How Lake Lanier closures brought Republicans and Democrats together

Today’s newsletter highlights:

Jon Ossoff and Tyler Harper exchange letters.
Audit finds teacher retirement benefit has little impact.
Fulton County Commission rejects Republican election board nominee.

Lake reprieve

Credit: AP

Credit: AP

Lake Lanier has suddenly become a new symbol of President Donald Trump’s government-shrinking agenda just in time for the Memorial Day break.

As word spread of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers plan to shutter 20 parks along the sprawling reservoir due to staff shortages, Democrats berated the White House for closures that could upend countless vacations.

Georgia U.S. Sens. Jon Ossoff and Raphael Warnock both sent scathing statements that called the move disastrous, with Ossoff labeling it a “direct and predictable result of the Administration’s reckless and chaotic mismanagement.”

Republicans worked furiously behind the scenes to blunt the closures, which state Sen. Greg Dolezal of Cumming called “nonsensical and infuriating.”

He and U.S. Rep. Rich McCormick, R-Suwanee, hounded corps officials until the agency said it would only close 11 sites along the lake. U.S. Rep. Andrew Clyde, whose district also includes parts of Lake Lanier, was also among those who reached out to the corps.

“They will continue to assess traffic and adjust as needed through the weekend,” Dolezal said, adding: “I’m happy for some movement here and do appreciate people working together versus digging in.”

Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC

Democrats claimed partial victory. Warnock sent a statement calling the decision “welcome news for Georgia families” seeking sun and fun this weekend at the lake.

“But because of this administration’s reckless cuts, parks are still slated to be indefinitely closed,” he said. “We must continue to speak out: Enough is enough with these reckless cuts, Georgia families deserve better.”

Senior Republican leaders, meanwhile, gathered at the lake last night for a very different reason: a Gov. Brian Kemp-led boat parade and fundraiser benefiting GOP lawmakers.

Things to know

Good morning! We’re taking Monday off for Memorial Day, so the next newsletter will be Tuesday morning.

Here are three things to know for today:

Gov. Brian Kemp set an Aug. 26 special election to fill the vacant Georgia Senate seat once held by Republican Brandon Beach, who stepped down after President Donald Trump tapped him as the next U.S. treasurer.
For years, Republican activists have challenged the eligibility of thousands of Georgia voters. Now, some Democratic-leaning counties are reviewing voters who appear to be improperly registered at post office boxes and UPS stores, the AJC’s Mark Niesse reports.
Georgia libraries are rethinking their budgets as federal funding cuts remain in limbo, the AJC’s Caleb Groves reports.

Dueling letters

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff and Agriculture Commissioner Tyler Harper exchanged letters this week — but we don’t expect them to become pen pals anytime soon.

Ossoff started it with a one-page letter on Tuesday thanking Harper for his work to support Georgia farmers before reminding him that Congress had approved $21 billion in hurricane relief — money that, five months later, is mostly still in Washington.

“I urge you to work to reach an agreement with (Agriculture) Secretary (Brooke) Rollins to distribute these Federal funds as swiftly as possible,” Ossoff wrote.

The letter angered Harper, who wrote back today to say his staff applied for a block grant earlier this month and has been meeting with federal officials multiple times per week to negotiate. What’s more, Harper said his staff told Ossoff’s office all of this last week.

“I urge you to put partisan politics aside,” Harper wrote.

The letters add to the intrigue surrounding Georgia’s 2026 U.S. Senate race. Ossoff, a Democrat, is running for reelection. Harper, a Republican, is seen as a potential challenger. The seventh-generation farmer hasn’t decided yet what he will do, but he took a swipe at Ossoff for what he viewed to be a purely political letter.

“It is beyond shameful that the Senator is attempting to use hurricane relief for Georgia farmers as a campaign PR strategy,” Harper told us.

Teacher shortage

Credit: Jason Getz/AJC

When Georgia lawmakers agreed to let retired teachers come back to work, they put in some guardrails to prevent people from abusing the benefit. Now, a new audit shows those guardrails might be too high.

About 350 retired teachers have returned to work under House Bill 385. And while that sounds like a lot, remember that Georgia has about 125,000 teachers and averages about 6,000 vacancies. It means these retired teachers make up less than 1% of the workforce.

That’s why a recent review by the Georgia Department of Audits & Accounts found the law has had limited impact so far. One reason is the law only lets teachers return to work if they have at least 30 years of creditable service in the retirement system. And they’re limited to high-need subject areas, as identified by the state Department of Education.

Of the 163 school systems that responded to a survey, nearly half said these requirements prevented them from hiring a retired teacher that they otherwise would have employed.

School systems across the country have endured a shortage of teachers since the pandemic, the result of fewer people graduating with four-year education degrees. Georgia has responded in a few ways, including giving teachers a $7,000 pay raise and letting some teachers work remotely.

