Scandals and a Shake-Up In a Georgia Department.

Gena L. Abraham, Georgia's state transportation commissioner, started her day on Tuesday by making a routine announcement via news release: $75 million would be spent to resurface roads and build bridges around a medical center in Augusta. It is likely that Ms. Abraham, 39, the first woman to run what is one of the most powerful government agencies in the state, has never been so eager to build bridges. [ABSTRACT FROM PUBLISHER]