About The Jenkins County times. (Millen, Ga.) 2023-current | View Entire Issue (Dec. 20, 2023)
Page 6 - Wednesday, December 20, 2023 The Jenkins County Times j enkinsc ountytimes .com A WORD FROM JON BURNS, Ga Speaker of the House of Representatives Dear Friends, Last Thursday, we adjourned the 2023 Special Session after adopting new state Flouse, Senate and Congressional district maps in compliance with the federal court order. Governor Brian Kemp signed these new maps into law shortly thereafter. The maps now go to the federal court for its review. A further hearing is scheduled for December 20th, so we should have some guidance on the court’s further orders in the near future. During special session, we also ratified the Governor’s suspension of motor fuel taxes over the last three months as required by law. This suspension saved Georgia families and businesses hundreds of millions of dollars and kept our gas prices among the lowest in the nation. Despite crippling inflation brought on by Washington’s inaction, Georgia has kept our people and our economy moving. The Georgia House of Representatives also adopted two resolutions - one in support of Israel against Hamas terrorists, the other in support of law enforcement and the long overdue construction of a new public safety training center in Atlanta. While supporting Israel and law enforcement may seem like fundamental American values, several Democratic party members either abstained or voted against these measures. While members are free to vote their conscience, I find it unfortunate that we find ourselves having to debate such common-sense measures. Unless otherwise ordered by the federal court in the redistricting case, the General Assembly will next convene for the 2024 regular session in January. Fanning the Flames of Hope at the State Capitol Last week, I had the honor of attending the first annual Flame of Hope awards ceremony sponsored by the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities. During the ceremony, 15 honorees were recognized from a nomination pool totaling more than 150. Of the 15, 7 were given the Flame of Hope award - recognizing the highest commitment to selfless service and belief in DBHDD’s mission to serve those with mental health or behavioral issues. Eight more were awarded Champion of Hope certificates. Effingham County’s own Miss Ella Marchese was the inspiration for the award and was personally nominated as a Flame of Hope Award winner by DBHDD Commissioner and former House member Kevin Tanner. For those who have not met Ella, she is a remarkable young lady with Down Syndrome who passionately advocates for individuals like herself. My heartfelt congratulations and thanks to Ella and her family for representing our community so well at the State Capitol. Continuing Georgia’s Work to Cut Taxes Last week, I was proud to join Governor Brian Kemp, Lt. Governor Burt Jones, and many Republican state legislators in announcing our collective commitment to further lowering Georgia’s income tax rate. While we already have a plan in place to reduce our state income tax to below 5% by the end of the decade, we will accelerate that plan to reduce it to 5.39% through legislation in January. While Georgia has one of the nation’s lowest total per capita tax rates, we remain committed to doing all we can to reduce the tax burden on Georgia businesses and families. Tax dollars belong to tax payers - not the government. Through conservative budgeting and long-term planning, Georgia remains one of the most fiscally sound states in the country. And we plan to pass the savings on to Georgians next session. ® ANTIQUE PIANO FREE The Town Of Rocky Ford The Town of Rocky Ford has an antique piano that they would like to give away. This old piano is in fair condition. Still plays, and is original to the old Historic Church/School building in Rocky Ford. Must pick up. Please Call: (912) 863-7121 Or stop by the Rocky Ford Town Hall office, Wednesday’s From 9-2 EAGLE NOTES Continued from page 4 their safety, security, and success as just as important to me as my two girls. Another group I want to commend is our local law enforcement. They always respond quickly when we need them. I worked with our SRO, and he immediately went to work to get to the bottom of the emails. A short while after the students were sent home, he called me and said they had found the person responsible, and we were never in any danger. I recently read an article about Chick-fil-A. I will discuss that a little more in the next few weeks. But as a company, they have four core values. One of those values is, “We’re better together.” I know as people in general and as citizens of Millen and Jenkins County, we don’t always see eye to eye on everything or agree on every decision. But as was on display this past week, WE are better together. Rotary distributes breakfast kits This year our club decided to use our district grant funds to continue the project our past president Jessica Bragg Suggs started last year. Today Rotarians delivered and distributed pancake breakfast kits and Christmas Cards to all our Jenkins County Middle School Students. Rick Allen House of Representatives District 12 This week, the House Committee on Education, and the Workforce, of which I am a member, held a hearing entitled: “Holding Campus Leaders Accountable and Confronting Antisemitism." The committee called on the Presidents of Harvard, UPenn, and MIT to answer for the rampant antisemitism engulfing their campuses and threatening their Jewish students. After the presidents of all three institutions refused to say whether "calling for the genocide of Jews" would violate each university's code of conduct, Committee Republicans opened a formal investigation into the learning environments at Harvard, UPenn, and MIT and their policies and disciplinary procedures. Antisemitism has absolutely no place on our college campuses, and I will continue to work with my colleagues to ensure these institutions are held accountable. The House passed H.R. 5933, the Defending Education Transparency and Ending Rogue Regimes Engaging in Nefarious Transactions (DETERRENT) Act. H.R. 5933 would establish much-needed transparency, accountability, and clarity to foreign gift reporting requirements for colleges and universities. Our adversaries such as the Chinese Communist Party increase their influence on campuses by providing American academic institutions with large donations, expensive gifts, and investments. As these dangerous adversaries attempt to infiltrate and influence American higher education, we must demand American education institutions stop hiding their dealings with foreign regimes to allow for transparency and oversight. House Republicans won’t stop fighting to keep foreign influence out of our institutions of learning. This week, the House also passed H.R. 4468, the Choice in Automobile Retail Sales (CARS) Act, with my support. The American people shouldn’t