Firefighters and other first responders in Georgia are poised to get $1,000 bonuses, Republican leaders in the state announced Monday. The bonuses will be paid for by COVID-19 relief funding that was allocated by Congress in March. Law enforcement officers, firefighters, emergency medical technicians, and correctional officers are among those eligible for the bonuses, which first responders will need to apply for. “Others may talk of defunding your departments, slashing your budgets, or vilifying your profession—not here in Georgia,” Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, told a press conference in Atlanta. “We are going to refund, or fund, our public safety officials, and let them know that the people of this state and its leaders value them as well as their families,” he added. Andy Hester, the president of the Georgia Sheriff’s Association and the sheriff in Turner County, said the bonuses will “make a big difference” to the lives of …