The Dalton Daily Citizen is reporting that there should be a decision on the merger of Dalton and Whitfield County in the coming weeks:

“We should be able to put (the report) together at our next meeting on the 8th and have a final vote on the meeting after that on the 15th,” said Dalton businessman Phil Neff, subcommittee chairman.

If the commission recommends a full merger of the two governments, it would then draft a charter for the new consolidated government. The legislation that created the merger commission mandates it would be placed on the ballot this November in the general election. A majority of voters in both the city of Dalton and Whitfield County as a whole would have to approve that charter for the merger to take place.

This has been an on-going discussion for about a year that we’ve covered before.  The commission could make a recommendation of a full merger, partial merger, or no merger at all.  The final decision, based on legislation, will be up to the voters of Whitfield County and the city of Dalton.

The first of two hearings on Brookhaven cityhood is Tuesday, January 31. Legislators are hoping to hear from citizens on both sides of the local control issue.

Members of the cityhood advocacy group, Brookhaven Yes, think they will have no trouble convincing their neighbors to vote for more local control.

Group president J. Max Davis II, an attorney and namesake son of a late conservative state representative who touted that he never voted for a tax increase, said many DeKalb residents already feel the county is too bloated.

Those in Brookhaven want to reinforce that idea by voting for cityhood, he said. But the first goal is convincing lawmakers to allow the July 31 referendum.

“Our motto is ‘better services, lower taxes,’ but before we can discuss why we think we can do a better job of spending our money than the county, we have to get the right to vote,” Davis said.

The DeKalb County government, meanwhile, is officially lobbying for any vote to be delayed, so that more time could be spent studying what losing Brookhaven would mean for county coffers.

The revenue hit DeKalb would take is estimated to be a little over that of the Dunwoody defection, which totaled $20 million.

No wonder the county is urging delay.

In the meantime, make yourself heard. The hearing is at 3 p.m. in room 341 of the state Capitol.

A story on S.B. 313 hit Slashdot Tuesday and was sent over via the Tip Line.  The premise of the bill is that municipalities would have to solicit proposals from the private sector before offering Internet access to their citizens.  The argument of local control of tax dollars or whether or not Internet access is a human right in the 21st century (Vint Cerf, the acclaimed father of the Internet, would disagree with that notion) comes into play, but when municipalities have tried times before of offering Internet access and offering it at prices where other companies can’t compete and then subsequently folding, it seems like it might be a good idea to at least make sure that all other options have been tried.

From TheRepublic.com:

Rogers says cities like Tifton, Marietta and Acworth have tried unsuccessfully to be public providers. He says the legislation levels the playing field for public and private broadband providers.

“The private sector is handling this exceptionally well,” Rogers said. “What they don’t need is for a governmental entity to come in and compete with them where these types of services already exist. We’re not outlawing a local government entity from doing this, but if they’re going to compete, they can play by the same rules and ask the voters if it’s okay before they go out and spend all these dollars.”

Georgia Municipal Association spokeswoman Amy Henderson said the organization has some concerns about the bill. She said the issue is one of economic development.

Rogers says cities like Tifton, Marietta and Acworth have tried unsuccessfully to be public providers, only to lose millions of dollars at taxpayer expense.

“When cities were getting involved in broadband, it was because private industry would not come there,” Henderson said. “Without that technology, they were economically disadvantaged. We feel like it is an option cities should have.”

And from GPB:

Rogers says his bill wouldn’t keep towns from offering the service.

“They can go and set up the broadband service but if they recognize it’s going to lose money they need to be very honest with the taxpayers and go to referendum and ask them if this broadband plan, which they think is so important for their community, is worth exactly what they plan to spend on it,” he said at a press conference.

Tifton officials say the city became an Internet Service Provider in 1997 because no private company would offer broadband service then. City Clerk Rona Martin said it established the service to attract businesses and help existing entities such as the local hospital, not to make a profit.

Martin said the service is now defunct but it proved its worth because now private companies offer broadband service in Tifton.

