Today’s newsletter highlights:
- Georgia lawmakers gather to mark the anniversary of a school shooting.
- Buddy Carter’s property sale hits a snag.
- Raphael Warnock will question Robert F. Kennedy Jr. during a Senate hearing.
Tax talk
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Lt. Gov. Burt Jones and his allies in the state Senate are pledging to slash and eventually eliminate Georgia’s income tax if he’s elected governor. But House Republicans, who get the first crack at tax legislation, have a different focus.
Speaker Jon Burns convened more than 150 lawmakers and advocates this week on the coast to preview next year’s session. And one of his priorities: cutting property taxes for landowners and homeowners, while still supporting a gradual rollback of the income tax.
A new Cygnal poll circulating at the retreat gave the idea momentum. It found most Georgians would be willing to pay more in sales tax if it meant reducing their property taxes.
Expect Burns to lean on that during the 2026 session, with Gov. Brian Kemp entering his final year and Jones seeking his job.
With so much in flux, Burns could be aiming to cast himself as the steady pillar in the three-legged stool of state government.
It’s not just Republicans. Democrats are also jumping on the tax train, including gubernatorial candidate Michael Thurmond. The former DeKalb County CEO said in an interview he wants to dip into the state’s surplus to eliminate state taxes on tips and overtime pay.
The idea resembles the policies of President Donald Trump, whose recently signed “big, beautiful bill” offers workers up to a $25,000 tax deduction on tipped income.
“This race will be about the economy. That’s the No. 1 issue. And frankly, that’s what we Democrats missed last November,” Thurmond said.
Republican state Sen. Greg Dolezal of Cumming, a potential candidate for lieutenant governor, sponsored a bill earlier this year to end state taxes on tips. But lawmakers did not act on it as they waited to see what the federal government would do.
A Georgia State University analysis found eliminating state taxes on tips would cost about $400 million over five years. There’s no estimate yet on the overtime piece.
Things to know
Credit: AP
Credit: AP
Good morning! Last week’s state Senate election isn’t over yet. The state will recount ballots at the request of Republican Steve West, who missed the runoff by a scant 65 votes. The process usually takes about a day, the AJC’s Michelle Baruchman reports.
Here are three other things to know for today:
- U.S. Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene offered a gentle rebuke of President Donald Trump’s comments that the attention swirling around the Jeffrey Epstein case was a “Democrat hoax,” Tia Mitchell reports.
- Democrats on the Fulton County Commission have again refused to appoint two Republican members to the local election board despite a judge’s order, the AJC’s Caleb Groves reports.
- Insurance Commissioner John King said he dropped out of the U.S. Senate race because he lacked a clear path to victory and didn’t want to waste “people’s time, energy and money” on a losing campaign, Greg Bluestein writes.
One year later
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Credit: Miguel Martinez/AJC
Democrats will gather at the state Capitol today to mark the one-year anniversary of the deadly shooting at Apalachee High School in Barrow County. But don’t expect a finger-pointing scolding of the GOP majority under the Gold Dome.
Instead, state Rep. Michelle Au, D-Johns Creek, said she personally invited Republicans to attend today’s event featuring current and former students who survived the attack.
“This is a one-year commemoration of a tragedy for this community,” she said. “It does not help anyone when these things are partisan.”
The Legislature’s response to the tragedy was indeed bipartisan, with large majorities approving millions of dollars in new school safety grants and a sweeping law requiring schools to assess threats and install mobile panic alert systems.
But lawmakers did not touch on the accessibility or storage of firearms, despite Republicans signaling their willingness to listen on such proposals in the days immediately after the shooting.
“For us to let that sense of urgency fade is really to our discredit,” Au said.
Heading into an election year, the chances of the Republican-led Legislature enacting gun safety measures are slim, but not impossible. Senate Majority Leader Jason Anavitarte of Dallas said lawmakers will “continue to listen, learn and legislate” to keep students safe. And House Speaker Jon Burns of Newington noted that the school safety laws passed this year “are just the beginning.”
State Rep. Holt Persinger, a Republican whose district includes Apalachee High School, plans to attend some community events today. He said he was proud of the state’s focus on mental health and school security.
“A gun is a tool. If somebody wants to cause harm, they are going to find a way to do it,” he said. “I think we need to do a better job of reaching our students that are in mental health crisis or having problems long before they get to this stage.”
Hiccup
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
U.S. Rep. Buddy Carter’s push to sell 571 acres of coastal land to a housing developer hit a snag this week when a local planning and zoning board tabled his request to annex the property and change its zoning.
