Morning, y’all! You know what’s a good word? Scuttlebutt. Like so many jaunty and irreverent slang words, this one has a maritime background. A “butt” is a place to store water on a ship, and a “scuttlebutt” is one that has been tapped for easy serving. Yes, it is quite literally “water cooler gossip.”
Let’s get to it.
IT’S DECISION DAY AT THE CAPITOL
Welcome to Decision Day 2026, the deadline for Gov. Brian Kemp to sign into law the pile of shiny bills put forth by this year’s legislative session.
The rules:
- The Georgia legislative session that begins every year lasts for 40 business days. Then, the governor has four more business days to sign the bills passed by the state House and Senate.
- If he doesn’t sign a bill, it automatically passes. So, he has to actively veto any ones he doesn’t want to pass.
What we know so far:
Kemp has had to work through about 350 bills on his desk. He’s signed a bunch already.
On Monday, he signed two big ones related to state Republicans’ tax priorities:
- House Bill 463 cuts the state income tax rate
- Senate Bill 33 caps tax assessments on individual properties and allows cities and counties to raise sales taxes to provide additional property tax relief
✍🏻 More on these two bills and where Georgia’s tax situation stands now
Kemp hinted the tax cuts would require cuts elsewhere, and he might use his veto power to make room in the state budget.
What’s still waiting for a decision
The budget: Kemp has to sign the state budget by the end of today. However, it has its own process. Kemp can actually dig into the budget and veto specific parts.
Nonpartisan elections: House Bill 369 would make most local races in Georgia’s most populous counties nonpartisan. That means those running for district attorneys, county commissioners and tax commissioners would not do so with “Republican” or “Democrat” by their name. The Republican-backed effort is seen as a bid to make GOP inroads in heavily Democratic areas. Metro Atlanta leaders have urged Kemp to veto the bill, calling it unconstitutional and discriminatory. More on the bill here.
The “Epstein amendment”: House Bill 1409 would make any sexual harassment or discrimination settlement involving a state lawmaker a matter of public record. The bill passed with bipartisan support through both chambers during the session. If it passes, allies and opponents of every midterm primary candidate will be doing quite a bit of research to see if there’s anything they can leverage.
Thanks to AJC deputy politics editor Adam Beam, who filled me in on some of the specifics. This is your government at work, folks! Follow the AJC’s coverage throughout the day.
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ROBOT’S BEST FRIEND
When new hires start at the massive Hyundai electric vehicle factory near Savannah, they receive training on how not to be scared by the large robotic dogs they work with.
- The four-legged robots made by Boston Dynamics perform quality inspections on the factory floor.
- They’re among the more than 1,000 robots of differing shapes and sizes at the Metaplant that weld, paint, stamp and inspect vehicles along the assembly line.
The “don’t fear the robots” lesson is just one part of a large, state-funded initiative to give workers the skills and confidence they need for evolving manufacturing jobs.
- The Hyundai Mobility Training Center of Georgia is the latest project of the Quick Start program, a state-funded direct workforce development program that dates to 1967 and has partnered with dozens of manufacturers over the decades.
- Some companies say it’s a deciding factor when choosing Georgia over other states for their manufacturing sites.
There’s still the issue of the dogs, though.
“Spot would walk up beside (new employees), and it would startle them,” the factory’s Quick Start training program head said. “You can’t have people screaming on the factory floor.”
🔎 READ MORE: Inside the training program at Hyundai’s Metaplant
MUST-KNOW POLITICS AND BUSINESS
🗳️ You still have time to vote early! Early voting for Georgia primaries runs until Friday, May 15. Election Day is Tuesday, May 19. To get in the spirit, check out our profiles of every guy (it’s all guys) hoping to run for Georgia’s U.S. Senate seat in November.
🗞️ Andrew Morse is stepping down as the president and publisher of The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. He’ll be succeeded by Paul Curran, the SVP and general manager of Cox Media.
⚾ BravesVision is a hit, according to Braves CEO Derek Schiller. Braves Holdings, which includes the MLB franchise, launched its own broadcast network and streaming service earlier this year.
TAKE A BOW, MR. HENDRICKS
Freddie Hendricks, a theater teacher at Utopian Academy for the Arts in Ellenwood, Georgia, won a special Tony Award for educators called the Excellence in Theatre Education Award.
Hendricks estimates 20 to 30 of his students have gone on to work on Broadway, including performer-producer Kandi Burruss, SNL veteran Kenan Thompson and Tony-nominated Saycon Sengbloh.
I nearly teared up at Hendricks’ description of how he uses the arts to help students discover something new.
A lot of kids these days, they don't love themselves. They don't know who they are, for one thing. And I just kind of start with that and then go with loving themselves for who they are and letting them know up front, ‘In here, this is a safe space. You're loved in here. You're accepted in here. This is your home.'
🎭 READ MORE: Notable students of Hendricks discuss his impact
NEWS BITES
The World Cup is one month away. Better brush up.
Will the NFC South finally be better in 2026?
As long as the Falcons are better, the rest of them are welcome to the basement.
How parents can make ‘Maycember’ less overwhelming
Graduation parties, summer camp registrations, end-of-year parties ... for kids, it all happens like magic. For parents, well, they know exactly how much effort it takes.
‘Deep jaw release’ therapy shows people just how much tension they store
[Slaps jaw] You will not believe how much trauma and stress this baby can hold!
ON THIS DATE
May 12, 1977
Turner ordered back into stands. Turner signed a standard coach’s contract Wednesday when he decided to replace Dave Bristol as the manager of the club for 10 days. “I don’t see how they cannot approve it,” Turner said. “They didn’t seem to mind letting me spend $10 million to buy the team. It’s like buying a new car and the manufacturer says you can’t drive it.” “But,” said Turner, “what kind of qualifications do you need to manage a team that’s lost 17 in a row anyway?”
Another Ted Turner gem. More on his short stint as Braves manager here.
ONE MORE THING
There’s this misconception that people who pooh-pooh the arts and arts education do so because they don’t see how important it is. I don’t think that’s always true.
In many cases, I think these people know exactly how important it is. They know the power of myth and story and how it models and, thus, perennially shapes our shared realities. They understand how music and visual media reinforce or challenge tradition. They understand the nuances of rhetoric and what works of human creation can tell us about ourselves and others.
They know all of this. They just don’t want you to.
Enjoy or make some art today. ❤️
Thanks for reading to the very bottom of A.M. ATL. Questions, comments, ideas? Contact us at AMATL@ajc.com.
Until next time.
About the Author
AJ Willingham is an National Emmy, NABJ and Webby award-winning journalist who loves talking culture, religion, sports, social justice, infrastructure and the arts. She lives in beautiful Smyrna-Mableton and went to Syracuse University.
