Georgia Today: SCOTUS voting rights ruling; Trump indictment update; New Georgia film studio

Peter Biello: Welcome to the Georgia Today podcast from GPB News. Today is Thursday, June 8. I'm Peter Biello. On today's episode, a new voting rights ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court could have big implications in Georgia. A federal indictment of former President Donald Trump appears imminent. We'll look at how that may affect the case against him in Fulton County. And a new film studio is coming to Chattahoochee Hills. These stories and more are coming up on this edition of Georgia Today.

Story 1:

Peter Biello: Georgia voting rights advocates are celebrating a Supreme Court ruling that upholds part of the Voting Rights Act. Justices voted 5 to 4 today to uphold a provision that says in states where voting is racially polarized, states cannot draw district lines that dilute the Black vote. The case, the court decided today emerged in Alabama, but has implications in Georgia, where voting rights groups have sued over district lines that they say weaken the impact of Black voters. One of those groups is the Georgia Coalition for the People's Agenda. Cindy Battles is its policy director.

Cindy Battles: I'm elated. I think that this is a win not just for Alabama voters, but for Georgia voters and for voters across the country.

Peter Biello: Her organization's lawsuit argues Georgia's legislature drew voting maps that favor white voters. The Supreme Court ruling will likely impact that case moving forward.

Story 2:

Peter Biello: A new study from the nonpartisan Center for Election Innovation and Research indicates Georgia's voter registration numbers have climbed since automatic voter registration was implemented. GPB's Sarah Kallis has more.

Sarah Kallis: The 2016 program allowed for voters to register while getting their driver's license. The state was also singled out for its bipartisan approach to registration and the electorate more representative of the population in terms of age and gender. The center's executive director and founder David Becker says Georgia saw a jump in registration between 2016 and 2020.

David Becker: Active registration records in Georgia increased 20 percentage points to 98% of eligible Georgians in 2020, compared to 2016, where it was 78%.

Sarah Kallis: In 2022, about 92% of eligible Georgians were registered. Inactive voter records also dropped in the time frame to 5%, down from 14%. For GPB News, I'm Sarah Kallis.

Story 3:

Peter Biello: Gov. Brian Kemp has announced $83 million in grants to law enforcement agencies. The money comes from federal COVID emergency funding in the American Rescue Plan. Among 118 projects statewide, the grants will be used to buy new police body cameras in Augusta and gun safety equipment in Atlanta.

Story 4:

Peter Biello: Activity with the special prosecutor in both Washington, D.C. and Florida indicates possible federal indictments against former President Donald Trump are imminent. GPB's Donna Lowry has more.

Donna Lowry: Special federal prosecutor Jack Smith is conducting two separate grand juries on both the Jan. 6 insurrection and the classified documents found in former President Donald Trump's Mar-a-Lago home. Two panels operating simultaneously lead court observers like the former U.S. attorney for the middle District of Georgia, Michael Moore, to believe federal indictments are coming. At the same time, Fulton County District Attorney Fani Willis has indicated something from her office involving Trump may come in August, and all jurisdictions are likely coordinating.

Michael Moore: There are significant security considerations. All have to be taken place, deals with scheduling that deals with when somebody may report or turn themselves in.

Donna Lowry: Moore says officials also want to make sure the indictment announcements don't overlap, especially involving a former president. I'm Donna Lowry for GPB News.

Story 5:

Peter Biello: The Fulton County Board of Commissioners has rejected a Republican nominee for the elections board who had challenged the eligibility of thousands of voters. Commissioners voted 3 to 2 yesterday to reject Jason Frazier, one of two nominees put forth by the county Republican Party for a seat on the County Board of Registration and Elections. Voting rights groups had raised concerns about Frazier's use of Georgia law to challenge the eligibility of nearly 10,000 Fulton County voters. They say he challenged many legitimate voters. The commission unanimously approved the Republican Party's other nominee, as well as the Democratic Party's two incumbent board members.

Story 6:

Peter Biello: A federal judge is ordering the owners and developers of a West Georgia solar farm to minimize continuing damage to a neighboring property. The injunction, issued Monday, comes a month after a federal jury awarded a Lumpkin County couple $135 million in damages. The judge wants Tennessee-based solar operator Silicon Ranch and its partners to stop soil erosion onto the couple's wetlands. The judge is appointing a special master to ensure compliance.

