Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections for June 20, 2019

On June 20, 1732, the signing of the Georgia Charter was completed by the British government.

On June 20, 1782, Congress adopted the Great Seal of the United States. Charles Thomson, Secretary of the Continental Congress, was responsible for the final design presented to Congress. The design approved by Congress was a written description without any sketches.

On June 20, 1819, the SS Savannah entered the port at Liverpool, England, marking the first transatlantic crossing by a steam-powered ship, having sailed out of Savannah on May 20th.

General Robert E. Lee moved on Union forces under General Ulysses S. Grant at Petersburg, Virginia on June 20, 1864.

Jaws was released on June 20, 1975.

Georgia Politics, Campaigns, and Elections

A Savannah personal injury lawyer was bitten by a another shark, according to the Savannah Morning News.

Georgia Bureau of Investigation Director Vic Reynolds spoke about gang crime, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

“Contrary to what a lot of folks may believe, criminal street gang issues aren’t limited to urban areas; they’re in suburban areas, they’re in rural areas,” Reynolds said. “The Georgia Gang Investigators Association, GGIA, did a survey in the summer of 2018 — the soft numbers on that survey show about 71,000 validated gang members in our state, from north to south. What I’ve seen and given the fact that some law enforcement agencies did not respond, I’m convinced that those are soft numbers.”

“Just recently, GISAC, our information sharing analysis center, sent out a survey statewide to law enforcement agencies,” Reynolds said. “We sent it to 159 sheriffs — every sheriff’s department (in Georgia) — and we got 153 responses back. We sent it to over 560 police departments; we got about 510 responses back. We’re talking about 655 or so responses, and we asked them, ‘Tell us the number one issue, or the top issues facing you as law enforcement agencies.’ Around the state, regardless of the area — urban, suburban, rural — the number one issue facing them is criminal street gangs.”

“What I think has happened in the past, and I don’t mean just with the GBI but with law enforcement in general, is let’s say hypothetically, we respond to a homicide case and investigators get there. They tend to focus, as they should, on investigating and solving the homicide,” Reynolds said. “What we’ve done previously is even though there may be a gang connection, a gang nexus, law enforcement has tended to step over the gang charge and go directly to the underlying charge and predicate charge, whether it’s murder, armed robbery or drug trafficking, without pursuing that gang connection. That’s what we’re going to change … no longer will we step over that; we will investigate the gang connections, and if we can make the gang charges under the gang statute, we will do that.”

“As a society, we have to provide kids who are vulnerable, who are recruitable, who are at a point in their life where they could go street A or B, (the resources) to make sure they go down the correct street,” he said. “That’s a task that churches, community groups, civil organizations, schools are all involved in day in and day out. We need to do that as fellow human beings for the next generation.”

“But the truth is, sometimes people enter into gangs, they commit acts, and the only way to deal with it is with an aggressive, assertive law enforcement approach,” Reynolds continued. “That part of the equation I believe the Bureau can do (well).”

Democratic Presidential candidate Pete Buttigieg will visit South Carolina this week, according to the Augusta Chronicle.

He will be the second presidential hopeful to visit the Augusta area ahead of South Carolina’s Feb. 29 Democratic presidential primary and Georgia’s March 24 primary. Last month, Democratic hopeful Bernie Sanders spoke at the Jessye Norman Amphitheater in Augusta. Last week, actor and activist Danny Glover campaigned for Sanders in Aiken.

This weekend, 17 major Democratic hopefuls including Buttigieg and Sanders have confirmed they will appear at several South Carolina events, including the state Democratic convention Saturday in Columbia, according to the state party.

State Rep. Katie Dempsey (R-Rome) will Chair the House Study Committee on Infant and Toddler Social and Emotional Health, according to the Rome News Tribune.

“We see children at 5 years old when they enter the public school system, but having a window to the brain from 0 to 5 can be so impactful,” Dempsey said Wednesday. “A million new neuron connections are formed every second in those early years.”

Dempsey, who’s spent several years as chair of the Georgia House Appropriations human resources subcommittee, said she was convinced of the need to look at help for pre-schoolers by a number of advocacy groups such as GEERS, the Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students.

