Charles Hill Remains Commission Chairman

Charles Hill will remain chairman of the Jasper County Commissioners, not by vote, but by default after the first meeting of the new year was held Monday.

Commissioner Mary Patrick made a motion to name Commissioner Alan Cox as chairman. Mr. Cox seconded the motion. It failed with Commissioners Jack Bernard and Charles Hill dissenting, and Commissioner Carl Pennamon abstaining.

Then Mr. Cox made a motion for Mr. Bernard to be chairman. That motion died for lack of a second. No other motions were made so since a successor was not named, Mr. Hill remains chairman.

The vote for vice-chair began with Mr. Cox nominating Mrs. Patrick as vice-chairman. That motion failed for lack of a second. Then, Commissioner Pennamon nominated Alan Cox, and Jack Bernard seconded the motion. The vote was unanimous for Mr. Cox to be vice-chairman.
Jim Alexander was named to continue as county attorney.
The group heard a report from Gene Trammell with the Jasper County Water & Sewer Authority.

Mr. Trammell reviewed the history of the authority, saying how it came to be with the Yancey Road project. People there needed a water source and had none. Existing water suppliers were not interested in serving such a small customer base, said Mr. Trammell. Later the authority ran water lines down Jackson Lake Road, creating infrastructure that will definitely be needed one day.

He said there are two schools of thought on the water authority and the infrastructure. One is that it was a foolish mistake. The other is that it was a wise investment in infrastructure and the future. The water lines were enough to create a source for water that with the strong volunteer fire department in Jasper County, a lower ISO rating was achieved.
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Mr. Trammell was cut off as his 10 minutes was up before he got through, but he ended his presentation by suggesting that the county commission, and all the water authorities move together into the future. He suggested developing a coherent plan for water distribution for the county, and develop new and adequate water sources to supply the county.

He said that Georgia is in a tenuous situation, and considers Jasper County and Monticello a good source of water.

He went on to say when this economy turns around, “we will explode,” and, he said, the JCWSA is positioned to handle growth.
Commissioner Cox hadasked the special district which was created and used to create revenue for JCWSA to be put on the agenda. After the presentation by Mr. Trammell, commissioners agreed to postpone discussing that until the county sits down and has a work session on water, which was scheduled to be held on Tuesday, Jan. 18, at 5 p.m.

The commissioners said they wanted a formal agreement with the City of Monticello for services the county is providing. For example, the county can get a better price on fuel by purchasing more. So, the county purchases the fuel and city vehicles use the same pumps as county ones. Each vehicle has a key to let the pump computer know where the fuel is going.

The county is also hauling gravel for the city. The shared services seem to work well for all. Commissioner Patrick said that she wanted the agreement to spell out that all invoices from the county to the city must be paid within 15 days of invoicing.

The commission discussed adopting “Miller County type protocols” where the constitutional officers would be given their budgeted amount, and it would be up to them to manage it and live within it. Commissioners agreed it was worth looking into, but said if they decide to do that, it would need to begin at the beginning of a budget cycle. For example, since the county is changing to a July 1-June 30 fiscal year this year, it could be implemented on July 1. They agreed to look into it further.

The commissioners discussed inventory control, then unanimously passed a motion that all electronic equipment must be ordered on an individual purchase order, with the reason given why it is needed, what it replaces, etc., so the county will have an adequate inventory of everything. Commissioner Patrick suggested that perhaps it would pay for the county to standardize electronic equipment, at least somewhat.

County Manager Greg Wood gave a report on the work of the committee designed to rework the personnel policy. He said there always seems to be problems when they plan to meet, and asked that the commission disband the committee. The county manager will bring the personnel policy back to the commissioners at the February 7 meeting with the changes highlighted.

The commission discussed the situation of several people owing back taxes, and Commissioner Bernard recommended that they terminate all county employees who owe back taxes. Then, they talked about publishing the names of people who owe back taxes in the newspaper. The county manager suggested putting the list on the Courthouse door. Commissioner Cox said let’s do both.

The commissioners discussed having the tax commissioner publish the names or whatever, and their attorney reminded them thy could not tell Mrs. Faulkner what to do. The commission could publish the names, but it cannot direct Mrs. Faulkner to.

Commissioner Bernard asked why our bad tax percentage is twice the rest of the state. Commissioner Patrick said that other counties split bills which makes it easier for people to pay. Then, she said that the Board of Assessors and the Tax Commissioner have not formally been informed of the commissioner’s decision to do split billing. Commissioner Pennamon said we should have discussed it with them before doing it.

Commissioner Bernard asked if Tax Commissioner Merry Faulkner had complied with the letter the commissioners wrote, and was told she asked to wait until next month because she is very busy at this time, and was preparing a disbursement from the county.

In other action at Monday’s regular meeting, commissioners:
•Discussed the bad condition of Hodges Farm Road which received triple surface treatment last fall, and is already falling apart. Public Works Director Will Brown said he has been in touch with Key Paving who did the job, and they will be back in March to fix all the damage.
•Commissioner Patrick said she wants the commission to learn the disposition of Magistrate Court cases brought by county employees such as the Code Enforcement officer or Animal Control Officer.
She feels that a disproportionate number are thrown out. After some discussion they agreed to have the county manager meet with the prosecutors and see if he could solve the problem.
After discussing the agenda items, the commissioners went into closed session to discuss personnel.
An hour later they came out and unanimously approved motion by Commissioner Patrick that the county manager provide the commissioners with a monthly human resources report.