Georgia's e-government jumps ahead

Georgia’s e-government ranks second in the nation. Two years ago, Georgia ranked 38th in the Brookings Institution’s 2008 report on State and Federal Electronic Government. The study evaluated an average of 30 agency web sites for each state. It compared features such as online services, publications and databases; multimedia offerings; foreign-language translation and disability access; privacy and security factors; and contact information.

Augusta has high percentage of working class poor

There's new information that Augusta has one of the highest percentages of working class poor in the country.

A study by the Brookings Institution ranks Augusta with the second-highest number of working class poor in the U.S.

The study measures the number of people who got the earned income tax credit in 2005.

The credits are for low-income workers.

Nearly 56,000 people in metropolitan Augusta got the tax credits then, with about 16,000 clustered in high poverty neighborhoods.

Researchers say that puts the rate of concentrated working class poor at about 29 percent.

They also say such concentrations can often potentially lead to crime, poor housing and schools that perform below standards.

Only Fresno, California, tops Augusta in the rankings.

Augusta beats out cities such as Detroit and Miami.

The study includes 58 metropolitan areas.

Survey ranks walking in Atlanta

Atlanta is the 14th most walkable urban places according to a new Brookings Institution survey. The rankings are based on walkability relative to the area’s population. Washington, D.C. tops the list with Boston and San Francisco rounding out the top three.