“It’s easy to focus on the end result, the increase in jail population, homelessness and other challenges that come later in life,” Dempsey said. “But with early intervention, the right diagnosis, and the proper treatment, some changes can be made. They can be redirected to a happy life.”

Gwinnett County District Attorney Danny Porter promoted Lisa Jones to Chief Assistant District Attorney, according to the Gwinnett Daily Post.

Macon-Bibb County Commissioners are being challenged over their reasons for turning down some alcohol licenses, according to the Macon Telegraph.

One of the latest rejections came after a housing official asked commissioners to stop allowing alcohol to be sold at a convenience store near a public housing complex, partly because it was a “bad influence” on children.

In another case, some commissioners questioned allowing beer and wine to be sold at a movie theater, again citing the presence of children.

After a denial, business owners have two options: appeal the decision in hopes that commissioners change their minds, or file a lawsuit.

[A]n attorney for AmStar 16, Mindy Thompson, referenced a letter by the sheriff’s office that said there have not been reoccurring problems at the theater that should prevent it from getting the license.

She argued the county is breaking law by not allowing the license. The presence of children is not a legally sound argument, she said, especially when businesses that cater to the under-21 crowd like Chuck E. Cheese’s and Pin Strikes bowling alley have alcoholic beverage licenses.

“The denial of AmStar’s application would be an equal protection violation,” she said. The U.S. Constitution’s 14th amendment guarantees equal protection under the law.

“I think AmStar has shown they have the law on their side,” Commissioner Joe Allen said. “I’ve learned something myself, that with the sheriff giving his approval, with the engineer giving his approval, we cannot deny anyone a license based on certain issues that our heart feels. We’ve got to go by what the law says.”

The transgender former Byron fire chief is demanding reinstatement, according to the Macon Telegraph.

The city fired [Rachel] Mosby on June 4 citing failing job performance, but her attorney charged that the action was discriminatory based on her gender identity.

Mosby was assigned male at birth and has transitioned and identifies as a female, her attorney said. She came out to fellow employees in late 2017 and informed her supervisors in early 2018 of her transition and gender identity.

“The reasons the city has cited for its termination of Chief Mosby are both inaccurate and wholly inadequate reasons,” said her attorney Kenneth E. Barton in the letter. “The chief has served the city and its citizens for over 12 years and her performance has been exemplary.”

However, Byron Mayor Pro Tem Michael Chidester, also an attorney, said Mosby was fired solely for her failing job performance that’s “been going down hill for over a year, if not closer to two.”

The letter to council, which was provided to The Telegraph by Barton, asks that the city reinstate Mosby within two days of receipt of the letter. The letter also serves as a notice of claim for a possible lawsuit.

Byron City Attorney Thomas F. Richardson declined comment on the letter.

The Savannah-Chatham County Board of Education adopted a $633 million dollar FY 2020 budget, according to the Savannah Morning News.

After a public hearing that drew five more Chatham County residents, most of whom who urged the board to reconsider adopting the 18.881 millage rate, the Savannah-Chatham County school board Wednesday adopted a $632.6 million budget and voted to maintain the millage rate.

With the 18.881 millage rate expected to generate more revenue from new and appreciated property values, the adopted fiscal 2020 budget provides a larger reserve fund, while trimming about $2 million from general maintenance and operations through cuts in staff and equipment. Eight of the nine board members voted for the $632.6 million budget and the 18.881 millage rate in two separate actions. Board member Julie Wade of District 1 was absent.

As the public hearing and special-called board meeting, the discussion about whether the 18.881 millage rate amounted to a tax increase continued. State law requires three public hearings when the school board is considering a tax increase. Budget director Paige Cooley said the 18.881 millage rate is considered a tax increase despite the fact the board also adopted an 18.881 rate a year ago, because the value of the tax digest is expected to rise.

Many homeowners with the Stephens-Day exemption will see an increase in the schools portion of their property tax bill even if their property value stays the same because an amount related to the Consumer Price Index is added each year, Conley said.

