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What Atlanta is talking about
georgia governor race
Georgia’s 2026 gubernatorial contest pits Democratic nominee and former Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms against Republican nominee Rick Jackson. On September 2, the candidates held separate metro Atlanta events focused on household affordability and child safety/public safety, respectively. Bottoms’ grocery-tax proposal would require action by the Georgia General Assembly because the state already exempts groceries from its statewide sales tax while local governments may levy their own sales taxes.
via fox5atlanta.com·9h agoDetails →
atlanta city detention center
Atlanta City Detention Center is a South Downtown Atlanta facility that Fulton County wants to acquire to expand detainee capacity and ease overcrowding at its Rice Street Jail. The proposed sale has also become linked to Atlanta’s requests for detention-bed access, diversion-services space, jail-condition oversight, healthcare investment and commercial-property assessment reforms.
via atlantanewsfirst.com·9h agoDetails →
officer killing
Warm Springs is a small Georgia city in Meriwether County. Authorities said Officer Chris Fisher, 36, was shot shortly before midnight while finishing an unrelated traffic stop in the parking lot of the Meriwether Country Inn. The Georgia Bureau of Investigation identified 23-year-old Jimmie Lee Steverson as the suspect; he was located in South Carolina the next morning and later died after an apparent self-inflicted gunshot wound.
via cbsnews.com·9h agoDetails →
data centers
Forest Park is a metro Atlanta city in Clayton County. Its zoning rules had allowed data centers to be built "by right," prompting the city to pause new applications while it considers definitions, siting rules, buffers and other regulations for the industry.
via wsbtv.com·9h agoDetails →
flock cameras
Hall County Sheriff's Office is conducting an agencywide audit of its Flock Safety automated license-plate-reader system. The audit has identified alleged non-law-enforcement searches by three deputies, who resigned in late August while under internal investigation. Their cases are to be referred to the Georgia Peace Officer Standards and Training Council (POST), while the sheriff's office review continues.
via wsbtv.com·9h agoDetails →
elections
Georgia law requires the state to replace its current uniform election equipment and created the Election Equipment Specifications and Standards Committee to set requirements for a new system. A June 2026 law extended use of the existing QR-code ballot-tabulation system through 2028, after an earlier deadline and funding shortfall raised concerns about changing systems before the midterms. The committee’s work is focused on evaluating a transition toward hand-marked paper ballots, including the operational and financial consequences for counties.
via atlantanewsfirst.com·9h agoDetails →
school leadership
Clayton County Public Schools is a Georgia public-school district. Dr. Douglas Hendrix Sr. had served as the district’s interim superintendent since February 2, 2026, following the retirement of Superintendent/CEO Dr. Anthony W. Smith. Hendrix previously served as the district’s senior deputy superintendent and chief of staff and is now listed by the district as Superintendent/CEO.