Media request sent to Technical College System of Georgia - OCGA 50-36-1 - Employers in Apprenticeship program - Updated with response

The below media request was sent to TCSG on Oct. 6, about 4:46 PM.

Related reading: Despite state laws, illegal aliens run businesses in Georgia and they hire illegal aliens

To whom it concerns at TCSG,

I write to ask for comment on the TCSG policy on the requirement for verification of “lawful presence” contained in (2024) SB 497 (lines 197-201) as it applies to the employers who participate in the apprenticeship program and collect significant cash awards from the Georgia budget. I plan to write educational opinion columns on the premise that TCSG apparently does not have in place a system to ensure that employers who are in the U.S. illegally are excluded from benefits in the apprenticeship program – and that participating employers are not required to undergo the verification measures in OCGA 50-36-1. If true, that policy seems to be in contradiction of state law and could invite court action.

Greg Dozier, Commissioner of the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG).

I will cite the information and details contained in the recent TCSG response to my open records request, the letter of inquiry sent to the Georgia Dept. of Law by a concerned state legislator and the response from the AG office. I plan to also cite the quote on legislative intent I received from House Higher Education Committee Chairman Rep. Chuck Martin, the sponsor of the amendment to SB 497 that created the new language on “apprenticeships.” I include part of that input below:

“Question to Chairman Martin: Was it your intent to omit the employer from a verification process or do you hold the position that the addition on line 201 of SB 497 will somehow include the verification of lawful presence for the employer who sends an employee to be trained, please? If it is the latter, it will help my readers (including many state legislators) if you could offer an explanation of that position.

Rep Chuck Martin – Chairman, GA House Higher education Committee.

Chairman Martin: “No, in fact, I believe the language covers the employer as well. Additionally, ‘Apprenticeship sponsor’ is defined in the bill (lines 116 – 120), so the additional language added to 50-36-1 is a bit of “belt and suspenders” for state verification.”

I am also looking for an answer to the question on whether ~~for~~ H1B workers are still being included as apprentices. I was informed by TCSG staff last year that H1B workers are in fact included in taxpayer-funded “upskilling” in the apprenticeship program. I look forward to including any further input from TCSG on the reasoning for the reported current policy and system. That revelation has created some expert attention.

My columns appear in the AJC, on James Magazine Online, The Federalist, Breitbart News, in various Georgia newspapers as well as my own widely-read blogs. I also have a weekly radio segment on the popular “Straight Talk” show hosted by Scott Ryfun heard in Coastal Georgia on two stations and well as online at iHeart radio.

In the interest of fairness, balance and accuracy, I look forward to any input from TCSG. My deadline is Wednesday, October 9, 2024 – noon.

Thank you.

D.A. King

404-

The Dustin Inman Society

ImmigrationPoliticsGA.com

Georgians for Immigration Enforcement

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Response from TCSG received Oct. 8, 2024.

From: WIOACompliance <WIOACompliance@tcsg.edu>
Sent: Tuesday, October 8, 2024 11:43 AM
To: dking 888<dking***>
Cc: WIOACompliance <WIOACompliance@tcsg.edu>
Subject: Re: Media Request — Apprenticeship Program

Dear Mr. King,

Since the passage of SB 497, the Technical College System of Georgia (TCSG) has been diligently working to establish procedures that ensure both compliance and effective administration of the High Demand Apprenticeship Program. As part of these efforts, we are developing a program-specific affidavit for employers participating in the program, which will verify that all participating employers are lawfully present in the United States, in order to put to rest any concern regarding compliance with O.C.G.A. 50-36-1. We anticipate finalizing and adopting this affidavit within the next month.

After a diligent search of our records, TCSG can confirm that as of this date there have been no H1-B visa holders who have participated in TCSG college-sponsored Registered Apprenticeship Programs (RAPs). It is worth noting that, according to the U.S. Department of Labor, Registered Apprenticeship Programs are widely regarded as a strategic solution to upskill American workers and thereby reduce the dependence of employers upon H1-B and other foreign labor sources.

Best regards,

Office of Workforce Development

Technical College System of Georgia

—>UPDATE: The liberal AJC prints a lengthy correction after demand letter from the Dustin Inman Society. More news on this coming soon.

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Daily Signal News report (‘DEFAMATORY’: Conservative Demands Swing-State Newspaper Retract ‘Hate Group’ Smear’)
on the recent AJC attack here by the great Tyler O’Neil.

