DeKalb County’s
commissioners are sending state lawmakers a wish list of items they’d like to
see approved in the 2016 legislative session, from reviewing the county’s form of
government to requiring more thorough vetting of cityhood
proposals.
Some state legislators from DeKalb
have been discussing the possibility of
eliminating the county’s unique CEO position, but the DeKalb Board of
Commissioners requested a more deliberate approach.
The board voted Dec.
15 to endorse forming a charter review commission that would eventually
recommend the appropriate government structure for the county, determine how to
fill temporary vacancies on the commission and clarify the division of power
between the CEO and commission. The charter review commission would be made up
of 15 non-elected citizens and have a $150,000 budget funded by the county.
As for the creation of new cities, the DeKalb Commission wants the Georgia
Legislature to enact stricter requirements before areas can incorporate.
Commissioners approved
a resolution requesting that the state pass a law standardizing the cityhood
process and mandating evaluations of how new incorporations would affect the
county as a whole. In addition, the commission asked that all residents of a
county be allowed to vote on a new city rather than only those who live within
a city’s proposed boundaries.
Other initiatives that
the DeKalb Commission asked the Georgia Legislature to review include:
Requiring residents of
newly created cities to continue contributing to the
county’s pension debts, a
proposal included in House Bill 711.
Providing funding for
attorneys to prosecute and defend juvenile cases.
Allowing citations for
code violations to be tacked on a property’s door, which would eliminate the
current requirement for personal service in some cases.
When the Georgia
Legislature begins its 2016 session Jan. 11, DeKalb’s 23 state lawmakers will
be responsible for guiding local measures through the process.
Comments
I support the Charter Commission route, but all 15
appointed members need to represent the voters of DeKalb and not the special
interests on the government or crony side.
The State needs to continue to make counties pay for their
own stuff like pensions. The private sector abandoned defined benefit pension
plans decades ago, because there were better alternatives with defined
contribution plans. The government needs to do the same.
Everyone receiving a pension would continue receiving
it. Those who have not yet retired would
be notified of their vested amounts and given the option to take the cash or
roll it over into a 401k type plan or IRA.
An “Age Weighted” Plan can be created to accept the county contributions
to supplement the 401k type plan for near-term retirees.
Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader
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