Ken Stanford

Lake Lanier continues to benefit from last week's rains.

Hall County commissioners are tweaking the regulations that govern "well water" permits in the county, and also have approved a plan to regulate tattoo businesses.

The Seventh annual Bruce Burch & Friends benefit concert honoring the late Gainesville songwriter John Jarrard recently announced the disbursement of funds to area charities.

Under mounting pressure to act, the Bush administration said Friday it was ready to step in and prevent the U.S. auto industry from collapsing after the Senate refused to pass a rescue bill endorsed by the White House and congressional Democrats. The most obvious source of help was the Wall Street bailout fund.

The City of Jefferson is cracking down on false alarms.

Not surprisingly, the level of Lake Lanier, reaping the benefits of heavy rains across its basin this week, is on the rise.

Stock prices are lower in early trading. The Dow Jones Industrial Average is down 145 points in today's early going.

Consumers cut back on spending at retail stores for a record fifth straight month in November amid a recession that is already the longest in a quarter-century.

Their efforts in Congress squashed, U.S. automakers are depending upon a reluctant White House to quickly provide a multibillion lifeline to help them avoid imminent collapse.

The Georgia Department of Labor says first-time claims for unemployment insurance benefits in November rose to 74,480, a 54.7 percent increase over November 2007. Nationwide, they are at their highest level in 26 years.