Governor Brian Kemp is calling for sweeping changes in education, workforce development, and infrastructure to ensure Georgia remains a national leader in business and opportunity.
Speaking at the Georgia Chamber’s Eggs and Issues breakfast, Kemp laid out his agenda for the 2025 legislative session, outlining how these efforts could impact everyday Georgians.
Key Terms:
Legislation: Laws or rules made by lawmakers.
Legislator: An elected official who represents you in the legislature. These are lawmakers who make laws.
Legislature: The state’s version of the house and senate. Georgia has a state house and a state senate that passes laws that apply to the state.
Georgia General Assembly: The full name of the Georgia legislature.
Workforce Development for a Changing Economy
Kemp’s proposed “Top State for Talent Act” aims to address workforce challenges by linking education and job training to industry demands. The initiative expands the Georgia MATCH program, which guarantees college admission for eligible high school students, by integrating it into students’ individual graduation plans starting in 9th grade.
For families and students, this could mean greater access to high-paying jobs in growing industries. Businesses could also benefit from a pipeline of skilled workers tailored to their needs, helping Georgia maintain its competitive edge as workforce challenges, like declining high school graduate rates, loom nationwide.
Rural areas stand to gain as well. Kemp’s Rural Workforce Housing Initiative is already providing grants to build housing for workers near new job hubs, with $42 million allocated to 21 communities. The program ensures that as industries expand in rural Georgia, workers can live where they work.
Tort Reform and Legal Environment
Business leaders have long raised concerns about Georgia’s legal climate, which Kemp says has become a barrier to economic growth and affordable healthcare.
Tort reform, his top legislative priority for 2025, is designed to address these issues by creating a more balanced system. While details of the reform package will be announced in the coming weeks, Kemp called on local chambers of commerce to rally their members in support.
For small businesses and healthcare providers, the proposed changes could lower costs and reduce the risks of frivolous lawsuits. However, the reform is expected to face pushback from trial lawyers and advocacy groups, sparking a contentious debate in the legislature.
Key Term: Tort
A tort is a type of wrong that is not related to a contract and can lead to someone being held legally responsible. It happens when a person’s actions or carelessness cause harm or loss to someone else, and the person who got hurt can ask for money or help to make things right.
Infrastructure Investments for the Future
Kemp also announced a major push for infrastructure improvements, with $530 million earmarked for freight and logistics and $250 million for water and wastewater projects. These investments, building on last year’s $1.5 billion infrastructure funding, aim to prepare Georgia for future growth while reducing long-term costs.
The upgrades will likely mean smoother commutes, more efficient shipping for businesses, and better access to clean water and waste management for rural and urban communities alike. By 2035, Kemp projects the state will save over $1 billion in reduced delays and crashes thanks to these investments.
Key Terms
Infrastructure: The basic physical structures that organize a society. Buildings, roads, bridges, power supply structures, and water structures are all types of infrastructure.
B.T. Clark
B.T. Clark is an award-winning journalist and the Publisher of The Georgia Sun. He has 25 years of experience in journalism and served as Managing Editor of Neighbor Newspapers in metro Atlanta for 15 years and Digital Director at Times-Journal Inc. for 8 years. His work has appeared in several newspapers throughout the state including Neighbor Newspapers, The Cherokee Tribune and The Marietta Daily Journal. He is a Georgia native and a fifth-generation Georgian.
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