Sen. Ed Tarver (D-Augusta) says he plans to introduce a measure in the upcoming legislative session to delay expansion of the Medical College of Georgia to Athens. Tarver says the expansion is costly in these tough economic times, especially as state universities are looking at budget cuts that could reach 10 percent. He also does not want to see job losses at MCG's main campus in Augusta, and says residency programs there are vital. Tarver, who used to represent MCG as a special state attorney general before he became a senator and whose wife is employed at the school, opposed the expansion efforts, a project strongly supported by Governor Sonny Perdue.
