Georgia Today: Savannah gun-control ordinance targeted; Fentanyl sentencing Act; Alzheimer's bill

Orlando Montoya: Hello and welcome to the Georgia Today podcast. On this podcast, you'll find the latest reports from our GPB News team. Send us feedback or story ideas to GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Orlando Montoya. Today is Monday, March 10. Here's what's coming up on today's episode: A new bill passed by the Georgia Senate targets a Savannah ordinance meant to curb gun theft. Those convicted of trafficking fentanyl could soon receive mandatory minimum prison sentences. And a new bill seeks to support caregivers of seniors suffering from cognitive decline.

Nancy Petra: Maybe she gets in the car and she goes to the Walmart where she always goes. And maybe if people are approaching her, she's getting agitated. And so someone calls the police.

Orlando Montoya: These stories and more coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Orlando Montoya: A Savannah gun control ordinance is the target of a new bill passed by the Georgia Senate. GPB's Benjamin Payne reports.

Benjamin Payne: SB 163 passed along party lines shortly before the Crossover Day deadline last week, with Republicans in support and Democrats opposed. The bill takes aim at a local law in Savannah enacted last year and meant to prevent gun thefts. That ordinance allows the city to fine gun owners up to $1,000 if they leave a firearm unattended in an unlocked vehicle. The new Senate bill would allow people facing those fines to in turn, sue the city for up to $50,000. It was introduced by Republican State Sen. Colton Moore of Northwest Georgia's Dade County.

Colton Moore: When citizens in northwest Georgia go to a place like Savannah, and there is a mayor there who has put in ordinances that violate their Second Amendment rights, my piece of legislation simply says that those citizens have a right of tort to sue those governments for violating those rights.

Benjamin Payne: Democratic state Sen. Derrick Marlow of Savannah spoke out against the bill, saying it would take away a valuable tool police now have at their disposal to help prevent crime, especially in the city's popular downtown.

Derrick Marlow: We keep our tourists safe. We have robust law enforcement agencies, and they said, "City council, help us to curb the amount of unlocked firearms that are being stolen out of vehicles."

Benjamin Payne: SB 163 now heads to the Georgia House. For GPB News, I'm Benjamin Payne in Savannah.

Story 2:

Orlando Montoya: Two vaccine-related bills with bipartisan support will not be advancing in this year's General Assembly. House Bill 218, aimed to lower the age of patients offered a flu vaccine upon discharge from a hospital from age 50 to age 18, and House Bill 173 would have made sure patients starting in middle school were given information at school about vaccines that protect against HPV, meningitis, tetanus and other diseases. But neither of these bills made it past Crossover Day. That was the day last week on Thursday, when all bills either had to pass in the House or the Senate to stay alive for the year. Here's the bill's sponsor, Rep. Darlene Taylor, speaking last month.

Darlene Taylor: And it's important and I feel like it is. As a parent, when I wanted as much information that I can have to make a good decision, and I feel like the best way to help parents is to let them have the information.

Orlando Montoya: Meanwhile, Georgia's vaccine rate among teenagers for most routine shots is pretty consistent with the U.S. averages, while the rate of vaccination for younger children is much lower.

Story 3:

Orlando Montoya: A bill that did make it past Crossover Day would create mandatory minimum sentences for those trafficking and fentanyl. GPB's Ellen Eldridge reports on the Fentanyl Eradication and Removal Act.

Ellen Eldridge: Senate Bill 79 could mean up to 35 years in prison and hundreds of thousands in fines for those possessing 28 grams of fentanyl. The law comes on the heels of Austin's law, passed last year by the Legislature, that creates an involuntary manslaughter charge for anyone selling drugs that leads to a death. It was named after the 30-year-old son of Gus Walters. He died of a fentanyl overdose in 2021. Walters says after Austin's Law passed, advocates realized that for the law to work, someone has to die. So SB 79 is needed for punishment.

Gus Walters: In other words, on the — on the front side, somebody dies. And the reaction is, is now we can go after the person that sold the pill that killed that individual.

Ellen Eldridge: The bill now heads to the Georgia House. For GPB News, I'm Ellen Eldridge.

Story 4:

Orlando Montoya: Georgia's senior population; those people age 65 and up, is growing faster than most other age groups, according to the latest Census data. For seniors with cognitive decline, the experience can be scary. So advocates and family members are pushing for a new state law giving more support from public safety providers. GPB's Sofi Gratas has more.

