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Business & Industry Forsyth County News Thursday, April 15,2004 Hi Business notes lasis Health and Christian Bookstore ... owned by Frank and Suzy Treece, is now open on Freedom Parkway in Cumming. The store has a wide variety of merchandise from health food to Christian books. The health food selection includes gluten free products and Atkins Low Carb Solutions. Shoppers can find Bibles and music from all Christian denominations including Catholic resources and gifts. The store operating days and hours are Monday-Thursday from 10 a.m. to 7 p.m. and Friday and Saturday from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. For more informa tion call (770) 886-9633. Johns Creek Business Association ... has scheduled its next meeting for April 20 at 5:30 p.m. at Johns Creek Physical Therapy, 3571 Peachtree Parkway. The event will fea ture a buffet and refreshments. The group also is welcoming its newest members. About Magazines and Call Charlie Inc. Communications. Meetings are monthly on the third Tuesday at 5:30 p.m. at a location in the Johns Creek area. Officers include president. Greg Martin of ERA Sunrise Realty; presi dent-elect. Kathy Bracewell, EBC Office Centers; and treasurer. Dagan Sharpe. Wachovia Bank. Georgia Farm Bureau ... is reminding hay producers preparing to graze or harvest winter grasses, such as fescue, that they should remember farm Service Agency regulations stipulate produc ers must report acres to be harvested for crops covered by the Noninsured Crop Disaster Assistance Program 15 days prior to harvest. The final acreage reporting date for all cool season grasses is May 1, said Wayne Dollar. Georgia Farm Bureau president. However, fescue is harvest ed and grazed before May 1. so it is critical that peoducers remember to report the number of acres they intend to harvest or graze as they prepare to begin harvest. Allstate Insurance Co. ... announces the opening of a new agency in Cumming. Owned and operated by Dean B. Barnard, the full senice agency offers a complete line of products and senices, including auto, property, commercial and life insurance. "Our No. 1 goal at the Dean Barnard Allstate Insurance agency is to provide superior service to our cus tomers," says Barnard. "I and my assistant Kristie Hulsey are looking forward to helping families insure and protect the things that are important to them, such as their family, home, car, boat, and more. In our commitment to provide the best customer service pos sible, we will sit down with our cus tomers and review their insurance policies upon their renew al to insure that they are getting the best coverage that fits their needs." After spending 25 years in the cor porate world and the last four years as vice president of sales for a Fortune 500 company. Barnard decided to use his knowledge and expertise to open his own Allstate Insurance agency. The Dean Barnard Allstate Insurance agency is located at 600 Peachtree Parkway, Suite 102 in Cumming. Office hours are Monday through Friday from B:3oam to s:3opm and Saturday from 9am to noon. He and his licensed staff can be reached at (678) 455-8606 or by e mail at Deanßamard@Allstate.-com. Marine Corps Cpl. Jeneva C. Coggins ... daughter of Jennifer A. Dykes of Cumming and Dayne Coggins of Brooklyn, N. Y, recently was promot ed to her current rank while serving with Marine Aviation Logistics Squadron 14, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing. Marine Corps Air Station, Cherry Point, N. C. Coggins was promoted based on sustained superior job performance and proficiency in her designated spe cialty. Coggins is a 2001 graduate of Etowah High School in Woodstock and joined the Marine Corps in July 2001. North Fulton Regional Hospital ... announced it has relocated and expanded its human resources depart- See NOTES, Page 2B Unemployment rate down Forsyth dips to 2.7 percent By Colby Jones Staff Writer Unemployment rate in Forsyth County dropped from 3 percent in January to 2.7 percent in February, the Georgia Department of Labor recently reported. The total number of unemployed persons in the county decreased from 1.911 to 1,706 during the time peri od. signaling the economy is still on the rebound. In February 2003, the unemploy ment rate in Forsyth County was at 3.9 percent and a total of 2,451 resi dents were out of work. The drop during the first two months of this year mirrored a slight decrease in the unemployment rate statewide. In Georgia, the unemployment rate dropped from 4.1 percent to 3.8 percent, meaning the number of unemployed persons in Georgia decreased from 178.738 to 167.106. During the same time period, the number of jobs in Georgia increased by 4.000 or 1/10 percent between January and February. Neighboring counties to Forsyth experienced a similar decline in unemployment. The rates dropped in Dawson Forsyth reps critical of tort reform effort Say Dems in House inflexible in negotiations By Colby Jones Staff Writer Tort reform experienced a slow, bitter death in the Georgia General Assembly this past session and law makers say it is unlikely Gov. Sonny Perdue will press the issue in a spe cial session. The push to overhaul the tort sys tem and malpractice suits against doctors in particular met resistance from powerful lobbying groups even as the final hours of the session winded down. Physicians argued for a reduction in the amount of dam ages juries can award in a medical malpractice claim. Trial lawyers worked for increased oversight of the insurance industry. The groups appeared to cancel out each other, leaving lawmakers where they began on the first day of the session. “They were still hollering for tort reform and no bill was to be found." said state Rep. Tom Knox, (R-Cum ming), a supporter of tort reform. Lenders will now have to follow new payday law From staff reports ATLANTA