School board president Joe Buck said the larger budget provides the $1,000 the school district needs to cover costs related to a $3,000 raise for certified teachers that Gov. Brian Kemp campaigned on and signed into law as part of the fiscal 2020 appropriations bill.

“What the public does not understand sometimes is, in order to give the $3,000, there’s about an additional thousand dollars per person in benefits and fringe that’s coming out of the school district,” Buck said.

“We are indeed giving the $3,000, but we are also paying the extra.”

Rome City Commission is expected to adopt a budget and millage rate, according to the Rome News Tribune.

“When we reviewed the school budget there was no millage rate increase proposed, and there’s none for the city,” said Commissioner Randy Quick, who chairs the board’s finance committee.

Commissioners have set three dates for public hearings before they adopt what they expect to be a rate of 27.536 mills. That’s equal to a levy of $1,377 on a home valued at $125,000, less any exemptions.

The board will take comments at its regular 6 p.m. meeting on July 8; at 10 a.m. July 18; and again at its regular 6 p.m. meeting July 22. Adoption is scheduled for the July 22 session.

City Clerk Joe Smith said the three public hearings are required because the total value of property in the city has risen and will bring in more revenue. Under state law that’s considered a tax increase, although only those whose assessments have gone up will pay more.

The Glynn County Commission will consider the FY 2020 budget at its meeting today, according to The Brunswick News.

The upcoming year’s budget is slightly smaller than the current year’s budget. Most of the difference comes down to fewer large expenditures and a drop in taxes from the city of Brunswick and Jekyll Island, interim Chief Financial Officer Tamara Munson told The News during an interview in late May. Five funds will be balanced using their respective reserve balances, including the Glynn County Fire Department’s fund in the amount of $616,456, the building inspection fund in the amount of $239,621 and the solid waste fund in the amount of $386,288.

Along with the budget, the commission will consider approving two resolutions to establish police and EMS tax districts.

With the city of Brunswick no longer paying a tax to support the county police department, the county plans to fund the police department primarily with its own dedicated tax. The county will lower its maintenance and operations tax — its primary source of revenue — to compensate.

Because Brunswick and Jekyll Island will be exempt from both taxes, the two districts will see a drop in taxes starting in July.

The Elbert County Board of Education adopted a $30.5 million dollar FY 2020 budget, according to the Elberton Star.

The Elbert County school board approved a $30,477,073 fiscal year 2019-2020 general fund budget Monday night after a budget process that began when Georgia Governor Brian Kemp proposed a state budget back in January.

“The budget development process for the 2019-2020 school year was set into motion over six months ago, even before the governor proposed his state budget,” Elbert County School Superintendent Chuck Bell said at the board meeting.

“We had a big increase in federal and state funds that went toward $1.4 million in pay increases for certified staff,” said School Board Chairman Ben Baker. “There were no increases in the local budget that would have an impact on property taxes.”

The Glynn County Board of Education was named an Exemplary School Board by the Georgia School Boards Association, according to The Brunswick News.

Tybee Island hosted its Fourth Annual Juneteenth Wade-In, according to the Savannah Morning News.

Congratulations and condolences to Conrad Puryear, who was elected to a full four-year term on the Murray County Board of Education, according to the Dalton Daily Citizen.

Puryear, who has been serving on the school board since April when he was appointed by the other board members, received 398 votes (59.58%) to 270 votes (40.42%) for Joshua Abernathy, according to the elections office.

Last year, Mitchell Wilson, a Republican who was appointed to the seat when Frank Lloyd resigned, was the only person to qualify for the seat for the November 2018 election from either party, but Wilson moved out of the district and could no longer serve on the board. Ray Ingle was appointed to fill the rest of that term that ended on Dec. 31. And because of the timing of Wilson’s resignation, it was too late to get new candidates for the November 2018 election, so a special election had to be held. Ingle was then appointed to serve until the special election. Qualifying was held for a March 19 special election for Republican candidates since no Democrat had originally qualified, but no one qualified then. Qualifying was held again, and Abernathy and Puryear qualified for Tuesday’s special election.