Sofi Gratas: Nancy Petra, with the Georgia Alzheimer's Association says there are hundreds of families that can relate to watching a loved one be diagnosed with a degenerative disease. But early signs are not always easy to spot, until maybe one day when a loved one goes to run an errand, Petra says.

Nancy Petra: And if she gets in the car and she goes to the Walmart where she always goes ...

Sofi Gratas: Except this time that loved one forgets why they're there and gets confused or frightened.

Nancy Petra: And maybe if people are approaching her, she's getting agitated. And so someone calls the police.

Sofi Gratas: Legislation that passed the state House Wednesday would create more training for Georgia police to identify and respond to people in these situations. The bill still needs to pass the Senate, but Peter says it's a good step towards prioritizing Georgia's aging residents. For GPB News, I'm Sofi Gratas.

​​​​​​​Story 5:

Orlando Montoya: The monthlong search for missing Atlanta teacher Gary Jones came to an end yesterday. Putnam County Sheriff Howard Sills says Jones body was found in Lake County. According to Wmaz and Macon, Jones was a teacher and track and field coach at the Westminster School in Atlanta. Jones and his fiancée, Jocelyn Wilson, disappeared on Feb. 8 while boating. The body of Jocelyn Wilson was found a day later.

​​​​​​​Story 6:

Orlando Montoya: This month marks 60 years since Bloody Sunday, when civil rights marchers were attacked by Alabama state troopers on the Edmund Pettus Bridge in Selma. Civil rights leader and former ambassador Andrew Young says the march wasn't exactly supposed to happen that way. He spoke with GPB's Pamela Kirkland.

Andrew Young: The march on Bloody Sunday was a mistake. It was the first Sunday in March, and we thought it was the second Sunday. 2 or 300 people showed up wanting to march from Selma to Montgomery. I called Dr. King and talked to him while he was in his pulpit. I said, "We can't turn these people around."

Orlando Montoya: Young says Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. told him not to get arrested. The violent attack on peaceful protesters shocked the nation and helped push Congress to pass the Voting Rights Act of 1965. You can hear more from Pamela's conversation with Andrew Young this Wednesday on Morning Edition, and later this week here on Georgia Today.

​​​​​​​Story 7:

Orlando Montoya: Gov. Brian Kemp's $37 billion fiscal year 2026 state budget has cleared a key hurdle. Budget writers in the state House today approved the spending plan, sending it to the full House for a vote expected later this week. The budget emphasizes needs in the state's troubled prison system. Blasted in a federal audit, state prisons are set to get $250 million in the FY 26 budget, on top of $345 million adopted last week in the FY 25 mid-year budget. Other big-ticket items are in public schools with student support services, mental health counselors, and safety measures accounting for more than $100 million in new spending.

​​​​​​​Story 8:

Orlando Montoya: A lunar eclipse will be visible across Georgia this week as the Earth's shadow falls over the moon, sometimes giving the moon a reddish tint. This lunar eclipse will be visible across the entire U.S. and Georgia. The eclipse will begin at 11:57 p.m. on Thursday, and will reach its peak at 2:58 a.m. on Friday. Skywatchers should get a clear view, weather permitting.

​​​​​​​Story 9:

Orlando Montoya: In  Georgia sports, the Atlanta Hawks defeated the Indiana Pacers at home on Saturday, fending off a late-game rally by the visitors. The Hawks let a 17-point halftime lead slip, and the two teams were neck and neck with minutes to the final buzzer. Final score: 120 to 118, Hawks. In other basketball, Georgia is increasingly confident about the team's NCAA Tournament outlook. The Bulldogs haven't been in the big dance in 10 years, but removed a lot of doubt about their prospects this year, with a 79 to 68 win over Vanderbilt at home on Saturday. In soccer, four top English teams will play an Atlanta doubleheader as part of a summer series in three American cities. The English Premier League said yesterday. Manchester United will face Everton and Bournemouth will face West Ham United at Mercedes-Benz Stadium on Aug. 3. And in baseball, expect major upgrades this summer at The Battery, the shopping and dining district anchored by the home of the Atlanta Braves, Truist Park. The Battery last week announced a facelift ahead of the MLB All-Star Game in July, with new LED screens, more seating, and more restrooms and digital lockers, among the planned improvements.

Orlando Montoya: And that's it for today's edition of Georgia Today. This podcast updates daily Monday through Friday, but find the latest news any time of the day, seven days a week, at GPB.org/news. Hit subscribe on this podcast. It only takes a moment and it'll help you to stay current with us in your feed. If you have feedback, send that to us at GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Orlando Montoya. Thanks for tuning in.

---

For more on these stories and more, go to GPB.org/news