Commissioners To Hold Two Budget Hearings
Announcements, Community October 17, 2022
DAWSON COUNTY, Ga.- The Dawson County Commissioners will be holding the first two public hearings over the proposed budget for fiscal year 23 beginning at the work session on Oct. 20 at 4:00 p.m.
The second one will be held during the voting session directly after the work session. The public is encouraged to attend. These are the agendas for both the voting and the work sessions.
Work Session:
PUBLIC HEARING
1. Proposed FY 2023 Budget (1st of 3 hearings; 2nd hearing will be held on Oct. 20,
2022, Voting Session and the 3rd hearing will be held on November 3, 2022)
NEW BUSINESS
1. Presentation of Highway Enforcement of Aggressive Traffic (HEAT) Grant Continuation
Award for FY 2023- Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Greg Rowan
2. Presentation of FY 2024 Georgia Department of Transportation / Federal Transit
Administration Section 5311 Transit Contract- Senior Services Director Dawn Johnson
3. Discussion Concerning Lake Parks in Dawson County- Parks & Recreation Director Matt
Payne
4. Presentation of Request for Chairman’s Signature on Updated Notice of Intent for Georgia
Environmental Protection Division Concerning Municipal Separate Storm Sewer System
(MS4) Program- Stormwater Manager Robbie Irvin
5. Presentation of Request to Add a Sunset Clause to Additional Zoning Classifications as
Recommended by the Long Range Planning Committee- Planning & Development
Director Sharon Farrell
6. Presentation of Annual Capital Improvements Element Update- Planning & Development
Director Sharon Farrell
7. Presentation of a Proposed Property Maintenance Ordinance- Planning & Development
Director Sharon Farrell
8. Presentation of Amendments to the Litter Control and Solid Waste Management
Ordinance- Planning & Development Director Sharon Farrell
9. Presentation of Amendments to the Abatement of Nuisance Property Ordinance- Planning
& Development Director Sharon Farrell
10. Presentation of Request to Authorize Chairman to Sign No-Cost Building Lease
Agreement with The Good Shepherd Clinic on Behalf of Family Connection- County
Manager David Headley
11. Presentation of Appointment of Emergency Management Agency Director- County
Manager David Headley
Page 2 of 2
12. County Manager Report
13. County Attorney Report
Voting Session:
A. ROLL CALL
B. INVOCATION AND PLEDGE OF ALLEGIANCE
C. ANNOUNCEMENTS
D. APPROVAL OF MINUTES
1. Minutes of the Work Session held on October 6, 2022
2. Minutes of the Voting Session held on October 6, 2022
E. APPROVAL OF AGENDA
F. PUBLIC COMMENT
G. PUBLIC HEARINGS
1. Proposed FY 2023 Budget (2nd of 3 hearings; 1st hearing was held on Oct. 20,
2022, Work Session and the 3rd hearing will be held on November 3, 2022)
2. Annual Capital Improvements Element Update (1st of 1 hearing)
H. NEW BUSINESS
1. Consideration of Georgia Forestry Commission Volunteer Fire Assistance 50/50 Grant
2. Consideration of Appointment to the Board of Elections & Registration
3. Consideration of an Emergency Extension of an Existing Moratorium on the Acceptance
of Residential Rezoning Applications
I. PUBLIC COMMENT
J. ADJOURNMENT
Board of Education Approves Initial FY23 Budget
Board of Education, Business June 15, 2022
DAWSON COUNTY, Ga.- The Dawson County Board of Education approved the initial FY23 budget at their regular Jun. meeting on Jun. 14.
The board also approved the ESPLOST requests that were presented at the meeting. Director of Nutrition Scott Richardson also presented the board with a request for the approval of two food vendors for the next school year.
The board heard the second hearing for the FY23 budget from Finanic Director Beth Covington. The total revenues for the initial budget were $50,636,530. Last fiscal year revenues were $46,939,511.
There were no changes in the local tax revenues between the first hearing and the second but the state revenues had two changes. The QBE State earnings went up to $78,216, and the state transportation went up to $410,179.
The expenditures for the budget are $47,722,978. The expenditures for the last fiscal year are $48,160,362. The changes between the first and second hearing were dealing with staff. To view the full second budget hearing visit https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Meetings/Attachment.aspx?S=4051&AID=1402512&MID=101106.
The general fund budget summary from the second budget hearing presentation.
The full budget breakdown is available at https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Meetings/Attachment.aspx?S=4051&AID=1398818&MID=101106. The board still has to approve the millage rate in Aug. and there will possibly be three hearings in Aug. to address that.
The ESPLOST request is for $291,000. This was presented by Superintendent Nicole LeCave. The ESPLOST is broken down into five items.
