Kemp to begin second Georgia term with new pay raise pledge

ATLANTA (AP) — Georgia’s Brian Kemp is scheduled to be sworn in for a second time period as governor Thursday, promising across-the-board pay raises for state workers and public college lecturers whereas questions linger about his long-term legacy whilst he rides excessive politically.

The Republican plans to make use of his inaugural handle to suggest additional pay raises, in line with draft remarks considered by The Related Press, though the precise quantity gained’t be unveiled till he speaks Thursday.

The 59-year-old Kemp begins his second time period atop Georgia’s political world. He rode his stewardship of the financial system to a giant win over Democrat Stacey Abrams, although Abrams once more outspent Kemp.

With a brand new Home speaker and lieutenant governor, Kemp is unlikely to be challenged by the GOP-led Legislature.

The incumbent retains ticking off financial improvement bulletins, together with $2.5 billion for 2 photo voltaic panel crops introduced Wednesday by Hanwha Answer’s Qcells unit in what the corporate mentioned was the biggest photo voltaic funding ever within the U.S.

Kemp delivered $5,000 pay raises to lecturers and state workers in his first time period. He promised lecturers $5,000 when he ran in 2018, delivering in two steps, whereas state workers bought your entire $5,000 as Kemp ran for reelection final 12 months, after state revenues have been supercharged by federal spending and the financial restoration from the COVID-19 pandemic. His inaugural pledge will reprise that theme.

Kemp additionally seeks to satisfy marketing campaign guarantees to ship one other $1 billion of revenue tax refunds and a $1 billion property tax rebate. He plans to make use of Georgia’s $6.6 billion in surplus money to pay for these givebacks, in addition to refill the state’s roadbuilding coffers after suspending gasoline tax collections for 10 months.

“They despatched it to us, so as a substitute of spending it on new authorities applications, and larger authorities, we’re going to place that cash again of their pocket to assist them combat by 40-year-high inflation,” Kemp advised the Georgia Chamber of Commerce on Wednesday.

Kemp’s towering political successes have given him a nationwide political profile, thriving as a Republican regardless of Donald Trump’s emnity. Kemp even basked in a presidential boomlet within the weeks after he stomped Abrams.

After taking his oath, he’s headed to the World Financial Discussion board in Davos, Switzerland, the place his workers says he’ll discuss how his conservative governance has promoted financial success.

However Kemp has but to clinch the height achievements defining probably the most profitable Georgia governors in current historical past. Democrat Joe Frank Harris carried out the state’s present training funding system and backed Atlanta’s 1996 Olympics bid. Democrat Zell Miller created HOPE faculty scholarships and prekindergarten funded by the state lottery. Republican Nathan Deal reformed Georgia’s felony justice system and backed a tax enhance for street building.

“I feel his final 4 years would be the figuring out issue, as a result of he’s nonetheless serving. I’m undecided but,” Democratic state Rep. Al Williams of Halfway mentioned of Kemp’s legacy.

Brian Robinson, a Republican political marketing consultant who was Deal’s communications chief, mentioned the governor’s “political shackles are off,” notably if Kemp doesn’t plan to run for workplace once more.

“He has the flexibility for a time frame to enact a imaginative and prescient, to do one thing that may be a legacy undertaking. He can assume massive, he can assume daring, and ship on change,” Robinson mentioned, including that the window in all probability runs by the top of the 2024 legislative session, earlier than lame duck standing will minimize into Kemp’s affect.

Kemp to this point hasn’t rolled out any monumental second-term plans. However generally a legacy finds a governor. Robinson mentioned it wasn’t in any respect sure in late 2014 that Deal would get behind a plan to boost gasoline taxes.

“I’m sitting there on the senior workers lunch going. ‘I don’t know what our agenda is, however there’s this transportation invoice that’s effervescent up, and we will both lead the cost or we will stand within the again and never have a say on this,’” Robinson mentioned. “And finally he led the cost.”