Tag Archives: cronyism

Solid Waste Corruption in Gwinnett County?

A federal corruption probe and a developer charged with bribing
a county commissioner, who already resigned, admitting it;
all that plus drug dealing, nepotism, perjury, cronyism, and at
least one prison term,
in Gwinnett County.
This AJC story has a quote by VSU alumnus and current ADS rep.
Steve Edwards.

David Wickert wrote for the AJC 8 September 2012,

Widening probe stains Gwinnett reputation,



New details of a federal investigation paint a troubling picture of
corruption deeply embedded in Gwinnett County—allegations that
may undermine the county’s previously sterling reputation as an
economic dynamo.

Bribery allegations have now embroiled two county commissioners, a
planning commissioner and a zoning board member….

One of Lasseter’s first acts upon taking office in January 2009 was
to appoint Gary — a longtime friend — to the
Municipal-Gwinnett County Planning Commission, which would pass
judgment on his development plans, including the waste transfer
station off Winder Highway.

More dominoes in the federal corruption probe began falling last
week, when Continue reading →

Georgia legislature giving unelected bodies bond-issuing privatizing power

The Georgia House has just passed a bill authorizing local
development authorities to form public-private partnerships


as they see fit and to issue bonds to pay for them, putting
we the taxpayers on the hook.
If this bill passes, VLCIA could issue bonds for a private prison,
a biomass plant, a coal plant (apparently not a coincindence; see below),
a toll road, a private railroad,
or whatever it felt like.
It wouldn’t even need
cooperation by elected officials.
It wouldn’t have to go to the Lowndes County Commission for permission,
like

VLCIA did for $15 million in bonds to buy real estate.
The Industrial Authority could just issue the bonds itself!
And we the taxpayers who would have to pay for it?
We’ll just get to pay, that’s all.
There’s still time to stop it in the Georgia Senate.

Maybe
HB 475 should be called the “Easy Jobs for Cronies Act”.
It adds various definitions of public-private partnership,
and then throws in a wild card:

Continue reading →