Now, for disclosure purposes, I have EPB Fiber Optic as my ISP.  EPB is a Chattanooga-based utility that services a small segment of North Georgia (I dunno how that occurred or the history behind it, but whatever) and I benefit from a municipality competing with the private sector to provide Internet access.  I will say this, EPB probably spent a lot of time, effort, and money to make sure that the market existed for fiber optics in the Chattanooga-area and seem to be doing well in terms of solvency.  They offer competitive prices that are comparable with competitors like AT&T, Comcast, and the like.  With free market forces, AT&T or another ISP would probably have come into the area and offered fiber optic.  They may still do it.  However, I believe that the premise of the bill is to ensure that municipalities don’t go out and invest big bucks of taxpayer money into a whizz-bang Internet system whether it be fiber, Wi-Max, or some other delivery system just on a whim.

Ultimately, the free market will allow broadband to reach even the more rural areas of the country (eventually Wi-Max and other 4G technologies will emerge and become pervasive).  It would seem to make more since to have a company come in and wire the community if there are either enough customers to support the costs, enough potential in the area for business growth, or a combination of both.  Currently, this bill is in committee in the state senate but has bi-partisan support.

Effective at the beginning of this year, it will cost you to visit and enjoy 32 of Georgia’s wildlife resource areas.  The Department of Natural Resources will be issuing passes, called a Georgia Outdoor Recreational Pass,  for 32 of the 100+ properties managed by the Wildlife Resource Division.  Two areas in Walker County are affected: the popular Crawford-Pigeon Mountain WMA (some folks may have heard of Rock Town) and the lesser known Zahnd WMA.

The price of a single pass for an individual is $3.50 and an annual pass is $19.  There’s a full list, as well as other pricing and pass exemptions, over at the Department of Natural Resources site as well as a map locating all of the properties affected.

Hat Tip: CatWalkChatt (Walker County Messenger)

I saw this one on the Athens Banner-Herald Twitter feed.  Danielsville, located in Madison County, Mayor Philip Croya resigned within the second week of his second term.  Former Mayor Croya had an on-going disagreement with the city’s police Chief Matt Pikington on traffic enforcement:

“There were some things that I was trying to get done.,” he said today. “There were some things going on in our police department that needed paying attention to.”

Croya said he was frustrated that fellow council members did not agree with him.

“They kept saying it was personal, but it wasn’t,” he said. “I was just trying to keep the city from winding up in court.

“I fought and fought and fought since November. I said, ‘I can’t do this anymore.’”

Croya did not attend a city council meeting Monday night, He then dropped off a letter Tuesday afternoon stating only that he was resigning effective Monday, City Attorney Dale Perry said.

The city council will decide on which date to hold a special election to fill the unexpired term which will more than likely coincide with the presidential preference primary on March 6th.  Until then, Councilwoman June Temple is serving as acting mayor.

While laws are being made under the gold dome, it appears laws are being broken elsewhere. It was Juvenal who asked the still-pertinent question, “Who shall guard the guardians themselves?”

We have yet to find a satisfactory answer to that question, but the people of Irwinton and the remainder of Wilkinson County would like to know. Wilkinson County Tax Commissioner Kevin Rauscher has been arrested by the GBI on two charges, according to WMAZ TV’s website. Rauscher was charged with theft by taking and possession of the painkiller hydrocodone.

According to the Wilkinson County website:

As defined by state law, the Tax Commissioner is responsible for the administration of the Homeowner’s Tax Relief Grant

Wilkinson County - Image via Wikipedia

Credit on real property taxes, the billing and collection of current and delinquent ad valorem taxes due the State, Board of Education, and County on real and personal property. Disbursements of collections are made periodically to the proper taxing authority pursuant to the regulations set by Georgia law.

The Tax Commissioner is also responsible for the billing and collection of ad valorem taxes due the State, Board of Education, County, and Municipalities at the time of tag/decal sale. Disbursements of these taxes are also made to the proper taxing authority as prescribed by State law.

