A.M. ATL: Heat and taxes

Morning, y’all! Time for the occasional A.M. ATL check-in: What’s something you’ve accomplished recently, and something you’re grateful for? (It’s OK if you have to think for a minute, or if your accomplishment is, “I woke up this morning.” That’s an important one!)

There, we’re starting the day on a positive note.

Let’s get to it.

ATLANTA NEEDS A BETTER EXTREME HEAT PLAN, LEADERS SAY

People used umbrellas to escape the heat at the FIFA Fan Festival in early July. (Arvin Temkar/AJC)

If the summer heat is merely inconvenient and uncomfortable for you, count yourself lucky. For so many Atlantans (and Georgians, and … people), it can be downright dangerous.

That’s why Atlanta’s City Council is directing the mayor’s office to craft an extreme heat plan in response to a brutal stretch of early July heat, with the situation bringing criticism from advocacy groups.

What, exactly, does a heat plan look like? This is some of what the City Council drew up:

• New cooling center locations with expanded operating hours.
• Increased outreach to at-risk groups like seniors, unhoused people and those without central air conditioning.
• Extreme heat warnings delivered by text message, robocall and other methods.
• Creation of a centralized heat safety and resource website.

During the Independence Day weekend heat wave, the city had a single cooling center open, but had to shutter it early because of staffing issues. City pools also shut down. Mayor Andre Dickens’ office said they began reviewing and updating their heat plan months ago.

🔎 READ MORE: What critics say about Atlanta’s current response plan

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FULTON’S MAKING TAX MOVES

Fulton County will ask voters this fall whether to extend a 0.75-cent sales tax to pay for transportation projects throughout the county.

• The measure is called T-SPLOST, and if you’ve seen the acronym around and always wondered, your misery ends today: It stands for “transportation special purpose local option sales tax.”
• The sales tax has been in place since 2017 and was renewed once already.
• November’s vote would extend it another five years and is estimated to raise $662 million.
• Fourteen Fulton County cities have an extensive list of projects that could proceed if voters approve another extension.

If you live in Fulton County, you’ll want to see what your city has on the agenda. The biggest dollar amounts would go to congestion relief projects in Sandy Springs ($46 million) and pedestrian, bicycle and streetscape improvements in Roswell ($41 million) and South Fulton ($32 million).

Even more Fulton tax moves

Meanwhile, some Fulton officials are vocally irritated over a delay in certifying property taxes in the county that could keep the jurisdiction from collecting taxes on time.

• That would cause obvious issues with funding things like teacher salaries.
• Fulton County Schools Superintendent Mike Looney called the delay “unconscionable.”

“Sixty percent of this (school) board’s budget comes from local taxes, and we don’t know what that number is,” Looney said during a recent meeting. “It’s impossible to run a billion-dollar organization without having 60% of your revenue solidified.”

🔎 READ MORE: Why the county had to ask a judge to intervene

MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS

🐘 Former U.S. Sen. Jeff Flake, an Arizona Republican, has endorsed U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff over his GOP opponent, U.S. Rep. Mike Collins. It’s the latest example of Ossoff’s growing cross-aisle appeal. “I’m still a conservative Republican. But character matters,” Flake told the AJC.

⚖️ A set of GOP groups entangled with the defunct First Liberty Building & Loan may still be on the hook for ethics violations. The State Ethics Commission overruled a previous decision that the Georgia Republican Assembly and its affiliated political action committee didn’t violate campaign finance laws.

If you recall, federal authorities say First Liberty founder Brant Frost IV ran a $140 million Ponzi scheme and funneled some of the money into conservative political groups.

THE GA-BASED BUC-EE’S SPAT MADE IT TO LATE NIGHT

One is a marsupial. One is a rodent. Will the courts agree? (Ben Hendren/AJC, Hyosub Shin/AJC)

Buc-ee’s, the Texas-based highway titan with a handful of beloved Georgia locations, has filed at least a half-dozen lawsuits against smaller companies over what it says is infringement on its iconic beaver logo.

One of the smaller companies in the mighty beaver’s crosshairs is Teddy’s Markets, a Georgia-based convenience store chain with a koala mascot that Buc-ee’s says is too similar to its own. (Comparison above. You be the judge.)

We’ve known about this for a while here in Georgia, but now Teddy’s has another formidable ally.

• John Oliver, the host of “Last Week Tonight” on HBO, dedicated a segment to the controversy and came down on the koala side of things.
• “Why the f--- did Buc-ee’s go after the Teddy’s koala? That bear is looking you right in the eyes. He is peering into your very soul,” Oliver said. (Buc-ee’s said in other filings that many cartoon animal characters looking to the right are too similar.)

Also, I’m no legal expert, but I cannot stress this enough: One is a koala. One is a beaver.

🐨 READ MORE: More fun (and serious trademark implications) from the segment

NEWS BITES

Capybaras crash meeting of Brazilian legislature

They’re just trying to stay involved in local politics.

Cleveland Sirens unveil name, logo and branding for WNBA expansion team

I like that they made the siren look scary. Sirens are supposed to be scary.

Heavy backpacks can strain kids’ bodies. Here’s what to know

Message to kids who think it’s cool to sling it on one shoulder: Back problems will come sooner than you expect. No need to rush them along.