Legislator slams proposal to take money set aside for Jekyll, St. Simons and Tybee islands
A weekend editorial outlines a move by lawmakers and the governor to include $10 million in the state's midyear budget so Jekyll, St. Simons and Tybee islands can fortify their beaches. The budget has been approved by the House and is under review by the Senate. But the money caused a minor uproar last week when a freshman lawmaker from North Georgia proposed an amendment that would have taken the $10 million away from the beach projects and put it toward debt relief, savannahnow.com reports. That prompted this from local state Rep. Jesse Petrea: "Is it not true that these beaches on the coast are public beaches for over 10 million Georgians, constituents of every member of this body? And is it not true that our Georgia coast has been hammered by two — two — hurricanes over the course of the last two years which have completely decimated the whole sand sharing system along the Georgia coast of beaches and dunes and this money was wisely placed in this budget to help us to overcome these obstacles?"
Mercer University, UGA Extension Service partner to recruit future doctors for state’s rural areas
Private Mercer University and the University of Georgia Extension Service are partnering to develop a potential source for new rural doctors: the youth group 4-H. The two organizations have created a program called Setting Your Sights on Medical School. The goal is to expose 4-H'ers from medically underserved rural Georgia to the idea that medical school is an option for them, UGA Today reports. Members of 4-H must apply to the program. Students who are accepted to the program travel to Macon for an inside look at medical school through sessions led by Mercer faculty and students.
Alabama planning to follow Georgia in outlawing vile ‘upskirting’
Alabama could soon join Georgia in making it illegal to secretly videotape or photograph under a person’s clothes — a lewd practice commonly called “upskirting.” Georgia passed such a law in 2017 on the final day of the legislative session, and a similar bill is currently working its way through the Alabama Legislature. The bill won unanimous approval from the Alabama Senate late last week and now goes to the House for consideration, news organizations in Alabama report.
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