Newspaper Page Text
THURSDAY. MARCH 31.2022 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 3A
Cleaning up Pickens during the Great American Cleanup
Submitted by Keep
Pickens Beautiful
It’s April! Time for the
Great American Cleanup!
Join Keep Pickens Beautiful
for some of their projects and
programs throughout the
month.
The Great American
Cleanup is a national pro
gram sponsored by Keep
America Beautiful. This is
the nation’s largest commu
nity improvement program
with an estimated 15,000
community events nation
wide.
Now in its 24th year, the
Great American Cleanup
(GAC), as stated by Keep
America Beautiful, “prompts
individuals to take greater re
sponsibility for their local en
vironments by conducting
grassroots community serv
ice projects that engage vol
unteers, local businesses, and
civic leaders.”
Keep America Beautiful’s
national results from the
2021 Great American
Cleanup show the impact of
the program, even with re
duced in-person activities
due to the pandemic:
• Number of Events:
9,977
• Number of Volunteers and
Participants: 259,021
• Total Benefit to
Communities: $51,277,013
• Total Number of Volunteer
Hours: 1,448,655
• Pounds of Litter and De
bris Collected: 14,649,481
• Pounds of Items Recycled:
8,232,158
Legalized gambling back
before General Assembly
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA - Legalized
gambling has emerged in the
General Assembly with just
four days remaining in this
year's legislative session.
The House Economic De
velopment and Tourism
Committee approved a con
stitutional amendment Mon
day asking voters whether to
legalize sports betting and
"other forms of betting and
gambling" in Georgia. Those
"other forms" of gambling
would include casinos and
pari-mutuel betting on horse
racing.
The comprehensive pro
posal - Senate Resolution
135 - follows years of failed
efforts to legalize various
forms of gambling sepa
rately.
Those efforts reached a
high-water mark last year
when the state Senate passed
a constitutional amendment
aimed at legalizing online
sports betting. While that
measure fizzled in the House
at the end of last year's ses
sion, it remained alive for
consideration this year.
A Senate committee ap
proved a constitutional
amendment during this year's
session limited to horse rac
ing, but it failed to reach the
Senate floor before the
Crossover Day deadline for
bills to clear at least one leg
islative chamber to stay alive.
The legislation the
House committee passed on
Monday resurrects the 2021
constitutional change, with
casinos and horse racing
added.
A major selling point in
the various efforts to legalize
gambling in Georgia over the
years is that the tax revenue
from gambling proceeds
would go toward education
and other vital services.
Under Senate Resolution
135, all the tax proceeds from
sports betting would go to
ward education. Half of that
money would support the
HOPE Scholarships pro
gram, while the other half
would go toward need-based
college tuition grants and
scholarships.
Half of the proceeds from
casinos and horse racing
would go toward health care,
with 20% going to economic
development in "less devel
oped" areas of the state.
HOPE and need-based grants
and scholarships would split
the remaining 30% evenly.
Since casinos and horse
racing would require build
ing facilities in specific loca
tions, a local referendum
would be required for a
casino or racetrack to open in
a community.
State slaps
historic fine on
Anthem/Blue
Cross Blue
Shield
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA - Georgia's in
surance department has fined
Anthem/Blue Cross Blue
Shield $5 million for several
violations of state law fol
lowing a months-long inves
tigation.
“This examination uncov
ered a number of serious is
sues, including improper
claims settlement practices,
violations of the Prompt Pay
Act, failure to reply to con
sumer complaints in a timely
manner, inaccurate provider
directories, and significant
delays in loading provider
contracts,” state Insurance
and Safety Fire Commis
sioner John King said Tues
day.
“As a result, our office has
issued the largest fine in
agency history, with potential
additional penalties if certain
benchmarks are not reached.”
To avoid additional fines,
Blue Cross Blue Shield must
develop a new process for
handling provider com
plaints, pay claims within the
time frames established
under state law, and load
provider contracts in a timely
manner.
In a statement responding
to the state's action, Anthem
Blue Cross Blue Shield said
the company has worked
"diligently" to make changes
since the investigation was
completed.
"We have since migrated
to a new platform with the
goal of improving accuracy
and transparency," the state
ment read. "We are dedicated
to those we serve and partner
with, and we believe the re
cent enhancements we have
made will create an improved
overall care provider experi
ence."
Josh Tippens
Kepublican Candidate
Post 1 Commissioner
for tlie West End.
TippensForPickens@gmail. com
Candidate Meet and Greet
Please join me on Saturday, April 9th at 5:00pm
at the Hinton Community Center for questions
and discussion. We will be serving some smoked
BBQ, chips, and sweet tea!