Also, pursuant to State law, the Tax Commissioner is responsible for the collection and disbursement of mobile home taxes, public utility taxes, and timber taxes.

The Tax Commissioner also collects and disburses real and personal property taxes for the City of Allentown, Danville, Gordon, Irwinton, Ivey, McIntyre, and  Toomsboro.

Wilkinson County is located east of Macon and Bibb County in Middle Georgia and Northwest of Dublin and Laurens County. According to the 2010 census, the county population is 9,563, a decrease of more than six percent from the population shown in the 2000 census.

This story was recently made available and is still developing. The amount of funds Rauscher allegedly took is still under investigation. Updates will be available on the WMAZ-TV website.

On the heels of the admission that thousands of dollars of water bill payments were missing, the small town of Rhine, Georgia, is reeling from another blow to its reputation. Rhine Police Chief Kip Cravey was arrested today on completely unrelated charges. The Dodge County News has the story:

Cravey was arrested by agents of the Oconee Drug Task Force as the result of an ongoing narcotics investigation by the Dodge County Sheriff’s Department, Eastman Police Department and the Oconee Drug Task Force.

Cravey of Eastman is facing at least two charges and may face additional charges. Cravey has been charged with one count of unlawfully distributing schedule II narcotics after he allegedly furnished more than two dozen “Soma” pills to another person during the investigation.

Cravey is a former candidate for Dodge County Sheriff and served as a deputy sheriff under former Dodge County Sheriff

Dodge County, GA - Image via Wikipedia

Lawton Douglas. Douglas is currently serving time in federal prison for charges related to voter fraud.

Over $7,000 in missing water bill payments appears to be unrelated to the Cravey arrest. According to discussions during the Rhine City Council meetings on December 1st, former Rhine employee June Sheffield had agreed to pay restitution to the town of less than 500 people. Sheffield; however, in a December 14th interview with The Dodge County News editor Chuck Eckles, stated she did not take the money and would clear things up in January. 2012. To date, it appears the city has filed no charges with the authorities.

Rhine is located in Dodge County just north of the Telfair County line. Both complete stories are available on The Dodge County News website.

The Covington News reports that Newton County Commissioner Mort Ewing (R-District 1) will not run for re-election this fall and former State Sen. John Douglas (R-Social Circle) will run to replace him:

“Please allow me this opportunity to advise you that I will not seek re-election as District One Commissioner for the Newton County Board of Commissioners,” Ewing said in a letter he gave to fellow commissioners after Tuesday’s board meeting. He also mailed the letter out to constituents Tuesday.

“On Dec. 31, 2012 I will complete my 12th year as a district commissioner. I have made every effort to be a team player and to make decisions that were in the best interest of Newton County. My personal goal has always been to represent the citizens of Newton County in good faith as an honest public servant.”
[...]
Former state Sen. John Douglas announced that he would be running for the vacated District 1 seat on his Facebook page Wednesday night. Douglas has also previously served on the Newton County Board of Education and said he had been looking to get back into local politics.

“I knew Mort was considering not running, and I saw this as an opportunity to continue to serve Newton County and to build on a lot of the initiatives he has championed,” Douglas said Thursday morning from Tennessee. He was traveling back from Iowa, where he had been working phones for Newt Gingrich’s campaign.

Douglas ran unsuccessfully for the Public Service Commission in 2010. He had previously supported Perry in the presidential race, but switched to Gingrich shortly before his numbers took off.

Actor James Earl Jones, who voiced Darth Shafer Vader in the Star Wars movies, was on hand in Poughkeepsie, New York, to swear in longtime friend Adrian “Butch” Anderson as Sheriff of Dutchess County. This is the beginning of Anderson’s fourth term as Sheriff.

Since legitimate questions have been raised about whether a certain alleged State Representative was sworn in during last year’s “Snowpocalypse,” who should preside over the actual swearing in, if it ever occurs? I was thinking C3PO. And if that alleged State Rep. were to place one hand on the Bible and raise the other hand, who would twittercast it? And if it’s not live on Twitter, it never happened.

