Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp took some time out from his economic development trip to South America to announce that Walmart is planning its next high-tech, “next-generation” fulfillment center in Carnesville in Franklin County. At this point, “high tech” and “next-gen” may conjure up in the mind a small army of automated robots picking and putting packages all over a warehouse before they are loaded on to a truck somewhere but even today, this fulfillment center will create somewhere around 1,000 jobs and represents a $1.3 billion investment in Franklin County. 

Under a landmark $17.1 billion multistate settlement with Meta Platforms, Inc., Georgia will receive close to $100 million and could receive almost $135 million. Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr said this is the largest state consumer protection settlement in history outside the Big Tobacco settlements of the 1990s.

With reports indicating that one in eight Georgians struggle to put enough nutritious food on the table while nearly 40 percent of food is wasted, farmers across the state have teamed with several regional food banks to recover surplus produce and help end hunger through the Farm to Food Bank Program

Chile and Peru are “important trading partners” for Georgia, and Gov. Brian Kemp wants to keep those partnerships strong. Kemp announced Monday that he and First Lady Marty Kemp are leading an international economic development mission to the South American nations.

A familiar face is returning to the Georgia Public Service Commission – at least for a short time. Gov. Brian Kemp announced late last week that he is appointing Stan Wise to the District 5 seat to fill out the unexpired term of Commissioner Tricia Pridemore. Wise previously served on the Commission for 24 years, from 1995 to 2018, and chaired the regulatory body multiple times.