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BARROW NEWS-JOURNAL
WEDNESDAY, MARCH 21, 2018
Weeks 9-10 from the Gold Dome
During weeks 9-10 under the Gold
Dome, we passed 33 bills and resolutions
for the people of Georgia.
We are now through day 36 of the 2018
Legislative Session and there are only four
days of session remaining this year. We met
on the Senate Floor three times last week
and held committee meetings in between.
With time winding down to pass legislation
this year, our pace
has picked up yet
again to match the
urgency felt through
out the Capitol.
Now that Cross
over Day has passed,
the Senate mostly
hears bills that orig
inated in the House
and vice versa. Last
week, I carried
House Bill 885.
HB 885 amends the
Georgia Air Quality
Act by prohibiting the placing of undue reg
ulations on individuals seeking to perform
a controlled vegetative bum on agricultural
tracts or parcels of land greater than five
acres. The only limitations on these con
trolled bums are that the land must be used
for agricultural operations, be limited to
vegetative material and be consistent with
all federal regulations. This bill will sim
ply allow Georgia’s farmers more freedom
to manage their land without unnecessary
limitations.
As many of you know, I have long been
an advocate of local governance and return
ing decision-making power to citizens who
know the needs of their communities better
than the state. As a former city manager and
county manager, fighting for local autono
my has always been at the top of my priority
list. In my early days as a legislator, I fought
to pass a bill that would remove some of the
cost burdens placed on local communities
in their formation of comprehensive plans.
I recently received information about the
Barrow County government’s Comprehen
sive Plan Survey, which is to be completed
by the end of March so the plan can be
implemented in October of this year. I was
so glad to see the leaders of Barrow County
working together with the single goal in
mind of bettering their community. By
taking surveys, analyzing the themes and
creating a priority fist, the county is able to
determine the citizens’ top issues and con
cerns. Among the themes and priorities to
emerge so far are improving transportation
by mitigating traffic flows, implementing
best practices in managing the county’s
natural resources and growing the local
economies by supporting small businesses
that create jobs.
I am proud of our local communities for
taking responsibility of their priorities and
implementing citizen-first governance. With
public input collected, counties and cities
can allocate funds in a manner to best serve
the people’s wants and needs, and I will be
there to help advance these priorities every
step of the way.
Please take a minute or two to participate
in your local government’s request for your
input. If you live in Barrow County, you
can participate online today at https://www.
surveymonkey.eom/r/BarrowPlan2017.
The Barrow County online survey link
will be open until the end of March 2018.
As we wrap up our 10th week at the
Capitol, I want to take a moment to thank
each and every one of you for your support
over the years. Serving the 47th District
has been an honor and a privilege, and I
look forward to serving you in the future.
If you ever have any comments, concerns
or questions regarding legislation facing the
Senate, please do not hesitate to contact me.
I believe that an open-door policy with open
lines of communication is the best way for
me to serve you and our community. I am
your voice here at the Capitol and here to
serve you. My priorities and principles will
always fall in line with the men and women
of our district. I am always willing to answer
the call and my office is there to help with
anything that may come up. Please do not
hesitate to reach out.
Sen. Frank Ginn serves as Chairman
of the Regulated Industries and Utilities
Committee. He represents the 47th Senate
District which includes Barrow and Mad
ison counties and portions of Clarke and
Jackson counties. He can be reached at
404-656-4700 or by email at frank. ginn@
senate.ga.gov.
House addressing Georgia’s
healthcare system
As we approach the end of the 2018 leg
islative session, it is clear that the Georgia
General Assembly is fully behind address
ing chronic problems facing rural Georgia.
Both chambers passed an unprecedented
package of bills coming out of the House
Rural Development
backed that up with
FY2019 appropria
tions.
A broader initia
tive with statewide
impact also is under
way: tackling Geor
gia’s heathcare sys
tem.
This is evident in
two measures the
House passed over
the past several days.
The first is Senate
Bill 357, known as
The Health Act. This legislation would
establish an 18-member “Health Coor
dination and Innovation Council of the
State of Georgia” to work toward improv
ing two things: access to healthcare and
improved quality of services.
The council will bring together experts
from academic institutions and the health
care industry, as well as state elected and
appointed leaders, to create an organized
approach to coordinating health care func
tions and programs in order to maximize
the effectiveness of existing resources and
to explore opportunities for improvement.
The council will identify issues of great
est concern and promote cooperation from
both the public and private sectors to test
innovative ideas. It also will evaluate the
effectiveness of ongoing health programs.
