Dahlonega-Lumpkin County Chamber of Commerce

Special Council on Tax Reform Holds First Meeting
The Special Council on Tax Reform and Fairness for Georgians held its first meeting on Wednesday, July 28.  Following opening remarks by the council members, the governor nominated and the committee approved A.D. Frazier as Chairman.  Dr. Carolyn Bordeaux, Director of the Senate Budget Office, then provided an overview of taxes in Georgia.  That presentation, along with other materials, can be found on a website created for the council at the following link: http://fiscalresearch.gsu.edu/taxreform/.

The council committed to holding regular public meetings in Atlanta and around the state.  The website above will contain information received by the council as well as a schedule of upcoming meetings.

Updates will be provided as they are available.

Georgia Again a Finalist for Race to the Top
The U.S. Department of Education announced that Georgia was one of 19 finalists in the second round of competition for $4 billion in Race to the Top federal education improvement grants.  Georgia finished third in the first round behind Delaware and Tennessee earlier this year.  Winners of phase two are expected to be announced in late August or early September.  Should Georgia be selected, funds would be used in four key areas - standards and assessments, data systems, teacher improvements and school turnarounds.

Reminder: Runoff Elections Set for August 10
Runoff elections for several state offices will be held on August 10.  Click here to view a list of all candidates and offices involved in this elections.

Visit www.gachamber.com/electioncentral to review the candidates who responded to our candidate survey and for other information about the 2010 elections in Georgia.