Carter, a Republican from St. Simons Island, wants to sell the Camden County property to an Atlanta-based developer to build up to 750 single family homes on land covered by trees.
The developer, Drapac Investments, wants the city of Kingsland to annex the property and change its zoning so it can be included in the city’s water and sewer system. But the Kingsland Planning and Zoning Board voted to table the request on Tuesday, saying it was still waiting on the county to weigh in on the project.
The decision followed a lengthy public hearing where local residents complained about potential traffic disruptions. Emily Floore, executive director of St. Mary’s Riverkeeper, said the development threatens the region’s fragile salt marsh ecosystems and noted nearby roads often flood multiple times each year.
Carter has been dipping into his personal wealth to finance his U.S. Senate campaign, so it’s worth noting how this sale turns out. The Current reported the sale “would provide a significant windfall” for Carter, who bought the property for $2.1 million and recently had it listed for sale at $4.95 million.
A spokesperson for Carter did not respond to a request for comment.
Voter drive
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
Credit: Arvin Temkar/AJC
The conservative Greater Georgia political organization is launching a six-figure voter registration initiative ahead of this November’s elections and the 2026 midterms.
The effort will focus on reaching unregistered but eligible GOP-leaning Georgians, including new movers, first-time voters, and lapsed voters, through community events and targeted outreach. The group estimates more than 120,000 Georgians who fit this profile are not yet registered to vote.
Gov. Brian Kemp praised the initiative, saying he’s “proud to support Greater Georgia in this effort to secure a strong future for our state.”
Former Georgia U.S. Sen. Kelly Loeffler, who now leads the Small Business Administration as a member of President Donald Trump’s Cabinet, founded Greater Georgia in 2021 shortly after her defeat to Democratic U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock.
Listen up
Credit: Jeff Amy/AP
Credit: Jeff Amy/AP
Today on the “Politically Georgia” podcast the hosts analyze Gov. Brian Kemp’s official endorsement of Derek Dooley’s U.S. Senate campaign. They also delve into the strategies of the other two Republicans in the race: U.S. Reps. Buddy Carter of St. Simons Island and Mike Collins of Jackson.
You can listen and subscribe to Politically Georgia for free at Apple Podcasts, Spotify or wherever you get your podcasts.
Have a question or comment for the show? Email us at politicallygeorgia@ajc.com or give us a call at 770-810-5297 and you could be featured on a future episode.
Kennedy’s reckoning
Credit: Jacquelyn Martin/AP
Credit: Jacquelyn Martin/AP
U.S. Senators from both sides of the aisle say they will have tough questions for Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. when he testifies before a committee this morning.
Officially, the hearing before the Senate Finance Committee is about President Donald Trump’s health care agenda. But recent turmoil at the Atlanta-based Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is likely to capture much of the attention.
U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock, an Atlanta Democrat, is a member of the committee and will be among those questioning Kennedy.
The hearing comes less than a month after a police officer was killed in a shooting that targeted the CDC offices in DeKalb County. The suspect, who took his own life, had expressed concerns about the COVID-19 vaccine.
Kennedy is a vaccine skeptic who wants to roll back mandates and slow down research.
Last month, just days after the shooting, he forced Susan Monarez from her post as CDC director. She had only been on the job for a month. Other top CDC leaders resigned in protest. Those developments come on top of scores of layoffs that have decimated many CDC research initiatives and divisions.
Today in Washington
- President Donald Trump will host a dinner at the White House with leaders of some of the world’s leading tech companies.
- The House will attempt to pass the third of 12 appropriations bills for the fiscal year starting Oct. 1.
- The Senate will vote to advance more Trump nominees and could take a procedural vote on the National Defense Authorization Act.
- Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will testify before the Senate Finance Committee, where Georgia U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock is a member.
- U.S. Sen. Jon Ossoff, D-Ga., will participate in a news conference hosted by Protect Our Care ahead of the Kennedy hearing.
Shoutouts
Credit: Courtesy photo
Credit: Courtesy photo
Today’s birthdays:
- Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns, R-Newington.
- State Rep. Rhonda Taylor, D-Conyers.
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.
Before you go
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
Credit: Abbey Cutrer/AJC
State Rep. Houston Gaines says his congressional campaign has locked up the endorsement of all 14 Republican sheriffs in Georgia’s 10th Congressional District. Gaines, an Athens Republican, is running to replace U.S. Rep. Mike Collins, who is running for the Senate.
That’ll do it for us today. As always, you can send your best scoops, gossip and insider info to greg.bluestein@ajc.com, tia.mitchell@ajc.com, patricia.murphy@ajc.com and adam.beam@ajc.com.
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