April 2019 Features

• Atlanta Jazz Festival Presents 31 Days of Jazz Starting on May 1st

  April 30, 2019

  The Atlanta Jazz Festival will host 31 Days of Jazz events starting on May 1st, leading up to the free 42nd Atlanta Jazz Festival in Piedmont Park on Memorial Day weekend, Saturday, May 25th and Sunday, May 26th. The 31 Days of Jazz are exciting events held at various locations across metro Atlanta, including MARTA stations, restaurants, local neighborhood parks and more that encourage people to experience this diverse musical genre.

• Hancock Askew & CO: Sales Tax Impact of South Dakota vs. Wayfair

  April 30, 2019

  On June 21, 2018, the US Supreme Court issued a decision that will drastically increase the power of States to force retailers to collect sales tax. In South Dakota v. Wayfair, the Supreme Court upheld a South Dakota statute allowing it to force retailers who had no employees, inventory, or assets in the State to collect South Dakota sales tax.

• 23 Metro Atlanta Entrepreneurs Named Finalists for EY Entrepreneur of the Year 2019 Award in the Southeast

  April 29, 2019

  EY announced the finalists for the Entrepreneur Of The Year 2019 Award in the Southeast. Widely considered one of the most prestigious business awards programs in the U.S., the program recognizes entrepreneurs and leaders of high-growth companies who are excelling in areas such as innovation, financial performance and personal commitment to their businesses and communities, while also transforming our world.

• Fundraising Releases Show Some Trends

  April 29, 2019

  We are still about a year away from primary voting season but, it being a presidential year, fundraising is well underway. That is going to be a difficult task for some candidates this time around. With about 80 or so Democratic candidates for president announced so far, okay maybe that number is more like 15 but it is still a lot, a lot of money is going to be directed toward the race for the White House.

• Georgia Power Receives Louis C. Brown MD Vanguard Award from the Morehouse School of Medicine

  April 26, 2019

  Georgia Power was honored Thursday night with the 2019 Louis C. Brown MD Vanguard Award for its leadership in improving health and wellbeing in Georgia by the Morehouse School of Medicine (MSM).

• Mayor Bottoms Announces $60M of New Funding for Affordable Housing

  April 26, 2019

  Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms, in partnership with Atlanta Housing and Invest Atlanta, announced $60 million in new spending for affordable housing projects. The new funds were approved by Atlanta Housing Board of Commissioners on Wednesday evening. The funds are projected to create and preserve more than 2,000 new affordable housing units in the city of Atlanta.

• New Law will Ensure Fairness, Strengthen Competition in Government Purchasing

  April 26, 2019

  State Rep. Mark Newton (R-Augusta) said he was looking for “transparency and clarity” when he introduced House Bill 315. The bill, which requires consultants to disclose any potential conflicts of interest when hired by city or county governments to develop bid specifications, sailed through the House and Senate this session. And last week, Governor Brian Kemp signed the legislation into law.

• Corporate Generosity - Just a Nice Thing to Do and Only for Fortune 500 Shops? Think Again.

  April 25, 2019

  Over 100 Georgia influencers, representing businesses small and large, gathered April 23rd to hear C-suite insights into the exponential benefits of giving back. The take-away? It’s not only the right thing to do. It makes great business sense - especially here in Georgia. So, however you can, just do it.

• Governor Brian Kemp Joins Global Fintech Leaders for FinTech South

  April 25, 2019

  The Technology Association of Georgia (TAG) hosted more than 1,400 fintech leaders for the return of the landmark FinTech South conference April 22-23 at Mercedes-Benz Stadium in downtown Atlanta.

• EY wavespace Opens in Atlanta with Immersive Innovation Experience to Help Companies Drive Digital Business Transformation

  April 24, 2019

  Ernst & Young LLP (EY) launches its new EY wavespace center in Atlanta, expanding its global network of innovation centers that provide companies access to an immersive experience, including design-based thinking, technology intelligence and deep business expertise across disciplines and sectors to achieve breakthroughs in business transformation.

• Community Foundation's GoATL Fund Invests in Boosting Local Schools

  April 24, 2019

  The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta’s impact investment fund, the GoATL Fund (GoATL), recently closed a new $1 million investment for the Low Income Investment Fund(LIIF) to launch a new program to finance high-potential, early-stage charter schools in metro Atlanta’s lower income communities.

