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MEDIA ADVISORY: Senate Study Committee on Expanding Georgia’s Workforce to Hold Fourth Meeting

ATLANTA (September 14, 2023) | On Tuesday, September 19, 2023, the Senate Study Committee on Expanding Georgia’s Workforce, chaired by Senator John Albers (R – Roswell), will be holding its fourth meeting at 10:00 a.m. at the Cultural Arts Center in Commerce, Georgia. The Senate Study Committee was created pursuant to Senate Resolution 275, sponsored by Sen. Albers, which passed during the 2023 Legislative Session with bipartisan support. This committee was established to fulfill one of Lt. Governor Burt Jones priorities for the 2023 session. The committee is comprised of both legislative and non-legislative members: Sen. Albers as Chairman, Sen. Brandon Beach (R – Alpharetta), Sen. Jason Esteves (D – Atlanta), Sen. Sonya Halpern (D – Atlanta), Sen. Billy Hickman (R – Statesboro), Champ Bailey, Joseph McDermott, Ryan Pernice, Technical College System of Georgia Commissioner Greg Dozier, Dave Williams, and Daniela Perry. The study committee will hold two more meetings throughout the remainder of the year, with a schedule of meetings located on the committee website listed below.

WHO:               Sen. John Albers, Chairman of the Senate Study Committee on Expanding Georgia’s Workforce

                        Senate Study Committee Members

                        Representatives from a wide range of Georgia industries

WHAT:              Fourth meeting of the Senate Study Committee on Expanding Georgia’s Workforce

WHEN:             Tuesday, September 19, 2023

10:00 a.m. 

WHERE:            Commerce Cultural Arts Center

232 Cherry St.

Commerce, Georgia 30529

WEBSITE URL: https://www.expandinggeorgiasworkforcestudy.com/

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Sen. John Albers serves as Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Safety. He represents the 56th Senate District which includes portions of Cherokee, Cobb and North Fulton counties. He may be reached at his office at 404.463.8055 or by email at john.albers@senate.ga.gov

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Senate Study Committee on Rural Medical Personnel Recruitment Holds First Meeting

ATLANTA (September 7, 2023) | This week, the inaugural meeting of the 2023 Senate Study Committee on Rural Medical Personnel Recruitment took place at the Northeast Georgia Medical Center located in Demorest, Georgia. This five-member Senate Study Committee was established through the passage of Senate Resolution 371, which was sponsored by Senator Bo Hatchett (R – Cornelia) during the 2023 Georgia Legislative Session. Sen. Hatchett serves as the chair of this committee along with Senators Kim Jackson (D – Stone Mountain), Nan Orrock (D – Atlanta), Larry Walker III (R – Perry), and Kay Kirkpatrick (R – Marietta) who were also appointed as members of this committee.

“I am extremely honored to be chairing this study committee,” said Sen. Hatchett. “Growing up the son of a doctor in rural Georgia, I am fully aware of the staffing and recruitment challenges that rural communities face. Our mission is to find legislative solutions for rural healthcare communities and patients. One of our areas of focus will be the delivery of anesthesia. This is a critical component of our healthcare system that is underserved in rural Georgia. I appreciate the efforts of all the senators and look forward to the input of the broader healthcare community.”

“I want to thank Lieutenant Governor Burt Jones for appointing me to serve on the study committee, as well as Chairman Hatchett for his leadership on healthcare issues,” said Sen. Jackson. “Georgia is facing a growing population with a shortage of doctors and healthcare professionals in many communities. Delaying critical surgeries and medical procedures in over 120 rural counties in Georgia does not serve the needs of our patients. I look forward to working with the committee to come up with solid legislative recommendations to meet the medical needs of all Georgians.”

Currently, rural hospitals face a multitude of challenges when delivering services to their patients primarily due to economic factors and a lack of available health care professionals. This Study Committee aims to raise awareness of the obstacles faced by rural hospitals to recruit an adequate work force and retain their surgical personnel.

More information on the 2023 Senate Study Committees can be found here.

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Sen. Bo Hatchett serves as a Governor’s Administration Floor Leader. He represents the 50th Senate District which includes Banks, Franklin, Habersham, Rabun, Stephens and Towns County and portions of Hall, Jackson, and White counties. He can be reached by phone at 404.463.5257 or by email at bo.hatchett@senate.ga.gov.

Sen. Kim Jackson represents the 41st Senate District which includes portions of DeKalb and a small portion of Gwinnett County. She may be reached at her office at 404.656.6882 or by email at kim.jackson@senate.ga.gov.

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Senator Sonya Halpern Advances Georgia’s Commitment to HBCUs Through Fall Tours

ATLANTA (June 29, 2023) | Today, Senator Sonya Halpern (D –Atlanta) joined Lt. Governor Burt Jones in announcing a groundbreaking fall tour of Georgia’s esteemed Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). This tour marks a significant extension of Senator Halpern’s commitment to Georgia’s higher education system and its crucial role in the workforce and economic development, aligning with her visionary legislation creating an HBCU Innovation and Economic Prosperity Planning Districts Commission.

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State Legislators Hold Press Conference with Hog Hammock Residents, Call on McIntosh County Officials to Reconsider Proposed Zoning Ordinance Amendment

ATLANTA (September 6, 2023) | Today, State Representatives Sandra Scott (D – Rex), Kim Schofield (D – Atlanta), Viola Davis (D – Stone Mountain), State Senators Nikki Merritt (D – Grayson), Sheikh Rahman (D – Lawrenceville) and residents from Sapelo Island’s Hog Hammock community held a press conference to urge the McIntosh County Board of Commissioners to reconsider its scheduled vote on a proposed zoning ordinance amendment for the Hog Hammock District. Both residents and lawmakers discussed the effects that the amendment may have on Hog Hammock residents and the Gullah Geechee community.

Continue reading “State Legislators Hold Press Conference with Hog Hammock Residents, Call on McIntosh County Officials to Reconsider Proposed Zoning Ordinance Amendment”