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Taxpayer dollars at work: Warnock at The Stitch, Ossoff on youth program, big push for National Park
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Neither Sen. Jon Ossoff nor Sen. Raphael Warnock is up for reelection this year — the former will run again in 2026 and the latter in 2028. But 2024 is off to a busy start for both senators. In this recurring digital news series, GPB follows your federal tax dollars back to the state of Georgia each week.
For the week ending May 3, 2024, Sens. Warnock and Ossoff worked on improving youth mentorship, reconnecting undeserved communities in Atlanta, creating Georgia's first National Park and Preserve and expanding nursing programs in West Georgia.
Youth Mentorship
On April 29, Sen. Ossoff announced that he is delivering $250,000 in federal funding to strengthen youth mentorship programs in Atlanta. The funding will go to Big Brother Big Sisters of Metro Atlanta's Level Up Program.
BBBS's program places paid mentors in middle schools full-time. Schools that are part of the program include Luther J. Price Middle School, Jean Childs Young Middle School, Herman J. Russell West End Academy, Bunche Middle School, and Lithonia Middle School.
The Stitch
Also, on April 29, Sen. Warnock joined Vice President Kamala Harris at the Russell Innovation Center for Entrepreneurs in Atlanta to speak with Black small business owners.
At the event, they celebrated the historic $157 million federal funding invested towards constructing The Stitch, the infrastructure project to help connect Atlanta areas separated by highway construction.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law's Reconnecting Communities Pilot Program and the Inflation Reduction Act's Neighborhood Access and Equity Program, both provisions based on legislation led by Warnock, are responsible for the grant.
Per a press release, the grant covers the funding for the first construction phase "of a planned multi-use 14-acre greenspace over Interstates 75 and 85 that will reconnect north Downtown Atlanta neighborhoods that were divided by the current highway system."
The Stitch will also:
- Support new affordable housing and transit-oriented development
- Improve the overall transportation network in Downtown Atlanta by transforming existing car-oriented streets into complete streets
- Enhance a local MARTA rail and regional bus station to improve operations and user experience
"This is a project that centers historically marginalized communities," Warnock told The Atlanta Voice. "This will create jobs in those communities and beyond. This kind of infrastructure is central to building economic prosperity.”
He adds, "This is about correcting the ways people were historically pushed out," he said. "This is about bringing those communities back together."
Fresh Fruits & Vegetables
On April 30, Sen. Ossoff shared that he is delivering $269,000 in Federal funding to increase Southwest Georgian children's access to fresh fruits and vegetables.
The funding will go to Flint River Fresh, supporting their Dougherty County farm-to-school programs in increasing access to "fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables," per a press release.
With the program's success in testing at Dougherty County elementary schools, the most recent funding allows them to run the program across the school district.
Ocmulgee Mounds
On May 1, Sens. Warnock and Ossoff introduced bipartisan, bicameral legislation to establish Georgia's first National Park.
Under the Ocmulgee Mounds Park and Preserve Establishment Act, Macon-Bibb County's Ocmulgee Mounds and its nearby areas would be considered a National Park and Preserve.
Ocmulgee Mounds is home to the ancestors of the indigenous Muskogee Nation. Its name originates from 900 CE when people made mounds, or burial grounds, for the elite.
“Ocmulgee Mounds is a living testament to our intertwined histories and a robust source of economic and cultural vitality, so I’m proud to support the bipartisan, bicameral efforts to establish Ocmulgee Mounds as Georgia’s first National Park and Preserve,” Sen. Warnock said in a press release statement.
On the legislation's introduction, Sen. Ossoff said, "I want to commend the extraordinary efforts of local officials, and in particular, the Muscogee (Creek) Nation and Macon-Bibb County Mayor Pro Tem Seth Clark for their years of hard work, advocacy, and leadership that has made this moment possible."
Farm Bill
On May 1, Sen. Warnock, as a member of the Senate Agriculture Committee, celebrated Senate Democrats' proposal for a Farm Bill framework.
The framework consists of almost every piece of agriculture legislation Warnock has introduced since entering office in 2021.
The Farm Bill framework has landmark victories for raw agricultural materials, "including reference price increases, market assistance loan increases, and additional base allocation," as a press release states.
"As the voice for Georgia producers, I was thrilled to have played such a critical role in shaping the Senate Democrat's Farm Bill framework," Sen. Warnock said in a statement. "From supporting row crop farmers in South Georgia, to textile mills in North Georgia, to specialty crop producers around the state, this framework is a win-win-win for Georgia. I'm especially proud of provisions in this framework that I authored in response to all the conversations I've had with farmers around the state, including language to increase reference prices, authorize new base allocations, and improve market loan assistance rates."
LaGrange Nursing
On May 1, Sen. Ossoff announced that he is delivering $214,000 in federal funding to strengthen and increase LaGrange College's Bachelor of Science and Nursing Program to serve more students, expanding the number of trained nurses in West Georgia.
LaGrange plans to buy updated equipment and renovate its facilities "to create a more immersive teaching environment," per a press release.
A Federal Health Resources Service Administration study shares that Georgia expects to have the second-largest shortage of registered nurses nationwide by 2035. Georgia's number of registered nurses is currently 21% lower than the need for them statewide.
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