A Georgia state senator has been named Legislator of the Year

A Georgia state senator was just named Legislator of the Year by a nonpartisan organization for his support of rural job creation.

Sen. John Wilkinson, a Republican from Toccoa was recently named Legislator of the Year by the Rural Jobs Coalition, a nonpartisan organization that supports small, rural businesses and advocates around the country for policies that benefit rural economic growth.

Wilkinson was chosen as Legislator of the Year for his support of agribusiness and policies that help drive job creation, revitalization of small businesses and economic opportunities for small, rural communities across the state.

“Born and raised in rural Georgia, I know firsthand the struggle of our small businesses to access affordable capital in their rural communities in order to grow operations and hire and retain workforce,” said Sen. Wilkinson. “The Georgia Agribusiness and Rural Jobs Act (GARJA) is one of many programs that I have supported that provides growth opportunities for our rural businesses. Georgia is a national leader in the effort to rebuild our rural areas; I am proud to be a part of that passionate movement.”

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The act, sponsored by Sen. Wilkinson during the 2017 Legislative Session, is a program that uses a tax credit for investors in rural funds to increase capital available to small businesses in rural Georgia.

The investments can be made in agribusiness, businesses dealing with health care, transportation, technology or other areas as deemed appropriate by the Department of Community Affairs. You can read more about the program here, and you can find the language of the bill here.