As a Democrat, I’m back in the idea business
Nothing beats that overwhelming feeling you get when you realize you’ve gone from surviving to thriving in an area of your life. A promotion at work, a clean bill of health at the doctor or even a repaired personal relationship often serves as the catalyst to a new outlook on life.
Waking up now as a Democrat each morning has injected that new sense of optimism into my veins and allowed me to get back into the “idea business.” The art of the possible is once again possible, my tool kit for solving people’s problems just got a whole lot better and I love it!
Georgia currently has $17 billion in its savings account ready at moment’s notice to backfill any budgetary gaps that might arise during an economic slowdown if our $37 billion budget runs out of steam.
Former Gov. Nathan Deal, Gov. Brian Kemp and the entire Legislature over the last decade deserve credit for putting our state in such a strong financial position. Pro-growth strategies and great decision making during the pandemic have led our state to this record level of surplus cash in the bank.
Still, too many Georgians are stuck in the vicious cycle of poverty for a multitude of reasons. Many are only one relatively small solution away from getting the jump start they need to go from surviving to thriving in their daily lives.
Much like a Fortune 500 company with a pile of cash on their balance sheet, it’s time for Georgia to start investing more in our most vulnerable. Let’s start a “Jumpstart Fund” with $1.7 billion in seed capital from the $17 billion rainy-day fund and laser focus on turning poverty into prosperity for as many Georgians as possible.
Public policy is typically painted with large partisan brushstrokes and rarely nimble enough to identify and deal with the real nooks and crannies of someone’s impoverished situation. Solutions are most often found in the gaps, not the talking points.
How many single moms just need access to affordable child care so they can reenter the workforce and once again gainfully provide for their family? How many Georgians want to work full time but don’t have reliable transportation to and from work? How many Georgians are one online class away from possessing the necessary job skills to get hired?
The answer to these questions and a thousand more just like them is, too many.
If we take off our partisan caps long enough to put on our 21st-century thinking caps, we can see modern solutions start to develop all around us. Leveraging the power of technology is the tail wind of choice these days when making big investments, especially in health care.
Too many Georgians are only one affordable doctor’s appointment away from being able to hold down a full-time job. Let’s figure out a way to better leverage telehealth into Federal Qualified Health Centers and look for ways to expand their footprint here in Georgia. FQHCs have been around for decades and provide a wide swath of medical services to the community such as primary care, behavioral health, woman’s health, pediatrics and even discounted pharmacies.
FQHCs have a unique sliding fee schedule that is tailored to each patient’s situation and considers household income and the federal poverty level when setting their final price. This should be a no-brainer for Georgia along with expanding Medicaid and will dramatically close care gaps among the uninsured population.
Another tail wind of choice for successful investors is to simply look for ways to scale up great ideas.
According to the latest reports, 12,000-plus Georgians are considered homeless every night, which should break every one of our hearts, regardless of your political affiliation. A majority of these individuals are just one affordable roof over their head away from being able to get their life back together.
I applaud Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens and his efforts to stem homelessness in the city by investing in the problem instead of demonizing it. His administration’s strategy to adopt a housing-first philosophy — combining speedy modular development, substantial financial investment and service-rich supportive housing — should be expanded statewide. Mayor Dickens has decided that a homeless person’s best days should be in front of them, not behind them.
Georgia has the resources, the people and the momentum to lead the nation in rethinking how we tackle poverty. A $1.7 billion Jumpstart Fund isn’t about charity, it’s about investment and unleashing the potential of every Georgian so they can thrive instead of just survive.
Let’s put 10% of our surplus to work, not by growing government for government’s sake, but by growing opportunity for the people who make Georgia what it is. If we choose bold, modern solutions over stale partisan talking points, then our best days as a state will truly lie ahead.
Geoff Duncan, a contributing columnist for The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, served as Georgia’s lieutenant governor from 2019 to 2023. He is a former professional baseball player and the author of “GOP 2.0: How the 2020 Election Can Lead to a Better Way Forward for America’s Conservative Party.” He is also a contributor to CNN.
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