Georgia County Government - December 2008 - (Page 5)

President’sMessage Local Officials are Communities’ Best Hope During Uncertain Times he economy is the No. 1 thing on most citizens’ minds, as a new administration assumes its role in Washington, D.C. Here in our home state, as Lt. Governor Casey Cagle told commissioners at the ACCG Fall Policy Conference in October, a realistic figure is more than $2 billion in state budget shortfalls. The consequences for local communities could, and probably will, be quite serious. As a new legislative session looms, with the state and the nation struggling with recession, the shortfalls expected bode poorly for a number of legislative priorities ACCG has framed, including vital policy matters like transportation funding to support economic vitality and the expansion of trauma centers in the state. But as noted in this month’s Legislative Outlook (see page 10), what such shortfalls mean too, is that at a time when those who depend on government assistance programs need “safety net” services most, the dollars to fund them are certain to be very scarce. Difficult decisions will have to be made, and health and human services funding will suffer in most communities. As a commissioner in Clayton County for 13 years, I emphasized the human service side of government, including services to families, youth at risk and especially, senior citizens, who are those members of our communities most often forgotten and neglected. Despite the requirements to provide adequate transportation in every Georgia region, plan and build environmental facilities, ensure efficient service delivery including critical emergency services, bolster infrastructure and keep it maintained, I still believe human health and service programs for the disadvantaged and neglected among our citizens must remain at the fore of elected officials’ concerns. If we continue to network as ACCG PRESIDENT continued on page 6 Association County Commissioners of Georgia Officers serving through April 2009 President VIRGINIA GRAY Clayton County First Vice President JAN TANKERSLEY Bulloch County Second Vice President LAMAR PARIS Union County T Third Vice President MELVIN DAVIS Oconee County Executive Director JERRY R. GRIFFIN Board of Managers 1st District JERRY SHEARIN, Paulding County 2nd District MIKE BERG, Dawson County 3rd District BURRELL ELLIS, DeKalb County 4th District EUGENE HARDWICK, Lamar County 5th District KEVIN LITTLE, Walton County 6th District C. BROOKS BAILEY, Pulaski County 7th District JOHN R. GRAHAM, Warren County 8th District CLINTON PERRY, Taylor County 9th District D. M. MULLIS, Laurens County 10th District CHARLES LINGLE, Dougherty County 11th District EUGENE DYAL, Bacon County 12th District JOHN McIVER, Liberty County Consolidated Government Representative HEIDI DAVISON, Athens-Clarke County At-Large DAVID GAULT, Jones County JAMES KHOURY, Peach County SAM OLENS, Cobb County HELEN STONE, Chatham County AARON VARNER, Newton County Active Past Presidents GLENDA BATTLE, Decatur County CLARENCE BROWN, Bartow County BILLY CROKER, Polk County JAMES V. HAM, Monroe County BENJAMIN HAYWARD, Mitchell County TOM MCMICHAEL, Houston County O. D. NETTER, Ben Hill County Ex-Officio NACo Board Members/Officers: RICHARD ENGLISH, Troup County JAMES HAM, Monroe County Section Presidents Attorneys’ Section: MICHAEL LONG, Houston County Managers’/Administrators’ Section: KEVIN POE, Floyd County Clerks’ Section: BRENDA STALVEY, Echols County Service Program Chairs ACCG Insurance Program Representatives (IRMA) JOHN STRICKLAND, Clinch County Group Self Insurance Workers’ Compensation Fund (GSIWCF) WALTER L. SANDERS, Greene County Pension Representative H. JAY WALKER, Houston County DECEMBER 2008 www.accg.org By Virginia Gray President When government spending is tight, it can place additional burdens on local officials to make sure fewer citizens go hungry, homeless and neglected. The cost is high for the whole community if we do not make sure all is done that can be. 5 http://www.accg.org

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Georgia County Government - December 2008

Georgia County Government - December 2008 Contents President's Message County Matters 2009 Legislative Forecast: ACCG's Platform for the Coming Legislative Session ACCG Policy Staff 2008 Legislative Awards Honor Georgia Lawmakers Cell Towers and Local Governments Oglethorpe Power Plans Biomass Electric Facilities Georgia's Grand Old Courthouses: Dawson County Extension News: Biofuels Development Research Corner: Implementing a Record Retention Policy County Parade Index of Advertisers/Advertiser.com

Georgia County Government - December 2008

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