Last month the Judicial Nominating Commission started accepting name submissions to fill the vacancy on the DeKalb County Superior Court (formally the Stone Mountain Circuit) caused by Judge Hancock’s resignation. Anyone can submit a name, and apparently, somebody submitted the name of Michael L. Rothenberg, and there is only one person by that name who is a member of the Georgia Bar.

If Rothenberg’s name sounds familiar, it’s because he has a long history with PeachPundit that includes trying to run for an office for which he was not qualified, dropping out of that race, then running again in 2010 and making the runoff before being sued in federal court and by the Securities and Exchange Commission for alleged fraud.

In 2008, Rothenberg ran for Superior Court and Erick questioned his eligibility.

After initially arguing that he was indeed eligible, Rothenberg later ended that campaign. Erick congratulated him on making the right decision and wrote, “I hope in 2010 he will run.”

Rothenberg did indeed run in 2010, and made the runoff against Courtney Johnson, who won the election. Between the general election and the runoff, Rothenberg was accused of running a ponzi scheme in a federal lawsuit seeking the return of $1.35 million “invested” with Rothenberg.

Rothenberg called the lawsuit “nothing more than a political hit job on me.”

He said the lawsuit’s allegations were “absolutely outrageous, slanderous and completely untrue, completely untrue.”

On November 18, 2010 the Daily Report ran a story that Rothenberg implied that his campaign was supported by Congressmen Hank Johnson and John Lewis and State Senator Jason Carter. All three of those elected officials denied having endorsed Rothenberg.

On November 29th, the AJC reported that State Representative Mike Jacobs withdrew his personal endorsement of Rothenberg based on concerns over the private lawsuit. That article also reported that DeKalb County Commissioner Elaine Boyer (R-Smokerise) denied having endorsed Rothenberg, despite her picture appearing on Rothenberg’s mailings under the heading “Endorsed By”.

Liz Carter, the Republican Candidate for the Fourth Congressional District, had the day earlier emailed  a number of DeKalb Republicans stating that she had not approved the printed endorsement that Rothenberg attributed to her and was asking people not to vote for Rothenberg in the runoff.

Both DeKalb Libertarians stood by their endorsement of Rothenberg.

After losing to now-Judge Johnson, the federal Securities and Exchange Commission filed a complaint against Rothenberg, alleging that his “investment” scheme violated the ’33 and ’34 Acts.

[As an aside, let this stand as a lesson to the political opportunists and scalawags who seek to destroy America by robbing Georgians of our God-given right to vote in runoff elections. Absent the runoff election, this might not have all come out and Rothenberg might have been elected. And it would have been your fault when a Superior Court Judge was indicted for fraud.]

According to the SEC complaint and press release:

The Commission’s complaint alleges that between at least February 2010 and March 2010, Rothenberg, through Four Five, used misrepresentations and omissions of material fact to induce investors to participate in a secret and allegedly risk-free trading platform or trading facility. This trading platform or trading facility purportedly involved transactions among international banks that would generate substantial return on a recurring basis. Specifically, Rothenberg represented that the trading platform would produce returns in excess of 300% every fourteen days. Rothenberg and Four Five also represented to investors, both orally and in writing, that the majority of their funds would remain at all times in Rothenberg’s attorney trust account, and that all funds invested, along with the profits, would be returned to the investors at the conclusion of the trades. [Emphasis added]

As a result of a settlement of the SEC charges, Rothenberg’s right to appear or practice before the agency has been suspended. His website also is suspended.

As part of the settlement, the SEC found that:

contrary to Rothenberg’s representations that investor funds would remain in his attorney trust account, Rothenberg began disbursing investor funds within days of receipt of those funds. Between March 2010 and October 2010, at least $210,000 in investor funds were transferred to a bank account designated for contributions to Rothenberg’s judicial election campaign. Rothenberg used another $190,000 of investor funds for personal expenses. Although Rothenberg ultimately returned approximately $910,000 to investors, he misappropriated at least $800,000 of investor funds. [Emphasis added.]

