stuff to their hearts’ desire.
- New research from the University of Georgia employed drone tracking to monitor hog-related damage.
- There are solutions for the problem, according to researchers and ag industry experts. None of them are pretty for the pigs.
🔎 READ MORE: Where the hogs came from and why they’re so hard to get rid of
NEWS BITES
Braves unveil NASCAR-themed unis for Bristol Motor Speedway game
It’s called fashion — look it up.
Ooh, drama and betrayal betwixt the noble fast food houses.
Bees are stressed by the warming Earth but have ways to cope. Still, experts fear for their future
Me, wide-awake at 2 a.m. with tears in my eyes: [sob] We’re stressing out the bees.
A 1907 AJC paper contains what looks like an old-timey Facebook feed
“Gertrude has returned from her trip.” “The Wallace family is summering on the coast.” Ah, we’ve always been silly little social butterflies.
ON THIS DATE
July 22, 1903
From the front page of The Atlanta Journal: Battle of Atlanta fought 39 years ago. Today is the anniversary of the memorable battle of Atlanta. It has been thirty-nine years since that great battle occurred, but it is still fresh in the memory of those who participated in it and the younger generation has as perpetual reminders the many breastworks and other signs of conflict that surround the city. … Many daring charges were made and the contending troops in many instances covered themselves with glory.
That’s 161 years ago, now. History on history.
(Also, breastworks = temporary fortifications/physical defenses.)
ONE MORE THING
Yesterday’s newsletter included immigration reporting from the AJC’s Lautaro Grinspan. He does such great, necessary work. So great, I misspelled his name. Grinspan. Apologies!
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
AJ Willingham is an National Emmy, NABJ and Webby award-winning journalist who loves talking culture, religion, sports, social justice, infrastructure and the arts. She lives in beautiful Smyrna-Mableton and went to Syracuse University.