Protect our History * Expand Services * Sustainable Water
Better Parks and Recreation Facilities * Lower Taxes
Keep the West End Agricultural and Residential
Josh
Tippens
Leadership you can Trust
West End
COMMISSIONER
Help Wanted
Tour Guides, Greeters
Those interested in history
gt&ify boctfwlA Mb t/ue hlsttfiy,
aM t/iat we ttjequPue (a a
{fumdlu ajttjtujdje and, Amue-
om wfw hrn&iA eommTJtmmtA.
pickenshistorical@gmail.com
or find us on Facebook
Pickens Historical Society
The Pickens Historical Society is looking
to expand hours and operations
at the Old Jail on Main Street.
If you like meeting people
and getting involved, con
sider volunteering for this
fun, interesting local group.
• Acres of Parks, Public
Lands, Playgrounds, and
Trails Cleaned & Improved:
66,744
• Miles of Streets, Roads,
and Highways Cleaned, Im
proved or Beautified:
23,456
• Number of Plants, Shrubs,
Flowers, and Bulbs Planted:
127,856
• Number of Trees Planted:
3,677
For the past two years,
Keep Pickens Beautiful has
not sponsored in-person proj
ects due to Covid, so this
year they’re making up for
lost time with events sched
uled every Saturday in April.
Join them to help improve
Pickens County while con
necting with your commu
nity, having fun, and meeting
new friends.
• April 2 - Edible Jasper
Spring Begins 2022! -
cleanup and planting in the
Edible Jasper gardens in
downtown Jasper
• April 9 - Let’s Clean
Up Pickens! Part 1 - Carver
Mill Road - help clean up
one of the messiest roads on
the west side of Pickens
• April 16 - Edible
Jasper Spring is Springing!
- a BIG planting day in the
Edible Jasper gardens in
downtown with more than
400 plants that are ready to
go in the ground
• April 23 - Earth Day
on Main Community Appre
ciation Day - join the KPB
Team at their office at the
south end of Main Street for
plant give-aways, live music,
snacks, raffles, and more!
• April 30 - Let’s Clean
Up Pickens! Part 2 - a road
on the east side of the county
will get a much-needed
cleanup (road TBD)
Watch the KPB website
and Facebook group for more
updates on the events and ac
tivities sponsored throughout
the month of April.
In addition to these volun
teer opportunities to connect
with your community while
helping to improve and beau
tify it, there are other ways to
be a part of the Great Ameri
can Cleanup.
One of the most popular is
the tire amnesty. Pickens
County residents can take up
to 4 tires (off rim) to the cen
tral Pickens County Recy
cling Center for free
throughout the month.
Join Keep Pickens Beauti
ful and their Team to help im
prove the community. This is
a great opportunity for you to
meet your neighbors while
making a positive impact.
You’ll have fun, and you’ll
have the satisfaction of
knowing that you were a con
tributor to the national Great
American Cleanup initiative.
Visit KeepPickensBeauti-
ful.org for more information
about Great American
Cleanup activities planned
throughout April.
GRIENZO'S GREEN GUIDE
Join Greenzo’s Green Gang!
Greenzo is Great at Giving Guidance on Growing and Gaining Greener Goals
Did you know?
• The average paper usage per person is around 700 pounds per year.
• Paper equalling almost 1 billion trees goes into trash cans every year.
• Each ton of recycled paper saves an estimated 17 trees.
Paper Shredding
You can shred and recycle your sensitive documents at the
Pickens County Recycling Center for FREE - every day*!
Please remove binder clips, plastic labels, and other non-paper items
(staples are fine).
Also, iThink financial will host a free shredding day on
April 5 from 10am to 1pm at their location at 124 W Church Street.
‘Appalachian Court location only, Tues - Sat 8:00 to 5:00
GlViAHODYt DON'T POLLUTl!
visit KeepPickensBeautiful.org for more information
Great American Cleanup 2022
Join Keep Pickens Beautiful for community-focused
cleanup and beautification events throughout April.
• April 2 - Edible Jasper Spring Begins 2022!
cleanup and planting in the Edible Jasper gardens in
downtown Jasper
• April 9 - Let’s Clean Up Pickens! Part 1 - Carver Mill Road
help clean up one of the messiest roads on the west side of Pickens
• April 16 - Edible Jasper Spring is Springing!
a BIG planting day in the Edible Jasper gardens in
downtown with more than 400 plants to be added
• April 30 - Let’s Clean Up Pickens! Part 2
a road on the east side of the county will get a
much-needed cleanup (road TBD)
Visit the KPB website or Facebook group for times and details.
KPB is planning a special Thank You celebration!
April 23 - Earth Day on Main
Community Appreciation Day
12:00-3:00 - join the KPB Team at their office at the
south end of Main Street for
plant give-aways, live music, snacks, raffles, and more!
Tire Amnesty
Pickens residents can take up to 4 tires (off rim) to the
central Pickens County Recycling Center
for free during the month of April.
BEAUTIFUL
GREAT AMERICAN
CLEANUP
KAB.ORG
visit KPB for details
KeepPickensBeautiful.org