And according to the SEC’s press release:

Defendants were also ordered to pay disgorgement, pre-judgment interest and a civil penalty in amounts to be resolved upon motion of the Commission at a later date, and directed that for purposes of that motion, the allegations of the Commission’s Complaint shall be deemed true. Defendants consented to the entry of the order without admitting or denying the allegations of the Commission’s Complaint.

Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners has issued a Request For Proposal for “A Public-Private Partnership for the Lease, Operation and Improvement of Gwinnett County Airport-Briscoe Field.”

According to the Gwinnett Daily Post:

The news was a blow to local residents concerned about the noise and traffic that could come with an airport expansion and a blessing to those hoping passenger service could bring economic success.

“We’re just disappointed that the county went forward with the (request for proposals),” said Rick Schneider of Citizens for Better Gwinnett.

Not everyone is disappointed though…

Paula Hastings, a Lawrenceville woman who favors studying the commercial option, said it was about time the request for proposals was issued.

#“Fly Gwinnett Forward is committed to exploring the facts as it relates to privatization, scheduled service, and it’s potential,” Hastings said, submitting a statement for the pro-commercialization group. “From these facts, we believe that all citizens in Gwinnett can benefit from this opportunity and we are excited and encouraged that the RFP has been released so we may all learn more regarding those facts. We applaud the commissioners who saw the need to move forward.”

Should Gwinnett seek proposals? Should Briscoe be privatized allowing commercial flights, privatized as a general aviation airport or kept as a government run airport? Discuss.

Duluth attorney Kathy Schrader has announced her candidacy for the Gwinnett Superior Court seat left open by the retirment of Judge Dawson Jackson. Tracey Mason Blasi and Chris McClurg have previously announced their candidacy.

Kathy Schrader will hold a Campaign Kickoff Celebration to officially launch her campaign to succeed the retiring Judge Dawson Jackson to the Gwinnett County Superior Court. Any one interested in meeting Schrader and learning more about her judicial philosophy is welcome to attend on December 1, 2011 between 4:30 and 6:30 at The McCart Building, located at 2405 Satellite Boulevard in Duluth. Hosts include The McCart Group, her parents, Joe and Nancy McCart, brother, Jeff McCart, brother and sister-in-law, Tony and Alicia McCart, her husband, Richard Schrader and several of their colleagues. A representative from the Gwinnett County Domestic Violence Shelters will be in attendance to accept donations of winter coats and baby items.

“I’m running for Superior Court because my experience managing a wide range of complex legal issues provides me unique credentials to deliver justice in a manner that will have the most positive impact for our community and our families. From serving as a Municipal Court Judge, to leading the Gwinnett County Bar Association, working with community organizations and churches, I have consistently sought ways to serve, protect and improve our community.” said Schrader.

In 2005 and 2007, the Georgia Judicial Nominating Commission recommended Schrader for appointment to Gwinnett County Superior Court.

I’ve been living under a rock for the better part of almost a week and a half.  Now I’m back in the saddle getting caught up on emails and other various items around the office at work as well as politically.  We’re just a few weeks away from the start of the 2nd session of the General Assembly, so I’m sure there will be plenty of fun to be had then.  Legislation is starting to trickle in via pre-files, but I haven’t seen anything too monumental so far (if you believe otherwise, point out your favorite pieces of pre-filed legislation in the comments).

The General Assembly session, presidential nomination and subsequent race, the war drums for/against  TSPLOST…we might want to enjoy as much rest as we can for the next few weeks.  It looks like 2012 might be a pretty fun year for us political junkies.

Hope everyone had a happy thanksgiving.

Last night at our Walker County Republican Party meeting, two-thirds of the remaining Democrats who hold elected office in Walker County switched parties (ok, there were only 3 elected Democrats left).  Walker County’s Sheriff Steve Wilson and Tax Commissioner Carolyn Walker both announced that they were intending to switch and run as Republicans.

