The Walker County Animal Shelter will be closed to intake for the next two weeks due to a potential parvo exposure. The situation stems from a small litter of puppies that was dumped in the Cove and brought to the shelter on April 26. The puppies were vaccinated during intake and went to the vet on May 6 to be neutered and showed no signs of illness. On May 7, one of the puppies was adopted and his new owner reported a positive test result to the shelter yesterday. Shelter staff is following protocol to limit cross contamination and has notified the Georgia Department of Agriculture. Due to the incubation period and shedding process of the virus, the shelter will be in quarantine for the next 14 days. The shelter can still handle emergency cases, such as a dog bite, during this period. All adult dogs are still available for adoption. The animal shelter will not allow any puppies to be adopted so they can be monitored in case of exposure. Puppies are the most susceptible when it comes to contracting the parvo virus.
The Georgia Department of Agriculture will now oversee the regulation of hemp products in the state. Governor Brian Kemp signed new legislation that requires hemp products to be tested for ingredient accuracy. It also restricts anyone under 21 from buying hemp products, and adds marketing requirements to prevent the products from being advertised to children. The law will officially go into effect on October first of this year.
Georgia tax officials collected more than $3.9 billion in April, a decrease of 5.4% from last year. So far this fiscal year, net tax revenue of more than $27.4 billion is down about 1.2% from last year. While fiscal 2024 collections have decreased from previous years, they remain higher than they were at the same time in 2019, 2020 and 2021 according to unaudited numbers released at the time. The state is poised to rely less on income tax collections moving forward, as last month, Gov. Brian Kemp signed House Bill 1015 to speed up a decrease in the state’s personal income tax rate. Moving forward, Georgia officials could further lower the rate, and Lt. Governor Burt Jones has said he wants to eliminate the income tax.
Blood Assurance is having a blood drive for Walker County Government. The event is set for May 24th from 10am to 2pm. The blood drive is set for 106 East Withers Street in LaFayette.