Gov. Sonny Perdue last week signed into law Senate Bill 157. the payday lending legislation. “This legislation was needed to protect the men and women of our armed forces from unscrupulous lending practices,” Perdue said in a prepared statement. “It will also protect unsuspecting Georgians from loans with exorbitant interest rates.” However, the State Law Department advised the Office of the Governor that there is likely to be litigation challenging this legis lation, the governor's office said. Because the legislation becomes effective on May 1, the governor signed the bill relatively quickly so that any possible lawsuits could move forward and give the courts See BILL, Page 2B Source: RlHifilßH fioorola Dept of labor lllHlNish Aug Sep Oct Nov Dtc jm Feb Mar Apr M>y tan M Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jm Fob 02 02 02 02 02 03 03 03 03 03 08 02 03 03 03 03 03 04 04 from 2.6 percent to 2.4 percent, in Hall from 3.2 percent to 2.8 percent and in Fulton from 4.9 percent to 4.5 percent. The unemployment rate in Cherokee increased slightly from 3.2 percent to 3.3 percent. Oconee County had the lowest rate in the state at 1.5 percent. Burke “We had several bills and I’m not sure any of them addressed the issue fully." Lawmakers un der the Gold Dome furiously attempted to hammer out dif ferences on key pieces of the reform package Cagle less than an hour before the midnight adjournment on April 8. The Republican-controlled Senate passed significant changes to the tort system that would have made emer gency room workers partially immune from lawsuits, limited the pool of expert witnesses available to plaintiffs, mandated mediation in certain cases and made it more diffi cult to hold doctors jointly liable for the entire amount of damages victims suffer. The Democratic-controlled House passed a more limited meas ure designed to help hospitals obtain more affordable malpractice insur ance through creation of the Georgia Hospital and Medical Insurance Liability Authority. The text of the failed bill states a “crisis" exists in Georgia in the field of hospital and medical liability Photo/David McGregor Belk's relocating The former Kmart store in Lakeland Plaza shopping center near the intersection of Ga. 400 and Hwy. 20 (Buford Highway) currently is being transformed into a new location for Belk Department Store. The 86,000-square-foot space is scheduled for a September opening, company officials have said. It will replace Belk's current, smaller location in the same shopping center. and Macon counties were highest at 9.2. Georgia Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond remained cau tiously optimistic about the data. “While we’re encouraged by the decline in the unemployment rate, job creation remained anemic in February." Thurmond said. Knox insurance. “The result of this crisis is the potential for a diminution of the availability of ac cess to health care services °and the resultant effect on the health and well being of the citi zens of this state,” it states. Other measures proposed in the House but never gamering a majority vote would have redefined the quali fications of expert witnesses used in malpractice actions and mandated sanctions against attorneys who file frivolous lawsuits. None of the bills capped the amount of damages a jury can award for “pain and suffering” in a medical malpractice action —a measure strongly pushed for by the Medical Association of Georgia and other lobbying groups in favor of reform. Despite the numerous bills pro posed, members of a conference committee comprised of members from both chambers could not ham mer out their differences in the final hour of the session. The chairman of the House “New workers continue to enter the workforce each month. In addi tion, there are many workers who have been unemployed longer than six months, and others who have become discouraged and dropped out of the labor force. Real improvement for these workers can only come with increased job creation.” Judiciary Committee, Rep. Mary Margaret Oliver, (D-Decatur), report edly accused committee members from the Senate of frustrating the negotiations. State Sen. Casey Cagle, (R- Gainesville), whose district includes part of Forsyth County, pointed the finger at the House. “My assumption is Mary Margaret Oliver may not be being genuine about the facts," Cagle said. “The House negotiators never brought anything of substance to the table. That was the problem.” Knox described tort reform as being "held hostage" by Democrats. With less than an hour left in the session, the Senate voted to withdraw its members from the conference committee, effectively killing any chance of passing a reform package. Lobbying groups on both sides of the issue back up their claims with statistics. The Georgia Hospital Association and Medical Association of Georgia point to six-figure malpractice pre miums paid by doctors as an exam ple of a system run amok. More than 20 percent of physicians in the state changed insurance carriers and 18 See TORT, Page 2B Annual “P.I.E. in the Sky” luncheon set Linder guest speaker From Staff Reports The eighth annual “P.I.E. in the Sky" luncheon, with special guest speaker U.S. Rep. John Linder of Georgia’s 7th Congressional District, is scheduled for Friday from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. at Sawnee Cultural Arts Center. 1090 Tribble Gap Road, Cumming. At the Partners In Education Celebration, recognition and awards will be given to: Teachers of the Year. Volunteers of the Year, Mentors of the Year, Partner of the Year Gold level. Partner of the Year Silver level, school pro gram of the year, the Chamber Apple award and . the Don Hendricks Partnership award. Sponsors include Kroger, Forsyth County Schools, the Cumming-Forsyth County Chamber of Commerce, Outback Steakhouse and Northside Hospital-Forsyth. See LUNCH, Page 2B