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I added educational hyperlinks to the below letter – dak.

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October 18, 2024

VIA U.S. REGULAR MAIL & E-MAIL

Leroy Chapman, Jr., Editor in Chief THE ATLANTA JOURNAL-CONSTITUTION 223 Perimeter Center Pkwy NE Atlanta, Georgia 30346

Re: Demand for Retraction and Apology

Dear Mr. Chapman, Jr.:

I write on behalf of my client, the Dustin Inman Society (DIS), to demand an immediate retraction and apology for the defamatory statements published in your October 7, 2024, article titled “Democrats in this Georgia district are backing a write-in candidate” by Tia Mitchell.

Through use of internet links, the AJC article wrongfully characterizes the Dustin Inman Society as a “Marietta-based anti-immigration hate group.” This characterization is false, defamatory, and published with actual malice. The Dustin Inman Society pushes for secure borders, is not “anti-immigration” and its proprietors do not hate anyone. Rather, DIS advocates for enforcement of U.S. immigration laws and actively opposes unlawful immigration. This distinction is crucial and well-known to staff at your publication.

I paste the offending paragraph from the AJC story:

“A search of activity under her birth name, Karen Sacandy, which Stamper legally changed in 2019, showed that she previously was aligned with a Marietta-based anti-immigration hate group. The group’s website often linked to Sacandy’s activities, like a letter seeking information about the state’s Immigration Enforcement Review Board and a copy of a letter to the editor supporting legislation to prevent immigrants claiming asylum from obtaining driver’s licenses.”

HEMMER WESSELS MCMURTRY PLLC
250 Grandview Drive, Suite 500, Ft. Mitchell, KY 41017 ● Phone 859.344.1188 ● Fax 859.578.3869

October 18, 2024 Page 2

We note the AJC informs readers that the Dustin Inman Society “often” linked to Karen Sacandy/Kate Stamper activities — but produces only two occasions.

Your story, for which DIS founder and president D.A. King was not contacted, informs readers that Sacandy/Stamper “was aligned” with the Dustin Inman Society. We note that polls show that a majority of Americans oppose the federal offense of illegal immigration. Since the letter posted on the DIS site was a published missive to the editor at the Cherokee Tribune, we must ask: does this make that newspaper a “Cherokee County-based anti-immigration hate group”?

Your characterization demonstrates a reckless and vindictive disregard for the truth, rising to the level of actual malice as defined in New York Times Co. v. Sullivan. Actual malice in defamation law refers to publication of a statement with knowledge that it is false or with reckless disregard of whether it is false or not. Your repeated mischaracterization of the Dustin Inman Society, despite having been corrected on numerous occasions, clearly meets this standard.

The Dustin Inman Society’s position on immigration is clear and public:

1. It supports sustainable levels of legal immigration through established channels.

2. It opposes unlawful immigration due to various societal concerns, including: – Strain on public resources and services
– Potential and real public safety issues
– Economic impacts on low-wage American workers and America’s poor

– Challenges to the rule of law

3. The Dustin Inman Society defends legal immigrants when media attempt to blur the difference between them and illegal aliens.

Moreover, the Dustin Inman Society’s board includes lawful immigrants who have navigated the proper channels for authorized immigration. This fact alone should dispel any notion that the organization is “anti-immigration.” As he has informed you multiple times over much of the last two decades, D.A. King’s sister is a real, legal immigrant.

While we acknowledge that the Southern Poverty Law Center has designated the Dustin Inman Society as an “anti-immigrant hate group that denigrates all immigrants,” your article presents the “anti-immigration hate group” characterization as the Atlanta Journal Constitution’s independent assessment and statement of fact.

This smear is not only demonstrably false and ignores Mr. King’s many communications to you advising you of the truth, but also demonstrates an exceedingly unprofessional failure to fact-check and verify information before publication.

We demand that the Atlanta Journal Constitution:

October 18, 2024 Page 3

1. Immediately publicly retract the defaming statement in the October 7, 2024, article.

2. Publish a prominent apology, equal in visibility and placement to the original defamatory article.

3. Cease and desist from further defamatory characterizations of the Dustin Inman Society.

Failure to comply with these demands may result in further legal action. We expect your prompt attention to this matter and await your timely response.

Sincerely,

Todd V. McMurtry

cc: James Abely, Esq.