A major role of the council will be
to coordinate all agencies in state-spon
sored health initiatives. For example, if the
Governor sets as a priority the prevention
and treatment of Type 2 diabetes, then all
agencies would work together to move the
needle and make progress instead of each
agency going off on its own.
Then each December, the council will
present an annual report of its findings
and recommendations to the governor and
leaders of the legislature.
Serving on the council will be a new
director of health policy and strategic plan
ning; the commissioners of public health,
human services, and behavioral health and
developmental disabilities, and the exec
utive director of substance abuse, addic
tion and related disorders — along with
appointees of the governor, the lieutenant
governor and the speaker of the House.
Three appointees will be representa
tives of medical schools, universities and
academia, plus one practicing dentist, one
practicing pharmacist, and one practicing
primary care physician. Non-voting mem
bers are to include the commissioners of
insurance, corrections, economic develop
ment and the attorney general.
In addition to the council, an advisory
board of health care professionals will
provide guidance to the council.
A second measure the House passed
last week was House Resolution 1376,
which urges the House Rural Develop
ment Council to request financial infor
mation from Georgia’s hospitals statewide
and to ask them to suggest legislative or
regulatory changes that could help sustain
the industry. Our rural council will serve
the rest of this year and present its final
report ahead of the 2019 session.
Closer to home, I am pleased to report
that the Georgia Senate on Monday,
March 19, passed House Bill 1033 for a
non-binding advisory referendum of Bar-
row County voters during the election pri
maries May 22. The referendum will ask
for your approval to explore the possible
consolidation of the county government
with all cities located completely inside
the county. This would be done through
the creation of an independent commis
sion appointed by the Barrow County
Board of Commissioners, the affected
municipalities, the Barrow County Board
of Education, and our legislative delega
tion.
In the meantime, county officials would
appreciate your participation in an online
survey that is part of the county’s compre
hensive planning process. The comprehen
sive plan establishes the types of develop
ment allowed throughout the county. The
survey is at www.surveymonkey.eom/r/
BarrowPlan2017.
Thank you for the opportunity to rep
resent District 116. If you have any ques
tions or concerns, feel free to contact me
at terry@terryenglandforgeorgia.com or
at 404-463-2245. May God bless you and
your family, this wonderful county, and
our great state.
Rep. England has served in the Georgia
House since 2005. District 116 includes
most of Barrow County. In addition to
chairing the House Appropriations Com
mittee, he is an ex-officio member of the
Ways & Means Committee and a member
of the Agriculture and Consumer Affairs
Committee, the Education Committee, the
Industry and Labor Committee, and the
Natural Resources and Environment Com
mittee.
Truth matters - always has, always will
It has been said — by me
and by lots of other folks
— but it should be a regular
chorus.
Truth matters.
It matters in government
and in life.
It is a shame the bar is
so low, but that is
what we chose in
November 2016.
Despite a pres
ident who lies
just for the hell
of it. despite a
president who
talks as though
he believes lying
is part of “nego
tiating,” despite
a president who
demonstrates
daily how little
regard he has for our two
centuries of history as a
world leader, truth matters.
I know his defenders say
all politicians lie. To a cer
tain degree, that is true.
Certainly, it has become
more common over the past
20 to 30 years in matters
both large and small.
But no one has lied as
frequently and as brazenly
as Donald Trump.
I was reminded again of
his lack of shame when the
stories surfaced about him
lying to the Canadian prime
minister about a trade defi
cit between the U.S. and
Canada.
I am fond of saying it is
better to ask for forgiveness
than permission. That, too,
is a method for getting to a
result someone wants when
obstacles might be in the
way.
Trump doesn’t bother
with forgiveness.
He demonstrates nearly
every day that he does not
care what anyone thinks.
That lack of
shame, delight
in saying and
doing the oppo
site of the truth,
is a characteristic
he seems to think
demonstrates his
“strength” and
willingness to
speak hard truths.
It does no such
thing.
In a very short
time, 14 months
by my count, our presi
dent has demonstrated over
and over that he cannot be
believed.
How, I wonder, does
he expect the leaders of
Germany or Britain or
Russia or Iran or any
where to believe him?
Why should anyone in the
U.S. believe him when he
berates or belittles Andrew
McCabe, James Comey,
Jeff Sessions, Democrats
in Congress or Stephanie
Clifford?
I heard a man, a journal
ist more cynical than me,
say one time about an FBI
agent that if his mouth was
moving, he was lying.
It is a cliche that applies
to our president. Isn’t that a
shame? What possible ben
efit to Trump or the U.S.
can come from being so
distrusted?
