Tag Archives: Economy

Vote on SPLOST IX? @ LCC 2025-08-04

Update 2025-08-04: Agenda: Special Called Meeting about SPLOST IX Agreement @ LCC 2025-08-04.

There’s nothing about this on lowndescounty.com, not in the calendar, not in agendas, not in news.

Yet according to the slides for the June Budget Hearings, the Lowndes County Commission and staff expect to derive $17 million from SPLOST IX in FY 2026.

What projects will this penny sales tax fund? Where is the list for Special Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) IX? What is this Agreement mentioned in the VDT article?

[Vote on SPLOST IX?, Special Called Meeting 2025-08-04, Lowndes County Commission, Where is the Project List?]
Vote on SPLOST IX?, Special Called Meeting 2025-08-04, Lowndes County Commission, Where is the Project List?

By Staff reports, Valdosta Daily Times, Published 3:23 pm Friday, August 1, 2025, County to meet for SPLOST discussions,

VALDOSTA — The Lowndes County Board of Commissioners will hold a called meeting at 4 p.m. Monday in the Commission Chambers, 327 N. Ashley St., second floor, for the purpose of considering the SPLOST IX Agreement.

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Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!
http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/donate

Agenda: Special Called Meeting about SPLOST IX Agreement @ LCC 2025-08-04

Update 2025-08-04: Video: Special Called Meeting about SPLOST IX Agreement @ LCC 2025-08-04.

Since LAKE posted the VDT notice of the SPLOST IX Special Called Meeting for this afternoon, an agenda and agenda sheet have popped up on LowndesCounty.com.

They’ve been working on this SPLOST IX Agreement since April, yet they couldn’t discuss it during a regularly-scheduled meeting, nor tell the tax-paying public what’s on the project list?

[Agenda and Sheet @ LCC 2025-08-04, 4 PM, Special Called Meeting, SPLOST IX Agreement]
Agenda and Sheet @ LCC 2025-08-04, 4 PM, Special Called Meeting, SPLOST IX Agreement

Here is the agenda:

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
SPECIAL CALLED MEETING
PROPOSED AGENDA
MONDAY, AUGUST 4, 2025, 4:00 P.M.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor

Continue reading →

Videos: Special Called Meeting to adopt FY 2026 Budget @ LCC 2025-06-30

Only two voting Commissioners were present: Demarcus Marshall and Michael Smith.

Commissioner Scottie Orenstein rushed in to complete a quorum of the Lowndes County Commission.

Commissioners Joyce Evans and Mark Wisenbaker were absent.

Apparently there was an agenda, although it is not on the county’s website.

At the end Chairman Bill Slaughter mentioned they would set the millage once they got the tax digest.

[Collage @ LCC 30 June 2025]
Collage @ LCC 30 June 2025

This meeting took four and a half minutes, even counting the minute saying they would recess until there was a quorum, and the 45 seconds of Chairman’s comments at the end thanking Finance Director Stephanie Black.

It is still mysterious why they couldn’t schedule this vote to be during their Regular Session last week, and why they only announce this Monday morning meeting Friday afternoon.

Below are Continue reading →

Notice: Special Called Meeting to adopt FY 2026 Budget @ LCC 2025-06-30

Update 2025-06-30: Videos: Special Called Meeting to adopt FY 2026 Budget @ LCC 2025-06-30.

Lowndes County announced this 8:30 AM Monday meeting on Friday afternoon.

Why they have to have it during a workday is mysterious.

I hear they have to adopt the budget by the end of the month, but they could have scheduled the previous Public Hearing early enough to adopt the budget at last week’s Regular Session.

And if they knew they had to adopt by the end of the month, they could have announced the date of adoption at the Public Hearing.

[Notice: Special Called Meeting, to adopt FY 2026 Budget, Announced Friday, @ LCC Monday 2025-06-30]
Notice: Special Called Meeting, to adopt FY 2026 Budget, Announced Friday, @ LCC Monday 2025-06-30

For the LAKE videos of the Public Hearing and the presentation slides, see previous post.
http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/?p=25068

-jsq

Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!
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Videos: Budget Public Hearing @ LCC 2025-06-23

Update 2025-06-29: Notice: Special Called Meeting to adopt FY 2026 Budget @ LCC 2025-06-30.

The 2024 millage of 5.283 is little more than half the 8.974 it was in 2017. Not counting the 2.5 mils of fire tax on unincorporated Lowndes County since 2021, and of course the 1 mil to the Industrial Authority and the 1.25 mils to Parks and Rec, which have not changed since 2008.