Those items are managed printing services with a price of $60,000, and desktop virtualization projects with a price of $125,000. Next are computers for growth with a price of $35,000, school safety improvements for $45,000, and a convention oven replacement at Dawson County Middle School for $26,000. The board voted to approve these items.
Richardson presented the board with the bids from Sysco and John Samples for the food delivery services for the next school year. The reason for approving two bids is because there will be fluxations in prices from week to week and having the two allows Richardson to place orders from the one that is the best deal for Dawson County for that week.
Each school does its own ordering in bulk. The menus have already been set for next school year and staff will return to start ordering in mid-July. It has been a long time since the county has worked with either of the vendors but like other counties finding distributors has been a struggle. To see the problems other counties have been having please visit https://white.fetchyournews.com/2022/05/24/rowland-provides-nutrition-update/.
The board also heard from members of each of the schools’ governance councils. They all had very positive things to say about their schools and the partnerships they have with the PTOs.
Lastly, the board received updates from Director of Elementary Schools Page Arnette and Director of Secondary Schools Dr. Nathan Hand on the progress Dawson County Students have made this school year. To review those updates visit https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Meetings/Attachment.aspx?S=4051&AID=1403788&MID=101106 and https://simbli.eboardsolutions.com/Meetings/Attachment.aspx?S=4051&AID=1403871&MID=101106. The school system is seeing growth in all its students.
Commissioners set to approve 2020 budget today
News October 17, 2019
DAWSONVILLE, Ga – The Dawson County Board of Commissioners will hold the third public hearing before adopting the 2020 budget during Thursday (Oct 17) at 6 p.m. in the Dawson County Government Center Assembly Room, 25 Justice Way.
The 2019 budget was just over $27 million. The proposed 2020 budget is $29.9 million, an increase of almost $3 million or 10.26 percent over this year.
When Commission Chairman Billy Thurmond presented the proposed spending plan two weeks, he said it is justified by what is projected to be a $2.8 million increase in revenue for next year. But much of that increase will come from the county’s reserve or “rainy day fund.”
In some unfinished business from Sept. 19, commissioners are expected to vote on a controversial vape shop ordinance.
New business items on the agenda include a request to use the county facility parking lots during the Mountain Moonshine Festival;
Consideration of an intergovernmental agreement (IGA) between Dawson County and the Development Authority of Dawson County;
Consideration to move forward with a public hearing for Special Event Business License Ordinance Revision; Consideration of the sale of surplus real property owned by Dawson County;
Consideration of a request for additional funds for legal fees;
There will also be a number of zoning requests for commissioners to consider.
Fetch Your News is a hyper local news outlet that covers Dawson, Lumpkin, White, Fannin, Gilmer, Pickens, Union, Towns and Murray counties as well as Cherokee County in N.C. FYN attracts 300,000+ page views per month, 3.5 million impressions per month and approximately 15,000 viewers per week on FYNTV.com and up to 60,000 Facebook page reach. If you would like to follow up-to-date local events in any of those counties, please visit us at FetchYourNews.com
Collins, Quigley introduce budget transparency legislation
News October 29, 2019
Rep. Doug Collins
WASHINGTO, D.C. — Rep. Doug Collins (R-Ga.) and Mike Quigley (D-IL) today introduced the Congressional Budget Justification Transparency Act (H.R. 4894) to give the public access to how the federal government spends taxpayer dollars. This bill would improve government transparency by requiring federal agencies to post their congressional budget justifications on one central, searchable website.
“Each year, Georgians entrust the government with their hard-earned tax dollars, but they’re left in the dark on where that money actually goes,” said Collins. “By requiring federal agencies to regularly publish budget justifications on one central website, the Congressional Budget Justification Transparency Act will ensure hardworking Americans have access to the information needed to evaluate how their tax dollars are being spent.”
“Today, congressional budget justifications are incredibly hard to find. This information is currently housed inconsistently and confusingly across different agencies, making it challenging to even know whether these materials for an agency exist,” said Quigley. “This bill would provide an opportunity to conduct better oversight of our government and allow the public to learn about what agencies are doing with their hard-earned tax dollars.”
Senators Rob Portman (R-OH) and Gary Peters (D-MI) have introduced companion legislation in the Senate.
Fetch Your News is a hyper local news outlet that covers Dawson, Lumpkin, White, Fannin, Gilmer, Pickens, Union, Towns and Murray counties as well as Cherokee County in N.C. FYN attracts 300,000+ page views per month, 3.5 million impressions per month and approximately 15,000 viewers per week on FYNTV.com and up to 60,000 Facebook page reach. If you would like to follow up-to-date local events in any of those counties, please visit us at FetchYourNews.com
UNG gets state funds for new campus
News April 2, 2018
BLUE RIDGE, Ga. – In a recent interview on FYNTV, Georgia Speaker of the House David Ralston made an announcement regarding the University of North Georgia’s (UNG) Blue Ridge campus.