My family and I have known both Steve and Carolyn for years.  They are both conservatives, and were elected during a time when Georgia Democrats were still conservative.  They both are very popular among the voters in Walker County and both could have easily won reelection as Democrats.  The reason that they changed is because of personal convictions and seeing that their values aligned most with the Republican Party over the Democratic Party.  I know we’ve discussed the dynamics of party switching time and time again, but I for one am very pleased to call Sheriff Wilson and Commissioner Walker one of our own and offer a warm welcome.

This now leaves 1 elected Democrat in Walker County.  The former Walker County Democratic Party chairman, and former 2-time Democratic opponent to Sen. Jeff Mullis, is now a Republican.  I believe he is sincere in telling me that he cannot be a part of a liberal Democratic Party.  The Walker County Democratic Party has pretty much died off and no longer has a hold on Walker County like it did for many, many years.  My county is very conservative, and many of the “old school” Southern Democrats hold to those conservative values.

Our values haven’t changed…it’s the values of both parties that have changed.

Today is election day for many folks. There are a few races to fill the balance of terms in the General Assembly that could tip the scales in the state senate. However, many municipalities will be determining their mayors, city councilmen, and some will be determining whether or not they will have packaged alcohol sales on Sunday. Some cities may not have too many controversial races, but some will may determine how the city will advance in the future.

For instance, Rossville will be electing a new mayor.  Current Mayor Johnny Baker has decided not to run for another term as Rossville’s mayor, but is running for a council seat.  Current Councilman Teddy Harris will be facing former Rossville Fire Chief Bill Eaves. Rossville was a thriving textile mill town years ago, but those industries have since sold off their equipment and moved out of the country to chase after cheaper labor.  Unfortunately, Rossville is dying and looking for businesses to come in and revitalize the area.  Rossville is situated in the northern part of Walker County and borders the cities of Chattanooga, TN to the north and Fort Oglethorpe, GA to the east.

Then you have the Dalton mayoral race that is starting to heat up quite a bit.  Dalton and Whitfield County has some of the highest unemployment in the state and nation.  They’re experiencing a similar pinch that Rossville did years ago.  The difference is, they still have time to court other industries into the Dalton area.  I believe Mayor Pennington has done a well job for Dalton during these tough times.

These races are similar, they have candidates who want to keep taxes low in order to court businesses and candidates who want to raise taxes.  For instance, Mr. Eaves is proposing a .5% gross receipt tax on all businesses (although, he has it on his platform as “one-half of one percent (.005%)”…I’m not sure if that’s a typo or what).  He’s also proposing an idea of annexing streets (not the residences or other property in between them).  I’m not sure what sense that makes seeing that non-city residents would be benefiting from the roads and the city (and city taxpayers) would be left maintaining the roads.  I consider Mr. Harris a friend, and I hope he wins today’s election.  I believe he has poured himself out for Rossville and wants to see a vibrant city reborn.  It will take some work and cooperation of the county, state, and neighboring cities, but I believe he can lead Rossville into the future.  I know he’ll work to keep the Rossville Downtown Development Authority active.  The Authority helps business owners in the city talk to each other and potentially do business with each other.

I don’t know Mayor Pennington as well, but I like what he has done.  He’s been able to reduce the budget and lower taxes which at least helps taxpayers when money is tight during a stagnant economy.  There’s still work to be done.  It’s harder to convince businesses to move and invest in a new city when the economy is sluggish, so you must make the city as attractive as you possibly can.  I believe Mayor Pennington will do that.

I see Dalton and Rossville as somewhat similar.  The only difference is, one city is on the verge of losing a major industry and the other has already lost it.  Dalton is in a better position to recover, but Rossville still has a way to go.  Both cities need solid leadership for the future.  I believe that both Teddy Harris and David Pennington are ready for that challenge.

You can read more about the local elections in Northwest Georgia over at the Chattanooga Times-Free Press.

