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Georgia Today: Legislative session begins; Savannah historic preservation; Giuliani held in contempt
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LISTEN: On the Monday, Jan. 13 edition of Georgia Today: Georgia's 2025 legislative session gets underway. Savannah asks the public to help identify more historic buildings. And former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani is found in contempt of court.
Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Monday, Jan. 13. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, Georgia's 2025 legislative session gets underway. Savannah asks the public to help identify more historic buildings. And former Trump lawyer Rudy Giuliani is found in contempt of court. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.
Story 1:
Peter Biello: Georgia's 2025 legislative session got underway today.
SOUND: *Gavel bang*
Peter Biello: Georgia House Speaker Jon Burns gaveled in the state House of Representatives.
Jon Burns: I like doing that.
Peter Biello: And in the state Senate, Lt. Gov. Burt Jones convened its members.
Bert Jones: The time for convening the 158th General Assembly, as prescribed by the Constitution of the state of Georgia, has arrived.
Peter Biello: Lawmakers arrive with a long list of priorities for their constituents. GPB's Sarah Kallis reports on the session's unofficial kickoff last night.
Sarah Kallis: Lawmakers attended the annual Wild Hog dinner in Atlanta to raise money for hunger prevention and celebrate the start of the legislative session. Senate Majority Leader Steve Gooch says he's excited to get work done under the Gold Dome.
Steve Gooch: But we do believe that the farm relief and the hurricane relief in south Georgia is going to be a pretty important part of our legislative session this year.
Sarah Kallis: Senate Minority Leader Harold Jones says Democrats will also prioritize hurricane relief and health care.
Harold Jones: One of the things we're always going to be shooting for is to make sure we can expand health care for working families.
Sarah Kallis: The legislators will meet at the state capitol for a total of 40 days over the next few months. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis in Atlanta.
Peter Biello: The legislature convenes at the start of an election cycle in which the governor's office and many statewide positions will be chosen by voters in 2026. You'll find daily in-depth legislative coverage and reports on the issues and people that affect your life on the 55th season of GPB's Lawmakers. Tune in to Lawmakers on your GPB TV station each evening at 7pm on days the legislature is in session.
Story 2:
Peter Biello: Local boards, commissions and councils across Georgia are deciding if they want to opt out of a new Georgia law aimed at property tax relief for homeowners. State lawmakers approved HB 581 last year with broad bipartisan support, and voters overwhelmingly backed it on the November ballot. But some local officials are warning of a drastic drop in revenue to fund schools and other local needs if they don't take advantage of an opt-out in the law. At an Augusta Commission meeting today. Former Augusta Mayor Bob Young blasted a proposal to exclude Richmond County from the law.
Bob Young: I just don't understand why anyone would consider taking the voices of 48,000 Richmond Countians and tossing them away, saying "what you said doesn't count. What you said doesn't matter." That's not voter suppression. That's voter nullification.
Peter Biello: Local governments have until the end of February to decide where they stand. As the law is currently written, the decision will remain in place for 50 years.
Story 3:
Peter Biello: Historic preservation advocates in Savannah are putting a call out to the public for help identifying properties at risk of falling into disrepair. GPB's Benjamin Payne reports.
Benjamin Payne: The first-ever endangered places list will roll out later this year from the historic Savannah Foundation. The nonprofit is trying to get a feel for lesser-known properties that have fallen through the cracks of historic preservation — for example, a building well outside the cobblestone streets of Savannah's famed downtown, of which there are many. So, says Ellie Isaacs, the foundation's director of preservation.
Ellie Isaacs: There's history overflowing everywhere. You know, you can drive by a place and not even know the history or the stories that it has. And I think that's like the most exciting part.
Benjamin Payne: Isaacs says the first Endangered Places list will likely be announced this spring. Georgians can nominate properties online through the historic Savannah Foundation's website. For GPB News, I'm Benjamin Payne in Savannah.
Story 4:
Peter Biello: Atlanta Mayor Andre Dickens joined public safety officials to share the latest crime statistics and updates on the One Safe City program. GPB's Amanda Andrews reports the city is seeing improvements.
