Georgia County Government - January 2009 - (Page 8)

PRESIDENT continued from page 7 Policy Conference and keeping up her always-involved participation in the work of ACCG’s six standing policy committees. We will sorely miss her leadership and her ability to inspire and encourage others in the face of mounting challenges for counties. I know I speak for all my fellow officers when I wish her much continued success, and years of service in her chosen field of endeavor. County government has changed dramatically in just the past decade – certainly, this has been very apparent in Bulloch County, where I live and serve as a commissioner, and also very evident in local communities across the state. As Georgia’s population has become increasingly urbanized, counties have had to bolster the services they deliver while also maintaining traditional obligations, including the building and upkeep of Georgia’s vital network of roads, providing public health care, and planning and maintaining infrastructure and environmental facilities. As the state’s rapid growth and development continues to take us farther along the road toward becoming a hightech research stronghold in agriculture and alternative fuels and a global commercial engine, on many fronts, we must be mindful of the “roots” of county leadership – our unique mission to be in touch with the needs of those who live in our local communities. With new national leadership in place, as well as new leadership in many state and local government posts here in Georgia, the great state to which we are all so dedicated, I call on all my fellow county governing officials to be about the business of governing in ways that embrace the progressive, promote intergovernmental cooperation, and forge new methods for effectiveness and efficiency on behalf of Georgia taxpayers. ACCG is always there to help you, no matter what the challenge, and the challenges are growing. In Bulloch County, I like to say we are “conservative,” and by that I don’t just mean merely frugal in terms of budgeting, careful with the taxpayers’ money, and dedicated to getting the most bang for the buck. By “conservative,” I also mean careful – careful with planning, careful with promises, careful with our efforts to gain real results for county goals. In the current economic and political climate, we all are certainly mindful of the need to move with greater care on questions that involve spending, but also, with care that our actions are more deliberate, our words say what we mean, and that our relationships – with legislators during the current session of the Georgia General Assembly and within our own jurisdictions – are more meaningful, on behalf of Georgia’s citizens, whom we all were elected to serve. In closing, I look forward to working with each and every one of you as ACCG moves forward under a new strategic plan, into a new year, through a new session of the Legislature, and toward another policy year that sees the further strengthening of the position, effectiveness, and purpose of county government in Georgia. We are all in this together. Thank you for this opportunity to serve. ■ 8 GEORGIA COUNTY GOVERNMENT 405015_Tyler.indd 1 10/31/08 5:29:03 PM http://www.tylertech.com

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Georgia County Government - January 2009

Georgia County Government - January 2009 Contents President’s Message County Matters Forward-Thinking Bulloch County Leaders Put Progress on the Front Burner Robert Farris: Champion for Georgia’s Forests ACCG, BCBS of Georgia Work Together to Improve County Employee Health Georgia’s Grand Old Courthouses: McIntosh County Extension News: Cooperative Extension Generates ROI Research Corner: How Does Your County Rate? County Parade Index of Advertisers

Georgia County Government - January 2009

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