Story 7:

Peter Biello: A community southwest of Atlanta has approved plans for a massive film studio. Chattahoochee Hills City Council members on Tuesday approved rezoning a 1,600-acre tract along the Chattahoochee River to become Kane Studios. While some residents who spoke at the meeting oppose the project because of traffic concerns, most, including Janice Barton, thought the company's plans were in keeping with the city's rural character.

Janice Barton: I'm hopeful to gift to the city of land along the river is indicative of their interest to engage as involved community members and of course, the $5 million in potential tax revenue upon completion has a meaningful impact on the city's long-term financial viability, as it would triple our tax revenue.

Peter Biello: It's the latest large film studio project coming to metro Atlanta. Others include developments for Lionsgate Entertainment in Douglasville and NBC Universal in Doraville.

Story 8:

Peter Biello: Atlanta-based Delta Air Lines has agreed to settle a class action lawsuit over canceled flights during the first year of the COVID-19 pandemic. The settlement could apply to thousands of travelers who requested refunds for canceled flights and got flight credits instead.

Story 9:

Peter Biello: A South Korean company will open an $18 million plant in Georgia to build heaters for electric vehicles. Woory Industrial company said yesterday that it would open the plant in Dublin, Ga., in November, hiring 130 people. Woory is the ninth supplier to locate in the region after Hyundai announced in 2022 it would build a five and a half billion dollar electric vehicle plant outside Savannah.

Story 10:

Peter Biello: The smoke from wildfires in Canada that blanketed the Northeast is making its way into Georgia. GPB's Devon Zwald has more.

Devon Zwald: Bill Murphy is a state climatologist with the Georgia Department of Natural Resources. He says because Georgia is on the edge of the smoke, it will impact air quality differently over the next few days, depending on where you live. He says one way to check air quality is to step outside — and if you see a haze of smoke on the horizon, take precautions.

Bill Murphy: I definitely would not do, you know, any kind of strenuous exercise, and especially if you have, you know, some kind of lung disorder or asthma or maybe emphysema, you know, small children. I wouldn't, you know, go out and do any kind of playing or any any kind of outdoor activity.

Devon Zwald: Murphy says a western-northwestern wind has largely shielded the state from the worst of the smoke. For GPB News, I'm Devon Zwald.

Story 11:

Peter Biello: State coastal resources officials have set a date for the start of this year's Georgia shrimp season: June 20. The Department of Natural Resources said Tuesday the opening of the $10 million fishery could benefit from a short delay based on monitoring shrimp size and other factors. The DNR Coastal Resources Division typically opens the season in early or mid-June, but it can open as early as May. 214 licensed harvesters last year caught about 2 million pounds of shrimp in a season that ended in December.

Story 12:

Peter Biello: Last night was a really good night for Michael Harris II. The Braves center fielder went three for four with a late game two-run homer that helped put Atlanta over the top. And they beat the Mets 7 to 5. The Mets did take an early lead with New York pitcher Max Scherzer, racking up 10 strikeouts before exiting the game as the Braves started to catch up. Couple that offense with a defense that included leaping catches in the outfield by Harris and Ronald Acuna Jr., and the Mets were successfully held at bay. At a postgame press conference, Harris says hitting that home run felt good.

Michael Harris II: I mean, my main goal is come out there and help the team win in any way and I feel like I wasn't really doing that as much. So, I mean, to have a night like this is something I really to get me going and I'm excited for it.

Peter Biello: The Braves aim for a sweep of the three-game series as they face the Mets again tonight at Truist Park.

Peter Biello: And that is it for this edition of Georgia Today. I'm Peter Biello. I'm taking a long weekend, but Orlando Montoya will be back with you tomorrow and I will be back with you on Monday. For all the latest news, don't forget to subscribe to this podcast to stay on top of everything that the GPB newsroom is reporting on. If you want to learn more about any of these stories, visit gpb.org/news. And if you have feedback for us, or perhaps a story idea, we'd love to hear from you. Send us an email. The address is GeorgiaToday@GPB.org. I'm Peter Biello. Thanks again for listening. We'll see you tomorrow.

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