Ralston confirmed in the interview that the state has set $5.5 million into a line item to establish a new standalone “brick and mortar” building for the university. The budgeted funds are set for construction only, meaning that the university will be responsible for locating and acquiring a spot suitable for the new campus. Once the college purchases the location, they can utilize the state funds for their new building to expand into that new home in Fannin County.
As such, the location of this facility is yet to be determined. According to Campus Director of Blue Ridge for UNG, Sandy Ott, she hopes to begin construction as soon as possible. Ott spoke with FetchYourNews (FYN) about the fund allocation saying, “We are thrilled with the opportunity to expand the Blue Ridge campus. We are so excited for the opportunities for the students in our region. This is going to have an impact, truly.”
Ott noted some of the major capabilities that a standalone campus will allow including expanded course offerings, lab spaces for sciences and core classes, as well as development space to cater to the region’s specific needs. While college officials are still searching for the best location at this time, Ott confirmed that they are still very early in the process and uncertain if the new standalone campus will see them completely leaving their current location just off of 515 at 83 Dunbarton Farm Road.
UNG has been at that location since 2015, offering opportunities such as dual-enrollment courses for high school students, a full-time program for first-time freshmen, courses for adult learners getting started or returning to college, and continued education programs.
With the passing of the state’s budget, this is now set for UNG to utilize when available. Ott assures FYN they are moving quickly to take advantage of the funds to increase their services as soon as possible for students. See more by checking out the announcement at 14 minutes into FYNTV’s video below.
Gooch: Senate Gets Down to Business
State & National January 22, 2018
Senate Gets Down to BusinessBy: Sen. Steve Gooch (R – Dahlonega) Although the Senate was in session for only two days this week, my colleagues and I were very busy under the Gold Dome addressing budget proposals and a key piece of legislation on the Senate Floor. The week started with Joint Senate and House Appropriations hearings on the Amended FY18 and General FY19 budgets. Governor Deal kicked off the hearings which included several different agencies presenting their budget proposals. I am happy to say that the state’s budget continues to be in good shape, with the General FY19 budget topping $26 billion for the first time. The General FY19 budget proposals were drafted with an estimated 2.9 percent state fund growth and around 3.8 percent tax revenue growth over the Amended FY18 revenue estimates. Included in the General FY19 budget are increases in funding for education and transportation. The General FY19 budget addresses the needs for the state to meet determined employer contributions within the Teachers Retirement System with a proposed increase of around $364 million. Additionally, around $120 million would be appropriated for enrollment growth and training. Along with these positive changes in the General FY19 budget, an important proposal in the Amended FY18 budget is adding $15 million to purchase 194 school buses statewide. This will positively impact our students by ensuring that buses are not overcrowded. The state’s growing need to address transportation infrastructure is also addressed in the General FY19 budget. An additional $31.6 million in projected revenues resulting from House Bill 170 – passed during the 2015 Legislation Session – will be added to the Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) budget. I am very happy to see that a piece of legislation we passed a couple of years ago is still making positive impacts for GDOT. Along with attending the budget hearings and carefully reviewing the proposals for the Amended FY18 and General FY19 budgets, my colleagues and I took up a very important piece of legislation in Senate Chamber. On Thursday, the Senate passed the Supporting and Strengthening Families Act, also known as the Adoption Bill, or HB 159. This bill passed with bipartisan support and is now headed over to the House of Representatives for their review. Final passage of this legislation and a signature into law by the Governor would allow our state to update our adoption system which has been the same for nearly 30 years. The Senate’s version of HB 159 clarifies many of the laws regarding who can adopt, who can act as a legal guardian and the rights held by the biological parents before and after giving their child up for adoption. Additionally, the version the Senate passed on Thursday states that if an agency is not involved in a private adoptive process, living expenses cannot be paid. The only expenses that can be paid in a private adoption are medical and counseling. These are just some of the highlights of the Senate version of HB 159. As this legislation moves through the legislative process, my colleagues and I will work with the Governor and House of Representatives to ensure there is cooperation to address concerns anyone may have. It is imperative that we pass this legislation so that we can assist the large number of children who are in foster care and need a loving and stable home. The pace of the session is going to pick up quickly with standing committees beginning to hold meetings next week to vet legislation pending from last year along with new bills introduced this year. As we move forward in the session, please do not hesitate to reach out with questions, concerns and feedback. It is always great to hear from my constituents and our door is always open. |
Senator Steve Gooch 3/31/16
Opinion March 31, 2016
State Senator Steve Gooch of District 51 talks legislation for Georgia and Voting Questions.