Category Archives: Constitution of Georgia

APN Legislative Wrap-Up: Georgia General Assembly 2015

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With additional reporting by Anna Simonton and Matthew Charles Cardinale.  Photograph by Steve Eberhardt.   (APN) ATLANTA — The Georgia General Assembly wrapped up the 2015 legislative session on Thursday, April 02, 2015.  There were a few progressive highlights in the majority-Republican Legislature, including a solar power lease agreement bill; a limited medical cannabis bill; and more flexibility for MARTA […]

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Georgia House Committee Amends Religious Freedom Bill

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(APN) ATLANTA — Yesterday, Thursday, March 26, 2015, the House Judiciary Civil Committee voted to amend SB 129, the Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) bill, to expressly state that eradicating discrimination is a compelling government interest, thus prohibiting religious freedom being used as a justification for discrimination.   LGBTQI equality advocates celebrated the amendment, introduced by State Rep. Mike Jacobs […]

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Teachers, Parents Challenge Deal’s School Takeover Plan Ahead of House Committee Vote

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(APN) ATLANTA — The House Education Committee will soon decide whether to advance Gov. Nathan Deal’s controversial proposal to allow the state to take over and privatize struggling schools.   At a hearing on Wednesday March 18, 2015, State Representatives and members of the public expressed both deep concern and some enthusiasm over the proposal, which, as Atlanta Progressive News […]

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City of Atlanta Proposing Major Southwest Expansion to Legislature

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(APN) ATLANTA — The City of Atlanta’s lobbyists at the Georgia Legislature last week circulated a map proposing a major expansion of the southwest quadrant of the city further to the west, through the annexation of a significant portion of unincorporated south Fulton County.   While the City had been previously exploring annexation of the Sandtown and Loch Lomond communities, […]

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Federal Judge Declines to Dismiss Georgia Same-Sex Marriage Lawsuit

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(APN) ATLANTA — U.S. District Judge William Duffey has denied a motion to dismiss the case brought by several same-sex couples in Georgia, challenging Georgia’s statutory and constitutional provisions prohibiting same-sex marriages.  The court’s denial of the motion means that the case, Christopher Innis, et al., v. Deborah Aderhold, et al., can now go forward.   In 1996, the Georgia […]

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