Amanda Andrews: According to the Atlanta Police Department, vehicle theft, homicide, robbery and property crime all went down in 2024. The city also highlighted non-policing alternatives like diversion services, community intervention and summer youth employment programs. Interim Atlanta Labor Commissioner Theresa Austin-Gibbons says matching young people with employers had an impact.
Theresa Austin-Gibbons: This program engaged over 5,000 young Atlantans, reducing youth crime by 23%. Arrest among 14- to 17-year-olds dropped by nearly 200.
Amanda Andrews: Zone 3, which covers Southeast Atlanta neighborhoods like Mechanicsville and Peoplestown, saw the greatest reduction in crime since 2023. For GPB News, I'm Amanda Andrews.
Story 5:
Peter Biello: Rudy Giuliani has been found in contempt of court for continuing to spread lies about two former Georgia election workers after a jury awarded the women a $148 million defamation judgment. The federal judge in Washington, D.C., Friday became the second last week to find the former New York City mayor and Donald Trump ally in contempt of court. The judge found Giuliani violated court orders barring him from defaming Shae Moss and her mother, Ruby Freeman. U.S. District Judge Beryl Howell warned Giuliani that future violations could result in jail time.
Story 6:
As of today, a large American flag at Donald Trump's private Mar-a-Lago Club has been raised to full height. The president-elect has expressed frustration that flags will be flying at half staff during his inauguration next week. President Joe Biden ordered flags lowered to honor the late former President Jimmy Carter. It's not the first time flags have been lowered during an inauguration. It happened in 1973 when Richard Nixon was sworn in for a second term, shortly after the death of former President Harry Truman.
Story 7:
Peter Biello: Wal-Mart says customers should throw out a chicken broth product that was sold in stores, mostly in Southern states, late last year. The retailer has recalled 48 ounce cartons of Great Value Family Sized Chicken Broth that had been sold at 242 stores in nine states, including Georgia. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration reported the recall in December. It affects just over 2,000 cases of broth, with a shelf life lasting until March 2026. The FDA says the containers had packaging problems that could lead to broth spoiling.
Story 8:
Peter Biello: Southwest Georgia's Terrell County is mourning the passing of a beloved peanut farmer who became the longest-serving county commission chairman in Georgia history. Wilbur Gamble died at the age of 90. His funeral was set for today, according to his obituary. Gamble was chairman of the Georgia Peanut Commission for 23 years, beginning in 1985, becoming known as the Peanut Man. He was elected to a dozen four-year terms as county commission chairman beginning in 1968, reportedly never missing a regular monthly meeting.
Story 9:
Peter Biello: Three Georgia stores are among 66 Macy's locations the retail giant plans to close. Macy's confirmed last week that a furniture and mattress gallery in Duluth and two full service stores in Duluth and Suwanee, both north of Atlanta, will shutter in the first quarter of this year as part of a company reorganization. The closures affect stores in 22 states.
Story 10:
Peter Biello: Albany's Phoebe Putney Memorial Hospital cut the ribbon last week on a new $150 million trauma and critical care tower. The hospital said the four-story facility will open for patient care on Wednesday. It's the first phase of a project that also promises to completely renovate the current emergency room.
Story 11:
Peter Biello: In sports, the Atlanta Braves announce details today on how fans can watch spring training games. 26 of 30 spring training games can be viewed through local television, cable or streaming, beginning with the game against the Tampa Bay Rays on Feb. 23. Braves rights holder FanDuel Sports Network will broadcast seven. Gray Media will broadcast 10, including the second annual top prospect game against the Detroit Tigers on March 16. And all remaining home games can be streamed for free directly on Braves.com, MLB TV and in the MLB app.
Peter Biello: And that's it for this edition of Georgia Today. If you want to learn more about these stories, visit GPB.org/news. And subscribing is a great idea. That way we will pop up in your podcast feed automatically tomorrow. Do it now and you won't miss a thing. If you've got feedback, we would love to hear from you. Send it to us by email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.
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For more on these stories and more, go to GPB.org/news
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