Recent editorials from Georgia newspapers:
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Feb. 1
The Dalton Daily Citizen on National Signing Day:
Today is one of the most hopeful days of the year for a new generation of college football players and for old generations of college football fans.
National Signing Day is a day when “paper” national championships are won and all those who put pen to paper to accept their scholarship most likely believe they will be the next college football success story. All of the local athletes (football and otherwise) who will sign today to take the next step on their life’s journey will do so with hopes and dreams.
Despite what some people may think, high school athletics is not about winning at all costs or money. It’s about the development of proper character and teamwork and integrity and learning to overcome adversity and much more. For the select few who will move on to the next level of competition, their athletic prowess opens up a new world including the possibility of a college education and the opportunity to continue to build upon the lessons they learned in high school.
Only a small percentage of all high school athletes have the opportunity to advance their athletic careers past their senior graduation day into college, so we celebrate with all of the students who will be signing today, as well as with your families and coaches and other mentors.
We celebrate your past successes and the hard work that brought you to this point. Now is the time to begin to take advantage of those new opportunities that are coming your way.
Online:
https://www.daltondailycitizen.com/
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Jan. 26
The Newnan Times-Herald on health-expansion regulations:
Here are two sides to an issue before the General Assembly in which some of the major players are from Newnan. It has to do with a Georgia law requiring hospitals and other medical facilities to convince state officials to grant a certificate of need in order to build or expand.
To get its initial certificate to build a facility in Newnan, Cancer Treatment Centers of America agreed to limit the share of its patients from Georgia each year to 35 percent as a way to minimize its impact on existing hospitals. Now that the 35 percent limit was reached last year and dozens of Georgians had to be turned away, CTCA is seeking to have the limit removed.
On one side, a CTCA patient argues she and all cancer sufferers should have the freedom to pick where they get their treatment. On the other side are traditional hospitals like Piedmont Newnan who say they can’t afford to lose insured cancer patients to CTCA because costs shifted to insured patients help cover the expense of treating the uninsured. Since a cancer patient with insurance can bring thousands of dollars to a hospital, the tug-of-war for them is fierce and is playing out in this year’s legislature.
Online:
https://times-herald.com
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Jan. 25
Savannah Morning News on extending Georgia’s pipeline ban:
State lawmakers should extend the moratorium on oil and gasoline pipeline construction in Georgia for another two years to give a special state committee the time it says it needs to come up with a better plan on how the state should approach such projects.
Georgia’s moratorium on new pipeline construction, imposed in the wake of controversy surrounding the proposed Palmetto Pipeline, is set to expire June 30. Unfortunately, that date comes before the deadline for the state’s Commission on Petroleum Pipelines, an appointed panel created to recommend a better way for Georgia regulators to examine such projects, to finish its job.
There’s a simple and reasonable solution that will impose no burden and will be beneficial to Georgians: Extend the deadline and let the process play itself out.
The Pipelines Commission, which is made up of state lawmakers and representatives from business, agricultural and conservation groups, is charged with coming up with recommendations to guide state officials on the use of eminent domain on pipeline projects that must cross private property. The panel also is addressing the serious environmental concerns posed by pipelines that cross fragile areas and watersheds.
The Palmetto Pipeline, proposed by Houston-based energy giant Kinder Morgan, would have transported gasoline from a terminal in Belton, South Carolina, through Georgia to Jacksonville. The project stalled when property owners along the proposed pipeline route raised concerns about the forced takeover of their land through eminent domain, as well as concerns about environmental damage from pipeline leaks.
Ultimately, the Georgia Department of Transportation refused to give Kinder Morgan the authority to condemn private property through eminent domain, and the courts upheld that decision on appeal. Meanwhile, neighboring South Carolina has imposed a two-year moratorium on new pipelines. During the contentious, yearlong battle over the Palmetto Pipeline, which attracted hundreds of concerned Georgians to public hearings across this area of the state, it was revealed that Georgia has a poor set of rules or standards that it applies to pipelines that crisscross the state. An update of the rule book was long overdue.
Under the existing rules, for example, before eminent domain can be used to condemn private property, the pipeline project must meet certain guidelines for “convenience” and “necessity.” Those terms can be subjective and must be strictly defined to protect private property rights, or the ability of pipeline operators to use the state’s tremendous power to take private property for public purposes should be stripped from the Pipelines Commission’s set of final recommendations.
Indeed, that’s what some commission members, including State Sen. Jack Hill, R-Reidsville, want to do, and it makes complete sense. Eminent domain is a thorny subject and the rights of private property owners must be protected. Plus, there are other ways that pipeline operators can acquire the property they need without relying on the government to force private owners to relinquish it.
Concern about the risks that pipeline leaks pose on the environment must be adequately addressed as well. For example, the Palmetto Pipeline would have crossed several watersheds along its way from the South Carolina highlands to the lowlands of Georgia and northern Florida. Pipeline supporters, however, countered that transporting gasoline through pipelines posed less environmental risk than shipping it overland in fleets of large tanker trucks on public highways or in large tanker ships on public waterways.
Georgia’s Environmental Protection Division Director Rick Dunn, another Pipelines Commission member, has suggested beefing up the environmental regulations surrounding the siting and construction of proposed pipelines by requiring an environmental permit as the first step of the state’s regulatory process, regardless of whether the builders are seeking eminent domain powers.
That is an outstanding recommendation that deserves to make the final cut. Put the cart behind the horse where it belongs. Why give the green light on eminent domain to a project that can’t get an environmental permit? The state has no business discussing eminent domain on a project that would put the state’s supplies of drinking water in harm’s way.
The Pipelines Commission is chaired by State Rep. Bill Hitchens, R-Rincon. Mr. Hitchens has done a good job overseeing this diverse panel and making sure all the varied interests are represented. He said he expects to sponsor a bill soon, one that would give state officials much-needed direction on pipeline projects. In fairness, it also should give companies like Kinder Morgan more clarity, consistency and predictability on what Georgia expects from them. But there should be no rush to judgment. If the Pipelines Commission believes it needs more time to complete its study and finalize its recommendations, then the same state lawmakers that created this panel should extend the existing moratorium on pipeline construction and give the commission the time it says it needs to do a thorough job.
Indeed, it’s a small thing to ask, as the state of South Carolina has already imposed a two-year moratorium. So the proposed Palmetto Pipeline is already stalled, no matter what Georgia does. Still, Georgia lawmakers should be guided by what’s best for Georgians, which means extending the pipeline ban in this state.
Online:
https://savannahnow.com
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