It’s election day tomorrow all across Georgia. Many municipalities will elect new leadership and a number of counties will have items on the ballot as well. The AJC and the League of Women voters have an interactive page that allows Metro Area voters to see what’s on the ballot.

Here in Gwinnett we’ve got a full plate. In addition to municipal races, folks in Peachtree Corners will decide if they want to become a city, 13 Gwinnett cities will decide Sunday Sales, and we’ll have a County wide vote on continuing a 1% SPLOST for education.

Here’s a collection of local election articles in the Gwinnett Daily Post. Also see articles in the Suwanee Patch, Dacula Patch, and Norcross Patch. The Lilburn Patch had a four part series on Lilburn elections.

Peachtree Corners cityhood debate has editorials in favor and against.

The Post’s Camie Young has an article about the Sunday Sales votes in Gwinnett.

City residents can vote on the issue from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Tuesday in the cities of Auburn, Berkeley Lake, Braselton, Dacula, Duluth, Grayson, Lawrenceville, Lilburn, Loganville, Norcross, Snellville, Sugar Hill and Suwanee.

And finally on the countywide vote to extend the education SPLOST, the Gwinnett Chamber says vote yes with this website and video:

Meanwhile Amanda Helmstetter head of the Berkeley Lake Elementary School PTA says the Emperor has been exposed:

But this isn’t the land of fairy tales, the people of this land are thinkers, they challenge the status quo, they don’t blindly do whatever their leadership says – even when dissenting with the popular opinion is unpopular and difficult.

Many of the people of this land are voting NO on the ESPLOST referendum coming up for a vote in Gwinnett County on Nov. 8.

The people of this land realize that the GCPS [Gwinnett County Public Schools] board wants to take out a loan to get the money and spend it NOW before it is generated by the ESPLOST. So, what happens if they borrow $200 and they only raise $125 in taxes? We understand that borrowing the money so it can be spent before it is generated shows a great lack of fiduciary responsibility.

Very little has been written about the little city of Rhine, Georgia. The city has fewer than five hundred residents. But that does not stop city officials from heading down the road of ethical misconduct.

Someone in Rhine put the cart before the horse. Certain city council members, and the Mayor, have been pushing the city down the road to get city sewage. This decision received mixed feeling from citizens. Some support city sewage, but the majority do not. Nevertheless, the project has been forced down the throats of the citizens of Rhine. No referendum has been held. Very few public meetings have been held. But two councilmen and the Mayor saw fit to plunge the city, and her citizens, in insurmountable debt.

When a public meeting was finally held, throngs of citizens showed up and voiced their displeasure. Concerned citizens pointed out that the study conducted by the USDA referenced residents that did not exist. Business that did not exist. The study even included structures that have no water hook-ups. All of this was done to meet the requisite number of homes the feasibility study required. Because this projected number was skewed, the financial numbers were skewed. Concerned citizens also revealed that a large number of outstanding water bills have never been paid. The city currently does not impose property taxes, so the only way to fund this project would be through sewage and water bills. And the sewage treatment plan would call for the city, and her citizens, to be in debt for decades.

It is important to note, that the median income in Rhine is less than twenty-thousand dollars. But the city is about to spend millions to get a sewer system. It is questionable whether or not the current citizens of Rhine can afford such a system. But to heck with reality, progress means everything. Such things have never stopped the federal government from spending money. (It’s working out real well for the country too.)

That brings us to now. In the course of getting everything ready for the USDA to come in and thrust this project upon Rhine, a bridge loan was taken out. Using an out-of-county bank, someone secured $200,000.00 and started spending it. There are no minutes of such a meeting. Only the Mayor and one Councilwoman can even say they had knowledge of the loan. But the money has already been spent. So the Mayor moved to ratify the loan, even though there was significant questions about whether it had ever been presented to the rest of the council. Two of the councilmen did not vote to ratify the loan, forcing the Mayor to vote. And of course he voted in favor, he had to save his rear.

