Consultant and advocate for the homeless Andrae Bailey explains the concept of "Housing First" to non-profit leaders in Macon recently.

Andrae Bailey, a consultant and advocate for people experiencing homelessness, explains the concept of "housing first" to nonprofit leaders in Macon recently.

Credit: Grant Blankenship / GPB News

The panel

Guest host Donna Lowry, @donnalowrynews, GPB’s Lawmakers

Grant Blankenship, @Grant_Blank_, editor and reporter, Georgia Public Broadcasting

Margaret Coker, @mideastmargaret, editor-in-chief, The Current

Martin Matheny, @martinmatheny, programming director, WUGA, and producer, Athens News Matters

Maya Prabhu, @MayaTPrabhu, government reporter, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

 

The breakdown

1. Local organizations, counties, and the Legislature attempt to house homeless Georgians.

  • New "housing first" policies prioritize getting people in homes — then addressing other issues that may arise.
  • In the Legislature, Sen. Carden Summer proposed Senate Bill 62, which would give the state the ability to designate specific areas as homeless camps. The bill's detractors say it would limit the ability of local organizations to help their homeless neighbors.
  • A new joint investigation between The Current and Propublica exposes the predatory practices of Georgia's title lending industry, which preys on the poorest Georgians.

LISTEN: GPB's Grant Blankenship on 'housing first' policy.

2. Shady landlords, poor living conditions, and out-of-state private owners in cities around Georgia.

  • Yesterday on Political Rewind, we focused on The Atlanta Journal-Constitution's series "American Dream for Rent," which focuses on the state of housing in Atlanta. But it's not just a problem in Atlanta.
  • In Macon, corporate landlords are hit with small fines for housing deemed uninhabitable. Taking rent for an apartment not fit for humans is currently illegal in Georgia, but large companies navigate the legal consequences.

 

3. Major environmental stories around Georgia Power and Superfund.

  • Emory University is offering Glynn County residents compensation for blood tests in order to find chemicals produced by four Superfund plants.
  • Georgia Power could face federal action over its handling of coal ash plants.

 

4. Legislation our panel is looking at.

  • Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene visited the Georgia Senate ahead of its passage of a bill which would limit treatment options for transgender youth.
  • Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis called Senate Bill 92 "racist." The bill, which would create legislative oversight committees for district attorneys, seems to have been partially inspired by Gov. Brian Kemp's comments on Athens District Attorney Deborah Gonzalez. 

LISTEN: Grant Blankenship on spending time in Plains this past Presidents Day.

Monday on Political Rewind: Emory University's Andra Gillespie joins the panel.

Tags: Georgia  Georgia Politics  Atlanta  Macon  Savannah  Housing  homelessness  Jimmy Carter  Environment  Legislature