But letting retired teachers come back to work was a big part of the plan. The law is scheduled to expire in June 2026. Lawmakers will decide whether to extend it.

Feeling SALTy

Credit: Mark Schiefelbein/AP

Hours after the U.S. House passed the Republican budget bill, Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock weighed in with a common criticism from the left.

“I will be voting NO on the Billionaire Tax Giveaway Bill,” Warnock posted on X, adding: “And if I weren’t a preacher, I’d tell you what kind of no.”

Republican tax policies, including the 2017 tax cuts signed into law by President Donald Trump, are often held up as gifts to the wealthiest Americans. But there’s one area where better-off Americans haven’t benefited as much from GOP tax policy: the state and local tax deduction.

Commonly known as SALT, this lets taxpayers deduct their state and local tax payments from their federal tax bill. The 2017 tax cuts capped the deduction at $10,000. Wealthy people in high-tax states felt it the most. But the results were somewhat mitigated in most states, including Georgia, by a complicated workaround for business owners.

Now, the latest Republican tax proposal would raise that SALT cap to $40,000. The nonpartisan Tax Foundation says this would guarantee the full SALT deduction for most taxpayers — although some businesses would lose access to that workaround.

“It doesn’t matter what your status is, who you are or where you came from. Trump’s tax policies lift all boats,” said U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, R-Jackson.

Round two

Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC

The Fulton County Commission blocked a Republican Party nominee to the county election board Wednesday, with Democratic commissioners objecting to his history of challenging voter registrations.

The fight is a repeat from two years ago, the last time the Republican Party nominated Jason Frazier and the Democratic majority voted him down 5-2, the AJC’s Mark Niesse tells us.

Republican State Election Board member Janelle King said the Fulton Commission crossed into “dangerous territory” by seeking candidates they consider more “centered.”

“Silencing a segment of the party simply because they are perceived as ‘too far right’ is unacceptable,” King wrote on X.

Democratic Fulton Commissioner Dana Barrett said the Republican Party should “get serious and send us a nominee who doesn’t have an egregious record of voter suppression.”

Frazier was nominated for the seat currently held by Republican election board member Michael Heekin.

The commission also voted down the renomination of Republican election board member Julie Adams for a term that begins July 1. She will continue to serve on the board until she is replaced, the county attorney said.

Listen up

The “Politically Georgia” podcast is off today. We’ll be back on Monday to answer questions from the listener mailbag.

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Saving Peachtree Summit

Credit: Steve Schaefer/AJC

Count U.S. Rep. Nikema Williams among those raising the alarm after an advisory board suggested the sale of an Atlanta building that is the home to several federal offices.

The U.S. Public Buildings Reform Board this week recommended that the Peachtree Summit Building in downtown Atlanta be sold, the AJC’s Allison Mawn reported. The building was listed among 11 federal sites recommended to be sold to save money because of their low occupancy or costly upkeep.

The building houses thousands of workers in several federal agencies, including the Internal Revenue Service, Social Security Administration, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and the General Services Administration’s Southeast region. The board says Peachtree Summit needs $255 million in repairs and upgrades and that the government could save $707 million by selling it.

The General Services Administration manages federal real estate holdings. Williams, a Democrat who represents Atlanta, wrote a letter to GSA Acting Administrator Stephen Ehikian questioning the logic of a closure.

She said for 50 years the building has given her constituents access to workers who help them obtain federal resources and benefits, especially people who use nearby public transportation access points.

“This is especially important today, where inflation and the cost of living are rapidly skyrocketing and constituents need their tax returns and Social Security payments to make ends meet,” Williams wrote.

Today in Washington

President Donald Trump will sign executive orders and then travel to the U.S. Military Academy to deliver a weekend commencement speech.
The House and Senate are in recess until June 2.

Stock trading ban

Credit: Jason Getz/AJC

U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., has reintroduced legislation to ban members of Congress and their families from trading stocks.

This has been a big topic for Ossoff since he defeated Republican incumbent U.S. Sen. David Perdue, who had an active stock portfolio. But there has been renewed interested in recent weeks amid criticism of trades made by U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene, R-Rome, and other members of Congress in the days surrounding President Donald Trump’s tariff announcements.

“Members of Congress should not be playing the stock market while we make Federal policy and have extraordinary access to confidential information,” Ossoff said in a news release.

Arizona U.S. Sen. Mark Kelly is a primary sponsor of the bill along with Ossoff. And Georgia U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock is among six original cosponsors. All are Democrats.

Shoutouts

Credit: Natrice Miller/AJC

Today’s birthday:

State Sen. Frank Ginn, R-Danielsville.

Want a birthday shoutout in the Politically Georgia newsletter? There’s a form for that. Click here to submit the shoutouts. It’s not just birthdays. We’re also interested in new jobs, engagements, birth announcements, etc.