You may be inclined to dismiss this story as it involves a small town, with so few people. But ethical problems exist at every level of our state. Under the Gold Dome, and in rural communities. Something is fishy in Rhine. And it’s problems with ethics should not be discredited by it’s size. After all, it’s located in Dodge County–the subject of one the nation’s largest voting fraud prosecutions.

- Former Democratic Stronghold Now Has GOP Commission Majority -

As reported in The Dodge County News, on Tuesday political neophyte and pharmacist Karen Cheek captured Dodge County Commission District Four in a close election, 267 votes to 222.

The election was a runoff that originated when none of four qualified candidates captured a majority in the special election resulting from the death of Dodge County Commissioner Archie Dupree. In the two person runoff, Cheek defeated Sandra Dupree, the widow of the late commissioner who is also a political newcomer.

Dodge County has long been considered a Democratic stronghold, but in the past two years Republican candidates have captured all three of the commission elections held. Dodge elected its first GOP candidate in 2008 when current Dodge County Sheriff Jeff Hinson was elected in a runoff.

Cheek will complete the remainder of the late Commissioner Dupree’s term which ends December 31, 2012.

Last week, Todd mentioned Bobby Sigman, a mayoral candidate in Covington that was arrested for allegedly paying an undercover police officer (UC) to steal his opponent’s signs. Sigman denies the allegation, claiming only to have joked about the idea. However, video released by the local police through the Covington News shows Sigman telling the UC that he missed signs (“That’s a dollar you missed”) and haggling with the police over the price of the stolen signs (you can see the UC receiving a $50 bill as payment):

The Covington News also reports that Sigman dropped out of the race this morning, shortly after the video was released.

Whitfield County’s unemployment rate continues to be a source of depression in the area, and compounded by Shaw’s recent announcement that they will close down Plant 20 in Dalton and the elimination of 270 jobs from the area.  Whitfield County and Dalton voters will have a question before them come November:  Should the county or city be allowed to create tax allocation districts for economic redevelopment?  Although, what’s interesting is that the phrase “tax allocation district” won’t be in the wording of the question on the ballot.

From the Dalton Daily Citizen:

TADs [Tax Allocation Districts] are based on the idea that development in an area will increase property values and retail sales. So local governments reserve the extra revenue they expect to get from any development to pay for infrastructure, land, buildings, public artwork or other amenities to attract a developer or developers to that area. That “extra” money does not go into general revenue.

[Dalton/Whitfield Chamber President Brian] Anderson said TADs can speed up development in an area by allowing local governments to pay the upfront costs off with projected revenue from the development. Officials said that if some property owners in any area don’t want to be included in a TAD, the plan can be drawn to exclude them.

…

After posting two notices and holding a public meeting, local governments could vote to approve the plan.

Residents would not get to vote on the plan. Nor would they get to vote on any bonds that might be issued to finance projects in a TAD.

Dalton-Whitfield Joint Development Authority Executive Director Elyse Cochran says TADs are structured so neither a city nor county nor any redevelopment agency guarantees any bonds.

“The private developer secures the bonds. If he or she bankrupts, the bond holders are left holding the bag — not the community,” said Cochran.

How would TADs affect the local school systems?

Because the city school system operates under from the city of Dalton’s chater, the city school system cannot opt out of the TADs, said Cochran.

“The county school system, because it is a separate taxing authority, can opt out of participating in the TAD and would immediately begin receiving new, increased taxes following the redevelopment of the property contained in the TAD,” she said.

There are currently 30 TADs within Georgia.  The BeltLine in Atlanta receives most of it’s local funding from a Tax Allocation District.  The cities of Rome and Duluth also have these TADs as well.  With more manufacturing jobs being eliminated in north Georgia, it will be interesting to see if these districts will be effective in revitalizing the area if it passes in November.  A question that might be raised is that will cities and counties use the TADs over the Local Option Sales Taxes since TADs are effective for 25 to 30 years rather than the constant renewal of LOSTs.  Eh, lets be real.  There’s no tax that a government doesn’t like.