• Georgia Sets Job Records in March

  April 19, 2019

  State Labor Commissioner Mark Butler said that Georgia set another record in March for total jobs in the state.

• Dematic to Establish Global Headquarters in Fulton County

  April 18, 2019

  Governor Brian P. Kemp announced that Dematic, a world leader in supply chain technology and innovation, will create more than 230 jobs and invest approximately $30 million in a new global headquarters in the CODA complex in Midtown Atlanta’s Tech Square.

• SunTrust Foundation Awards $556,000 Grant to Autism Speaks

  April 17, 2019

  The SunTrust Foundation announced a two-year grant of $556,000 to Autism Speaks, expanding upon its partnership to promote financial well-being among families impacted by autism and other disabilities.

• Georgia Power Lights up the Atlanta Skyline to Celebrate Linemen

  April 17, 2019

  The Atlanta skyline will look a little different during the month of April as Georgia Power shows appreciation for thousands of lineworkers throughout the state.

• Gwinnett Chamber Announces New President & CEO

  April 15, 2019

  The Gwinnett Chamber, one of the largest suburban Chambers of Commerce in the nation, recently announced its selection for its new President & CEO, effective July 1.

• City of Atlanta Launches Task Force to Increase Transparency

  April 12, 2019

  Atlanta Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms’ first year started out smoothly. She stayed away from the investigations swirling around her predecessor (and endorser) Kasim Reed’s administration, she hand picked her own well-regarded GM for Hartsfield-Jackson International airport, instituted a procurement reform process, and even created a new position in her cabinet titled a “transparency officer” that has the power to investigate Bottoms herself.

• Corporate Generosity Research Shows Georgia Businesses are Seen - And Rewarded - As More Generous Than Other States

  April 12, 2019

  New research into corporate generosity shows Georgia businesses are seen by working adults in the state as doing well – 10 percentage points better than other states. But the stakes are consistently higher here, too. In every age group, on every metric, Georgia adults are more likely to factor generosity into employment and purchasing preferences than the U.S. average for their age group.

• Senators Decry Lack of Action on Disaster Aid for Suffering States

  April 12, 2019

  U.S. Senators Johnny Isakson, R-Ga., and David Perdue, R-Ga., joined Senate colleagues, including Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., in expressing disappointment in Congress’ failure to deliver critical disaster aid to their states to assist in recovery efforts from natural disasters in 2018 and 2019. It has been six months since Georgia and Florida took a direct hit from Hurricane Michael.

• OS National to Expand Headquarters Operations, Create More Than 1,000 Jobs in Gwinnett County

  April 10, 2019

  The Georgia Department of Economic Development announced that OS National LLC (OSN), a nationally recognized title and escrow provider, will create more than 1,000 jobs and invest more than $15 million in their headquarters in Gwinnett County.

• Georgia Chamber Hosted a Successful Georgia Inventure Prize

  April 09, 2019

  The Georgia Chamber of Commerce hosted a successful first annual Georgia InVenture Prize. Joined in partnership with the Technical College System of Georgia, Georgia Department of Education, University System of Georgia and Georgia Public Broadcasting, the Georgia Chamber was able to host the two-day competition, and is looking forward to watching the next generation of innovators and entrepreneurs expand their skills.

• Leadership Georgia Announces 2019 Award Recipients

  April 08, 2019

  The Leadership Georgia Board of Trustees today announced the recipients of the organization’s most prestigious awards, presented to Georgians who exemplify the principles of Leadership Georgia and whose impact through leadership and stewardship has helped shaped communities and the state.

• Atlanta Jazz Festival Releases Complete Lineup of 2019 Artists

  April 05, 2019

  Mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms revealed the artist lineup for the 42nd annual Atlanta Jazz Festival in a video announcement. The lineup includes a variety of jazz sounds and stylings that will delight more than 150,000 attendees on three newly-named stages: The Meadow Stage, Oak Hill Stage and Park Drive Stage.

• CEO Confidence Increased Slightly in Q1

  April 05, 2019

  The Conference Board Measure of CEO Confidence, which had decreased sharply in the fourth quarter of 2018, increased slightly in the first quarter of 2019. The Measure now reads 43, up from 42 in the fourth quarter of 2018.

• Southern Company Gas Leaders Build Bikes for Metro Atlanta Youth

  April 04, 2019

  Nearly 50 executives of Southern Company Gas — the leading natural gas company in the industry, headquartered in Atlanta — spent time during their annual executive leadership meeting to focus on building bikes instead of business.