be told by unelected bureaucrats which car best suits their needs and the needs of their families. But the Biden Administration is seeking to do so through backdoor policy making aimed at taking gas-powered engines off the market. The CARS Act would stop the EPA’s current light- and medium-duty vehicle regulation and instead allow consumers and the market to determine the cars and engine technology needed. This is not about being anti electric vehicle. This is about being a pro-consumer choice. The House Energy and Commerce Committee advanced H.R. 6544—the bipartisan Atomic Energy Advancement Act—a package of bills aimed at incentivizing and advancing nuclear energy production in the United States. Included in H.R. 6544 was my Nuclear Licensing Efficiency Act, introduced this year, which would improve the licensing review process for future nuclear projects by establishing updated procedures and timelines for reviewing nuclear licensing applications. On Wednesday I participated in the House Agriculture Committee's Member Day hearing to highlight agricultural issues that are critical to Georgia's 12th Congressional District. Agriculture is Georgia's number one industry and plays a key role in our statewide economy. Having served on the House Agriculture Committee for eight years, I appreciate the hard work that goes into writing the Farm Bill, which provides certainty for our fanners by authorizing farm policy for a five-year cycle. I hope to work closely with the committee to strengthen the farm safety net, expand access to rural broadband, and improve program integrity in the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP), and I believe we must continue to prioritize these policies. The National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) plays a key role in strengthening American communications networks. This hearing explored improving broadband deployment, federal spectrum management, Internet governance, and cybersecurity, to understand how new technologies, like AI, can strengthen our communications infrastructure. The Energy and Commerce Committee advanced 44 bills to unleash affordable, reliable American energy, lower health care costs, improve consumer protections, and strengthen our national security by cutting China out of our supply chains. During the markup, I spoke in support of H.R. 2880, the Protecting Patients Against PBM Abuses Act, which I proudly cosponsored, to prohibit Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBMs), essentially corporate middle men that raise the cost of health care, from earning a profit based off of the Medicare Part D drag list price. Wilcox gets bragging rights JCES 3rd grader Carson Wilcox has a lot to brag about this holiday season. Carson killed his first buck on November 25th and then killed another buck on November 27th. His dad is local game warden, Mike Wilcox. Photo contributed. Aged to Perfection Jenkins County Senior Center Special Contributor Are You On The Times Santa’s Team?? My Grandma taught me everything about Christmas. I was just a kid and I remember tearing across town on my bike to visit her on the day my big sister dropped the bomb: “There is no Santa Claus,” jeered my sister. “Even dummies know that!” My Grandma was not the gushy kind, never has been. I fled to her that day because I knew she would be straight with me. I knew Grandma always told the truth, and I knew that the tmth always went down a whole lot easier when swallowed with one of her world-famous cinnamon buns. Grandma was home and the buns were still warm. Between bites, I told her everything. She was ready for me. “No Santa Claus!” she snorted. “Ridiculous! Don’t believe it. That rumor has been going around for years and it makes me mad, plain mad. Now, put on your coat and let’s go.” “Go? Go where. Grandma?” I asked. I hadn’t even finished my second cinnamon bun. “Where” turned out to be Kerby’s General Store, the one store in town that had a little bit of just about everything. As we walked through its doors. Grandma handed me ten dollars. That was a bundle in those days. “Take this money,” she said, “and buy something for someone who needs it. I’ll wait for you in the car.” Then she turned and walked out of Kerby’s. I was only eight years old. I’d often gone shopping with my mother, but never had I shopped for anything all by myself. The store seemed big and crowded, full of people scrambling to finish their Christmas shopping. For a few moments I just stood there, confused, clutching that ten- dollar bill, wondering what to buy and who on earth to buy it for. I thought of everybody I knew: my family, my friends, my neighbors, the kids in school, and the people who went to my church. I was just about thought out, when I suddenly thought of Bobby Decker. He was a kid with bad breath and messy hair, and he sat right behind me in Mrs. Pollock’s second-grade class. Bobby Decker didn’t have a coat. I knew that because he never went out for recess during the winter. His mother always wrote a note telling the teacher that he had a cough; all the kids knew that Bobby Decker didn’t have a cough and he didn’t have a coat. I held that ten-dollar bill with growing excitement. I would buy Bobby Decker a coat. I settled on a red corduroy one that had a hood on it. It looked real warm, and he would like that. I didn’t see a price tag, but ten dollars ought to buy anything. I put the coat and my ten-dollar bill on the counter and pushed them toward the lady behind it. She looked at the coat, the money, and me. “Is this a Christmas present for someone?” she asked kindly. “Yes,” I replied shyly. “It’s... for Bobby. He’s in my class and he doesn’t have a coat.” The nice lady smiled at me. I didn’t get any change, but she put the coat in a bag and wished me a Merry Christmas. That evening. Grandma helped me wrap the coat in Christmas paper and ribbons and write “To Bobby Decker, From Santa Claus” on it.. .Grandma said that Santa always insisted on secrecy. Grandma then drove me over to Bobby’s house explaining as we went that I was now and forever officially one of Santa’s helpers. Grandma parked down the street from Bobby’s house and she and I crept noiselessly and hid in the bushes by his front walk. Suddenly Grandma gave me a nudge. “All right, Santa Claus,” she whispered, “get going.” I took a deep breath, dashed for his door, threw the present down on his step, rang his doorbell twice and ran back to the safety of the bushes and Grandma. Together, we waited breathlessly in the darkness for the front door to open. Finally, it did and there stood Bobby. He looked down, looked around, picked up his present, took it inside and closed the door. Forty years haven’t dimmed the thrill of those moments spent shivering beside my grandma in Bobby Decker’s bushes. That night, I realized that those awful rumors about Santa Claus were just what Grandma said they were: Ridiculous! Santa was alive and well...AND WE WERE ON HIS TEAM!
