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Political Rewind: SB 140 passes; Debate over rural hospitals; Atlanta preps for chance to host DNC
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The panel:
Chauncey Alcorn, @CLamontLives, reporter, Capital B
Greg Bluestein, @bluestein, political reporter, The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Margaret Coker, @mideastmargaret, editor-in-chief, The Current
Stephen Fowler, @stphnfwlr, political reporter, GPB News
The breakdown:
1. Emotions run high as Senate approves bill restricting gender-affirming care.
- The Georgia Senate gave a final stamp of approval to a bill that would ban most types of gender-affirming care for transgender minors.
- The move comes despite heavy opposition from the transgender community.
- The bill now heads to Gov. Brian Kemp's desk for him to sign off on.
2. Georgia Senate seeks to allow rural hospitals without permits.
- Senate Bill 99 says governments or private nonprofit groups can build hospitals in less-populated counties without getting a certificate of need from the state Department of Community Health.
- The Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports the bill would greenlight a new hospital built on the grounds of Lt. Gov. Burt Jones' father’s sprawling Butts County property, sparking concerns about a conflict of interest.
3. Georgia senators further whittle down truck weight changes.
- Under SB 189, a higher limit would only be good until July 1, 2024.
- Also, note heavier trucks wouldn’t be allowed in 13 core metro Atlanta counties.
4. Bill to back rent control is stalled in the Senate.
- 75-year-old community activist Margie McLeod is behind SB 125.
- It would have repealed Georgia’s 39-year-old ban on local rent regulation, allowing elected leaders in metro Atlanta and elsewhere to limit how much landlords can charge tenants per month.
- It failed to get any co-sponsors before Crossover Day.
5. U.S. senators demand scrutiny of TitleMax business practices.
- Letter requests regulator crack down on Savannah-based title pawn lender.
6. It's Atlanta vs. Chicago in a battle for Democratic National Convention.
- This week the Atlanta City Council prepped for a chance to host the DNC.
- The council approved a resolution allowing Mayor Andre Dickens to enter into agreements and contracts with convention organizers and contractors.
Thursday on Political Rewind: Eve Vensler, now known as V, will join us to talk her groundbreaking play The Vagina Monologues.