WABE's Week In Review

A bill to legalize sports betting passed in the Georgia state senate but will now require a constitutional amendment. Plus, Senate Bill 63 aims to crack down on crime by banning judges from ordering what's called an "unsecured judicial release" for people accused of a variety of crimes. And Governor Brian Kemp has approved a controversial new map for the upcoming Cobb County school board elections. Also, we look at the hundreds of millions of dollars in opioid settlement money coming into Georgia and how it could all be spent.

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A bill defining anti-Semitism cleared Georgia's House and Senate Thursday, despite concerns about free speech. Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns rolled out a Republican legislative package this week that includes tax relief for homeowners, parents and on income taxes. Plus, a new investigation from WABE and ProPublica shows how the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services uses housing as a key reason for children entering foster care but has provided few resources to help. Also, Snowmageddon remembered!

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Opponents of Atlanta's controversial Public Safety Training Center call for action and the release of more information on the activist who was shot and killed by state troopers at the controversial site one year ago on Thursday. Plus, Governor Brian Kemp's proposed budget includes a four-percent cost of living adjustment for all state employees and even larger raises for child protection workers that manage more than 10,000 kids in Georgia's beleaguered foster care system. And Atlanta's Spelman College has received a $100 million donation, which is the largest single gift ever made to a historically Black college. Plus, we hear from the daughter of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Bernice A. King on what would have been her father's 95th birthday.

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Governor Brian Kemp had a busy week. In his State of the State address he announced spending priorities of the Georgia's massive surplus, which includes possible tax breaks and increased safety measures. Earlier in the week, Kemp took aim at the labor movement, that has picked up some steam in Georgia, with this legislative session possibly seeing legislation to make unionizing more difficult in the state. Plus, the trial of a Public Safety Training Center protester is delayed as attorneys ask for more time. And Atlanta's City Council approves a rebate program for people buying e-bikes.

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Rudy Giuliani is declaring bankruptcy just days after a judge ordered he pay $148 million in damages for defaming two Fulton County election workers. And Georgia Power rates will increase by about nine dollars per customer when the last new nuclear reactor at Plant Vogtle goes online next year. Plus, Governor Brian Kemp says Georgia's public educators and state employees will get a one-time supplement of a thousand dollars in the coming weeks. 

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A jury in Washington D.C. is ordering Rudy Giuliani to pay $148 million in damages to two former Fulton County election workers for lies he spread about them after the 2020 election. Also, We look at several angles of the planned and controversial Public Safety Training Center in Atlanta, including whether opponents have the signatures to put it on the ballot. And the civil rights and religious groups that first sued over Georgia's political maps are now challenging the revised maps approved last week by the Republican-led legislature. Plus, Georgia and Alabama have reached a landmark deal in their long-running dispute over water use.

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Georgia Governor Brian Kemp has signed new congressional districts into law that maintain state Republicans advantage in Washington. The maps could still face a big challenge ahead. Plus, stats show an increase in the number of people living unsheltered in Dekalb County, but a new partnership is trying to help. And Fulton County Commissioners are still mulling over the $1.7 billion price tag of building a new jail, as they make plans to potentially issue a bond package to fund it. Also, jump in with a slimly creature in Georgia's waters that may or may not be endangered.

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Former first lady Rosalynn Carter was buried in Plains on Wednesday after a memorial and tribute in Atlanta on Monday and Tuesday. Plus, family members and advocates are calling for accountability more than a week after the body camera footage was released of the fatal encounter between a now former Atlanta police officer and a 62-year-old church deacon. And an activist group is offering help for some of the 1.6 million Georgians with student loans and are urging the federal government follows suit.

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Fulton County's District Attorney released body camera footage from a former Atlanta police officer who repeatedly tased a church deacon, who died over a dispute for a traffic ticket. Plus, Georgia’s state Supreme Court is refusing to approve rules for a new commission to discipline and remove state prosecutors. And we remember former first lady Rosalynn Carter, who died Sunday at 96.

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Metro Atlanta saw very low turnout for municipal elections. Plus, as Ohio voters decided to protect abortion access, some Georgia lawmakers question if voters here should have that opportunity. And some coaches and students at HBCUs saw recruiting internationally for some sports does not meet the mission of the schools.

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