Latest Georgia Headlines
All the headlines from our Georgia Topic Page, ordered by recency.
Georgia’s Oxendine Sees Politics in Insurance Department Budget Cut
Apr 2 2009 // Georgia Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine blasted his Republican rival for governor, accusing Lt. Gov. Casey Cagle of putting politics ahead of consumers. Oxendine said that the state Senate budget slashes his...
Georgia Lawmakers Defeat Pickup Truck Seat Belt Law
Mar 26 2009 // A bid to require adults in pickup trucks to buckle their seat belts was narrowly defeated by a Georgia House panel, defying supporters of stronger safety standards that have been adopted by much of the nation. The House...
Georgia Court Upholds County Immunity, Tosses $5.1 Million Award
Mar 25 2009 // The Georgia Supreme Court has affirmed sovereign immunity and thrown out a $5.1 million jury award to the family of a man killed while performing community service in DeKalb County. Vincent Currid died in October 1999 from...
Lobbyist, Former Democratic Lawmaker Squires to Run for Georgia Insurance Post
Mar 23 2009 // Mary Squires, a former Democratic state lawmaker who now lobbies for the self-insurance industry, is running to be Georgia’s next insurance commissioner. Squires is the first candidate to enter the race to succeed...
Georgia Lawmakers Close In On Stricter Food Safety Changes
Mar 19 2009 // Georgia could be the first state to adopt strict new food safety requirements in the aftermath of the salmonella outbreak. The House is set to consider a plan Wednesday that requires food makers to alert state inspectors...
Salmonella Recall Could Cost Peanut Producers $1 Billion
Mar 12 2009 // The effects of the widespread peanut butter recall could cost rural America’s peanut producers $1 billion in lost production and sales, according to testimony at a House subcommittee hearing. That could be just the...
Lobbyist, Former Lawmaker Squires Running for Georgia Insurance Post
Mar 11 2009 // Mary Squires, a former Democratic state lawmaker who now lobbies for the self-insurance industry, is running to be Georgia’s next insurance commissioner. Squires is the first candidate to enter the race to succeed...
Atlanta Fire Department Faces Insurance Rating Amid Budget Cuts
Mar 9 2009 // The insurance industry is engaging in an on-site evaluation of Atlanta’s fire protection system for the first time in three decades, a process that could add millions of dollars to premiums. It is too early to tell...
Estimate of Damage From Georgia Tornadoes Upped to $35 Million
Feb 25 2009 // The damage estimate from last week’s tornadoes is now more than $35 million based on new observations in southwest Georgia by the state insurance commissioner. Commissioner John Oxendine said after a tour that at...
Atlanta Fire Department Faces Insurance Rating Amid Budget Cuts
Feb 23 2009 // The insurance industry is engaging in an on-site evaluation of Atlanta’s fire protection system for the first time in three decades, a process that could add millions of dollars to premiums. It is too early to tell...
Ex-Georgia Pastor, Son Face Arson, Insurance Fraud Charges
Feb 13 2009 // A former Barrow County pastor and his son have been charged with arson for setting fire to a church three years ago. Barrow County sheriff’s deputies arrested 49-year-old Quincy Arnold of Lawrenceville Tuesday....
Georgia Senate Panel Advances Food Safety Measure
Feb 13 2009 // A sweeping new food safety measure proposed in the wake of the salmonella outbreak easily passed its first key legislative hurdle this week as Georgia lawmakers sought to reassure antsy residents. The Senate Agriculture...
Georgia Senate Panel Considers Changes to Food Safety Rules
Feb 11 2009 // State lawmakers are considering new food safety rules in Georgia, where a peanut plant has been linked to a salmonella outbreak that has sickened hundreds of people nationwide. The Senate Agriculture Committee is to...
Wills/HRH Executive McCurry Joins Georgia’s Seacrest Partners
Feb 3 2009 // Seacrest Partners, Inc., a Savannah-based insurance brokerage and employee benefits consulting firm, reported that J. Cliff McCurry has joined the firm as vice chairman. McCurry will oversee business development activities...
Salmonella Outbreak Exposes Gaps in Peanut Product Inspection Process
Jan 30 2009 // Food regulators didn’t consider salmonella a threat to most peanut products before they traced an outbreak to a peanut butter plant in Georgia two years ago. Officials in the nation’s top peanut-producing state...
Georgia Governor Seeks Limits on Biotech Lawsuits to Attract Firms
Jan 28 2009 // Georgia Governor Sonny Perdue is proposing tort reform legislation intended to protect Georgia-based biotech companies from product liability claims. The proposed legislation would provide that Federal Drug Administration...
Court Finds Georgia Coaches Immune from Suit Over Player’s Death
Jan 26 2009 // Three suburban Atlanta football coaches cannot be sued for alleged violations of the constitutional rights of a 15-year-old who died after a preseason practice in the summer of 2006, a federal appeals court ruled last...
GEICO Lowers Georgia Auto Rates
Jan 23 2009 // GEICO reports that it is reducing auto insurance rates in Georgia by 2.3 percent on average. The rating plan is already in effect for new policies and will be effective Feb. 8 for renewal policies. GEICO is currently the...
Georgia Collected $22 Million in Claims Disputes in 2008
Jan 23 2009 // Insurance Commissioner John W. Oxendine said his office helped thousands of Georgia consumers settle disputes with their insurance companies in 2008, returning $22 million in insurance claims to policyholders “Many...
Kellogg Recalls 16 Products Due to Salmonella Risk
Jan 20 2009 // Kellogg Co. has recalled 16 products containing peanut butter due to possible salmonella contamination, adding new urgency to the nationwide outbreak as federal officials confirmed contamination at a Georgia facility that...