That is not strong or
unpredictable. It borders on
being irrelevant.
By this time next year
— after a “summit” with
North Korea happens or
doesn’t and an agreement
with Iran is thrown aside
— it is likely that the only
people who might listen to
him will be tin horn dic
tators like Duterte in the
Philippines.
The goal of many jour
nalists has been to cover
the White House. I can’t
imagine anything more tor
turous. How does anyone
write a story that is fair
about the current president?
If he says two sentences, it
would take several hundred
words of background to
refute the lies and provide
context.
I do not intend to drape
Trump’s supporters with
the baggage of his lies. My
guess, and it is only that,
would be that most of them
hope he was sincere in his
campaign statements. A lot
of them make arguments
for or against some policies
that deserve attention.
None of them deserve the
treatment they are getting
from a shameless, patho
logical liar.
Ron Bridgeman is a
reporter for Mainstreei
News. Send email to him at
ron @ mainstreetnews. com.
ron
bridgeman
Celebrating Barrow County’s
Ag Heroes
This week is Georgia
Agriculture Awareness
Week.
As a part of this, Exten
sion agents around the state
are taking the time
to recognize “Ag
Heroes” in their
communities. As an
Extension agent, I
have the wonderful
privilege of work
ing with all the
various facets of
agriculture here in
Barrow County, and
daily I am amazed
by the passion and
dedication of our
agricultural com
munity. Constantly over the
past year I have been learn
ing about the wonderful
diversity of our agriculture
here in Barrow County, and
because I couldn’t possibly
pick one, I’d like to share
with you the Ag Heroes
that I am proud to serve.
•Farmers. Despite the
changes the last 20 years
have brought to Barrow
County, we are still at
heart a farm community.
Beef and Poultry produc
ers locally work hard to
provide quality protein for
our tables, and they also
work hard to protect and
enhance the environment
through good farming prac
tices. And I can’t forget
our new farmers; many of
them have small farms that
produce vegetables, honey,
goats, or local eggs, and
most likely all of the above;
It is a passionate and deter
mined group that is eager to
bring fresh and local foods
to our community. All of
our farmers are constantly
putting in long hours and
seeking to do what they do
better. Farmers, you are my
Ag Heroes!
•Teachers. Ninety-four
percent of Barrow County
schools have school gar
dens, and that is because of
teachers and staff that are
willing to go beyond expec
tations of already demand
ing jobs to make that hap
pen. We are so lucky here
to have teachers that are
willing to give our children
the opportunity to dig in
the dirt, to plant a seed and
experience the doubt and
faith and anticipation of
waiting for it to sprout, and
watching it grow, and have
the empowering experience
of eating something they
grew. School
gardens teach
science, math,
and nutrition,
but also the
smell of the
earth, and how
to take care of
living things,
and the reward
of working
hard. I’m so
grateful that
teachers are
willing to take
the time to garden with
their students. Teachers,
you are my Ag Heroes!
•Homesteaders. I am con
stantly amazed at our local
community of homestead
ers. They produce their own
meat, milk, cheese, vegeta
bles and fruit. They bake
their own bread and butch
er their own animals. Our
homesteaders are the ulti
mate local foodies. Beyond
providing for themselves
and their families, they
have created an incredi
ble community of support;
they encourage each other
and share knowledge, from
bam raising to how to ren
der your own lard or make
your own kombucha, they
are helping each other live
the life than most people
just dream of. Homestead
ers, you are my Ag Heroes!
And there are so many
other Ag Heroes in our
community: my 4-H
co-workers and our local ag
teachers and FFA advisors
who teach youth leadership
and a myriad of skills they
will use in agriculture, or
other careers; school nutri
tion workers for serving
local foods in the cafeteria;
the Farm Bureau, which
is always advocating for
agriculture awareness in
our community; Wimber
ly’s Roots, which has had
a great start and big plans
in the works for commu
nity agriculture; the Farm
to School boosters for sup
porting local foods and
school gardens; The City
of Auburn for putting in
a community garden; my
avid home gardeners who
grow delicious vegetables
and create beautiful spaces.
Thank you, Ag Heroes, for
the meaningful and import
ant work that you do!
Alicia Holloway is the
Barrow County Agricul
ture and Natural Resources
Extension Agent. She can
be reached by e-mail at
aholloway@uga.edu, by
phone at 770-307-3029, or
by stopping by the County
Extension Office at 90 Lan-
thier St. in Winder. Follow
Barrow County Extension
on Fac ebook @ Barrow-
CountyExtension.
March 14, 2018
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