In response to (a second) open records request, County Clerk Paige Dukes
stated in writing that Lowndes County does not have a contract with the person
referred to in numerous minutes as “County Attorney”, and that
no bids have been entertained for legal services for the county.
According to the budget documents the Clerk referred to,
the county raised the County Attorney’s budget 20% to $300,000 for 2013.
Illustrations below (some with links) were added by me. -jsq

From: pdukes@lowndescounty.com

To: b-ahuntley@hotmail.com

CC: asmith@lowndescounty.com; JPritchard@lowndescounty.com;
bswaller@bellsouth.net

Subject: Open Records Request

Date: Mon, 23 Sep 2013 13:22:08 +0000

Good Morning Mrs. Huntley,

In response to your open records request of September 18, requesting
a copy of the materials provided to the Commission for the work
session of September 23, 2013, please know that the work session
and regular meeting originally scheduled for September 23 & 24,
have been cancelled. This being the case, an agenda notebook has
not been prepared.

In response to your open records request of September 18, requesting
written answers to questions regarding the county attorney to
include a contract, cost and bid. Please know that the open records
statute is an avenue by which citizens may request existing
documents. It does not allow for the creation of documents or
provide specifically for direct questions to be answered in


writing. However, Lowndes County Officials and staff remain
available to answer and/or discuss any questions you may have.
Please do not hesitate to call or send an email if there is
something the county can help you with. Contact information for the
Board of Commissioners and department heads may be found on the
countys website,
www.lowndescounty.com,
or I will be happy to
help you and I can be reached by calling 229-671-2400.

Regarding the items you requested, a contract between the county and
the county attorney is not required by law, nor does one exist. The


current budget and actual expenses can be found on the countys
website,
www.lowndescounty.com,
click on Government, then County
Manager, then Finance. On the Finance page, click on Financial
Reports, it will take you to the countys budget documents from 2007
2013. Georgia law does not require professional services to be bid.
This being the case, legal services are not bid. In addition, while
the county primarily utilizes the firm of Elliott, Blackburn and
Gooding, other attorneys are used depending upon the matter at
hand.

Thank you,

Paige Dukes

Annual Operating Budget, Lowndes County, Ga., Page 140:

General Fund – Non-Departmental

That’s 3/5 of the amount that was stated by the county in arguing
for closing the county’s waste collection sites.
And this expenditure is without a contract,
and with no accounting provided for what it is spent on.
Does this seem right to you, the citizens, who appear at the top
of the county’s organizational chart?

-jsq

Annual Operating Budget, Lowndes County, Ga., Page 41: