Former Augusta Commissioner Reports To Federal Prison

According to the Federal Bureau of Prisons website, former Augusta commissioner, Sammie Sias, has officially turned himself in.

Despite requesting to serve his time in Estill, South Carolina, Sias is booked at FCI Williamsburg in Salters, SC. It's described as a "medium security federal correctional institution with an adjacent minimum security satellite camp."

Back in June, we learned that Sammie Sias was convicted with 2 counts of destroying, altering, or falsifying records in a federal investigation.  He was sentenced to 3 years in federal prison. He had been given 62 days to turn himself in.  Yesterday, August 21, marked the end of that time period.

The judge who sentenced Sias also ordered him to pay a $5,000 fine and will be under 3 years of supervised release after his prison term.

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There's no doubt that the cost of living has been on the rise for many years. And when it comes down to deciding where to live, the cost of living can be a huge aspect to consider. If housing, food, transportation, health care, and entertainment are more expensive, people need to ensure they are earning enough to maintain the standard of living they expect. But, good news, it looks like Georgia and South Carolina are on the least expensive states to live in list!

Stacker used data from the Council for Community and Economic Research to look at which states had the lowest cost of living in 2022.

The cost of living was determined using a voluntary survey to look at the average in metro areas and cities in each state. The Cost of Living Index is calculated based on cost of more than 60 goods and services.

As a result of the voluntary survey, it  looks like the least expensive states are in the South and Midwest.

Out of the 25 least expensive states to live in, South Carolina ranked a bit worse than Georgia. South Carolina ranked at number 20. According to Stacker, the average home price last year was $239,500.  That's about half of the national average.

Additionally, South Carolina collects fewer tax dollars per resident than all but 7 states.

Georgia definitely ranked much better on the list of the least expensive states to live in! You'll see where Georgia landed in the list below!

Household expenses are slightly lower in Tennessee, with no personal income tax. They also have a low unemployment rate too. Additionally, the average effective property tax rate last year was 0.56%.

Other than Mississippi, West Virginia has the lowest housing costs in the U.S. Unfortunately, West Virginia also has lower income, and 16.8% of the population lives in poverty.

Indiana doesn't have a very competitive housing market, and housing costs 22% lower than the national average. The state does rely on coal versus clean energy, so utility costs are about 4% higher than the national average.

Residents in Iowa pay 28% less in housing than the national average. The median home value is only $160,700.

Missouri has low unemployment rates, a lot of career opportunities, and housing costs 20% less than the national average.  Transportation costs are also lower-- around 7% lower than the national average.

Georgia comes in at number 5 of the least expensive states to live in.  Housing costs are a big part of that, being about 24% lower than the national average. Last year, the median home value was $206,700. Additionally, gas prices are lower than the national average too.

The National Association of Realtors named Atlanta as the top housing market to watch in 2023 as well!

When it comes to gas prices, Alabama has some of the lowest in the national.  This is due in  part to the proximity to the oil refineries.  Housing prices are also 30% lowers than the national average, but the education system ranks as one of the worst in the country.

In Kansas, housing costs are almost 30% lower than the national average.  They also have some of the lowest food costs nationwide.

Utility costs in Oklahoma are 9% less than the national average.  It's one of the nation's top natural gas and crude oil producers as well-- which means gas prices are some of the lowest in the country here too. Housing prices are also 30% lower than the national average.

While Mississippi has the lowest cost of living in the nation, almost 20% of the state lives in poverty.  The housing costs are 32% lower than the national average.  They also rank as one of the worst states for public education and many people under 65 years old have no health insurance.