Sunday Solutions — Aug. 30, 2026
Good morning! It’s been a few days, but we’re still missing Dolly Parton today. Anyone who gives away 330 million books to help kids read earns a place of honor. (Her cover of Collective Soul’s “Shine” also can’t be ignored.) In the meantime, we’ve got a roundup of data center-related news, notes from Rick Jackson’s Savannah speech on Saturday, a few updates, and questions about your online health questions.
NEWS: GROWTH & DEVELOPMENT
‘Overwhelming, unified concern’
It’s been a busy week on the data center front. The Current‘s staff has been there for the breaks, but they dug a bit deeper for stories on tax promises, PR contracts and utility contracts to supply the giant OpenAI data center planned for Effingham County. U.S. Sen. Raphael Warnock summarized community discussion in his Friday visit to Effingham: “Overwhelming, unified concern.”
• OpenAI data center sparks intense debate at Effingham County meeting: On Saturday, about 70 people attended a Effingham County Commission work session to air questions and complaints about secrecy, noise, environmental effects of the planned hyperscale data center. The Current‘s Mary Landers was there for the marathon session. If you want to hear more, here’s the video from Saturday’s town hall.
• Warnock calls for data center moratorium in Georgia: The Current‘s Craig Nelson attended the senator’s press conference Friday after his area tour and discussion with residents about the data center. The video of his full statement is linked to the story.
• Effingham promises homeowner tax breaks from part of OpenAI windfall, but there’s millions left: The Current‘s data reporter Maggie Lee crunched the known numbers for the tax implications — savings and payments — in the deal. If the proposal holds, there will be millions left over for the Effingham Industrial Development Authority.
• PSC boosts safeguards in Georgia Power’s massive contract with OpenAI: While the full agreement is completely redacted, the Georgia Public Service Commission staff was able to get some changes in the power contract, including a promised release of a synopsis of the contract itself. The Current‘s Mary Landers breaks it down.
• Effingham agency pays tens of thousands to plug OpenAI project: Complaints about lack of communications and transparency are the common thread in the data center story. Maggie Lee pulled the contracts for the professional communications firms representing the EIDA and the project.
What’s next? A special called EIDA meeting at 4 p.m. Monday at 100 Enterprise Dr., Suite 200, Rincon, to consider funds, amendments to the Memorandum of Understanding with OpenAI, and taxes, according to the agenda.
NEWS: POLITICS
Jackson brings campaign to coast
On Saturday, GOP governor candidate Rick Jackson drew Republican Party elected officials and faithful to Savannah as he worked to frame the road to November. In a 20-minute speech, he took on concerns about top issues including affordability and access to health care. The Current‘s Craig Nelson reports on the messaging and the candidate’s effort to distance himself from politics as usual.
Protected species list
The Gray Bat is off, the Whooping Crane is on and the Ivory-Billed Woodpecker is liable to be extinct anyway: Those are some of the dozens of changes proposed to Georgia’s protected species list, the first review in 20 years of plants and animals protected by state law.
Read the Georgia Department of Natural Resources’ background and documents, review proposed additions and deletions (scroll to page 26, additions are underlined) or skip straight to coverage from our partners at Georgia Recorder.
NEWS: UPDATES
From the week
• Meta settlement would require new teen safeguards and could deliver up to $135 million to Georgia: The state attorney general says the state will get millions, but none of Georgia’s money will go to mitigate the harm the courts found. From Capitol Beat.
• Former Georgia Southern employee awarded $250,000 in wrongful termination suit: The case illustrates the tensions at state institutions between advocates of diversity and changing state laws regarding Civil Rights. From The Current‘s Jabari Gibbs.
• Georgia cattlemen push back on Trump’s plan to import beef in bid to lower prices: This week’s move to cut beef prices met a wall of disapproval as the state’s agriculture commissioner and cattle farmers pushed back. From Georgia Recorder.
• Georgia’s 2021 political maps face new scrutiny after appeals court decision: The ruling doesn’t invalidate the current maps, but it does ask the court to reconsider the reasons why they were created and apply the most recent Supreme Court decision. Georgia Recorder breaks it down.
• With drug prices rising, Georgia lawmakers examine role of industry players: A state House study committee is looking at what happens when pharmaceutical supply chains are controlled by one entity. From Georgia Recorder.
DATA: HEALTH INFO
☕ Your second cup: Online health info
It’s hard to find anyone these days who doesn’t check social media and artificial intelligence for some sort of health info — it can be a treatment recommendation or questions or a malady. Pew Research Center has found that only about half of those who have a health-related question say they trust the info they get; others rely on it. As AI continues to permeate our online world, it’s a good time to consider how we use it and how much we trust it. How do we know? Read the analysis and data here.
It’s about character, Rick Jackson says
By Craig Nelson
Republican gubernatorial candidate Rick Jackson held a rally in Savannah on Saturday to criticize his opponent Keisha Lance Bottoms’ character while campaigning on platforms of affordability and healthcare reform.
OpenAI data center sparks intense debate at Effingham County meeting
By Mary Landers
Effingham County commissioners met with concerned residents on Saturday to discuss the proposed $20 billion OpenAI data center project, promising to further investigate issues such as noise pollution, radiation, and fire safety.
Warnock calls for data center moratorium in Georgia
By Craig Nelson
Senator Raphael Warnock called for a moratorium on data center construction in Georgia on Friday, citing the lack of transparency regarding a proposed $20 billion facility in Effingham County.
Effingham promises homeowner tax breaks from part of OpenAI windfall, but there’s millions left
By Maggie Lee
Local agencies promise property tax breaks, but no word on what would be left in the bank.
Former Georgia Southern employee awarded $250,000 in wrongful termination suit
By Jabari Gibbs
The University of Georgia Board of Regents and Georgia Southern University reached a $250,000 settlement this week to resolve a wrongful termination lawsuit filed by former director Gemma Skuraton, who alleged she was fired for advocating for gender-affirming care funding.
Georgia cattlemen push back on Trump’s plan to import beef in bid to lower prices
By Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder
President Donald Trump’s plan to import 300,000 tons of lean beef trimmings has sparked opposition from Georgia cattle producers and become a central issue in the state’s gubernatorial race between Keisha Lance Bottoms and Rick Jackson.
PSC boosts safeguards in Georgia Power’s massive contract with OpenAI
By Mary Landers
The Georgia Public Service Commission approved a contract between Georgia Power and OpenAI for a 3.2 gigawatt data center in Effingham County, which includes protections to prevent residential and small-business ratepayers from bearing the project’s financial risks.
Georgia revises protected species list, adding 100+ for first time in 20 years
By Ross Williams/Georgia Recorder
Georgia is set to expand its list of protected plants and animals by more than 100 species during its first major update in two decades, following a review by the Board of Natural Resources.
With drug prices rising, Georgia lawmakers examine role of industry players
By Ariel Hart/Georgia Recorder
A Georgia House study committee met in Macon to examine the impact of pharmacy benefit managers on independent pharmacies and discuss the contentious 340B hospital drug discount program.
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