Gov. Sonny Perdue (R) has signed into law a bill that was sparked by a student whose family says he committed suicide after being taunted by classmates.

The bill strengthens Georgia’s anti-bullying laws, requiring parental notification for students involved in a bullying incident and directing the state’s department of education to develop a model anti-bullying policy for local school systems.

Perdue says the law will help local systems address student intimidation and let parents know when their child is being bullied. The family of Jaheem Herrara, an 11-year-old DeKalb County student whose family said he killed himself last year after he was mercilessly teased, was also on hand for the bill signing.

Perdue also signed legislation amending Georgia’s zero-tolerance policy on weapons in schools.The measure gives principals and school systems more discretion in handling disciplinary cases. It was sponsored by Sen. Emanuel Jones, D-Decatur.

Jones says he drafted the bill after hearing the story of Eli Mohone, who was arrested and kicked out of school after turning himself in for accidentally bringing a fishing knife to school.

GEORGIA JOBLESS CLAIMS DIP

The Georgia Department of Labor says the preliminary unadjusted unemployment rate in metro Atlanta declined to 9.8 percent in April.

The rate reported Thursday declined from 10.4 percent in March. The number of unemployed workers in the area decreased to 261,748, down 14,975 from 276,723 in March.

Also in April, 29,361 laid-off workers in metro Atlanta filed initial claims for unemployment insurance benefits, a decrease of 4,938, or 14.4 percent, from 34,299 filed in April 2009.

Metro Atlanta’s job market improved for the third consecutive month. The number of payroll jobs increased 18,100, or eight-tenths of a percentage point, from 2,246,700 in March to 2,264,800.

ISAKSON, CHAMBLISS CALL FOR 6,000 MORE BORDER TROOPS

Georgia’s two Republican senators are co-sponsoring legislation to fund 6,000 National Guard troops on the Southwest border -- five times the number President Obama is planning to send.

Sen. Johnny Isakson and Saxby Chambliss are sponsoring the amendment to a supplemental spending bill. In a statement, they say Congress should demonstrate a strong commitment to border security and that the 1,200 troops Obama plans to send to the border are not nearly enough to combat illegal immigration, drug trafficking and escalating violence on the U.S.-Mexico border.

ISAKSON NON-COMMITAL ON SUPREME COURT NOMINEE

Sen. Johnny Isakson has met with U.S. Supreme Court nominee Elena Kagan and says her responses to his questions were thoughtful, but he’s not ready to decide whether he will vote to confirm her appointment.

Isakson reportedly met with Kagan on Tuesday. The Georgia incumbent, running for a second term this fall, says he was pleased with her answers to questions about Georgia’s water dispute with Florida and Alabama. He says she told him that human uses of the water in the states must be considered.

Isakson says that before he makes up his mind he wants to watch her testimony before the Senate Judiciary Committee and try to understand her better.

He says he’s concerned about Kagan’s lack of judicial experience.