About 85% of the county’s revenues come from taxes. About 57% of that comes from property taxes, and about 31% Local Option Sales Tax (LOST).

Of expenditures, about 41% goes to Public Safety (Sheriff Department, Jail, etc.), about 12% to Juducial (courts), and about 18% to General Government.

[Collage @ LCC Budget Hearing 23 June 2025]
Collage @ LCC Budget Hearing 23 June 2025

Commissioner Demarcus Marshall asked how the rising cost of gasoline was dealt with. Finance Director Stephanie Black said there was some leeway built into the budget, but if the price rise exceeds that, at the end of the year, additional funds would have to be allocated.

Commissioner Scottie Orenstein wondered about the fire services budget. FD Black said it is going down 10%, because new fire trucks were moved into a SPLOST line item.

County Manager Paige Dukes said a few words about property assessments that were mailed out by Tax Assessors staff. I think this was about the recent opt-out of the county from the statewide homestead exemption (the county actually has better homestead exemptions).

Almost no citizens attended, and none asked any questions.

Below is the LAKE video of the session, with a few notes by Gretchen Quarterman, followed by a LAKE video playlist of this Lowndes County Commission presentation at 9AM this morning.

See also Continue reading →

Budget Public Hearing @ LCC 2025-06-23

Update 2025-06-23: Videos: Budget Public Hearing @ LCC 2025-06-23.

Monday morning after their Work Session, the Lowndes County Commission is holding a Public Hearing on its Fiscal Year 2026 proposed budget.

As usual with no posted agenda and no public copy of the proposed agenda.

Here’s the notice in the county’s calendar.

[Budget Public Hearing, Lowndes COunty Commission, 9 AM, 2025-06-23]
Budget Public Hearing, Lowndes COunty Commission, 9 AM, 2025-06-23

-jsq

Investigative reporting costs money, for open records requests, copying, web hosting, gasoline, and cameras, and with sufficient funds we can pay students to do further research. You can donate to LAKE today!
http://www.l-a-k-e.org/blog/donate

Vote today: GA PSC Election 2025-06-17

Concerned about solar on agricultural land? Want more solar on rooftops and parking lots? Tired of natural gas pipelines and Liquid Natural Gas (LNG)? Want to stop wasting money on nuclear? Don’t want higher electric rates?

Today is Primary Election Day for the Georgia Public Service Commission (GA-PSC).

Any registered Georgia voter can vote, even though the two districts up for election include parts of Atlanta, Augusta, and Savannah, and nothing in south central Georgia. If that seems odd to you, it also does to the people who have been suing about it for around five years, which is why this is the first PSC election in that time.

For sample ballots and where to vote, go to GA My Voter page:
https://mvp.sos.ga.gov/

[GA PSC Election, Vote Today, July 17, 2025, Two Districts, All Georgia Registered Voters]
GA PSC Election, Vote Today, July 17, 2025, Two Districts, All Georgia Registered Voters

Here are the candidates. For more about them, see Emily Jones, WABE, Grist, The Current, June 10, updated June 16, 2025, Meet the Ga. Public Service Commission candidates. Continue reading →

Packet: Utilities in Lowndes County Commission Annual Planning Meeting 2025-03-06

See also 2025-03-26: River water and groundwater interchange interacts with drinking water treatment 2025-03-26.

Update 2025-03-24: Packet: Lowndes County Fire Rescue for Lowndes County Commission Retreat 2025-03-07.

Here is another chunk of the board packet for the March 5-7, 2025, Lowndes County Planning Meeting on Jekyll Island, Georgia. This one is for the Utilities Department, which was on the agenda for March 6.

[Utilities Department, Lowndes County Retreat 2025-03-06, Projects, Floridan Aquifer, River water infiltration & Nanofiltration]
Utilities Department, Lowndes County Retreat 2025-03-06, Projects, Floridan Aquifer, River water infiltration & Nanofiltration

These Utilities materials include an org chart, lists of projects completed during 2024, ongoing, and future, and some details on river water infiltration into the Floridan Aquifer producing a need for improved nanofiltration to get rid of harmful chemicals formed by interaction with chlorine.

Both the lists of projects and the nanofiltration information are pretty clear that they are mostly to support private for-profit subdivisions.

While posting the rest of the board packet I noticed there were pieces missing.

So on March 14 I sent a request for the rest: Continue reading →

Packet: Lowndes County Commission Annual Planning Meeting 2025-03-05

Update 2025-03-23: Packet: Utilities in Lowndes County Commission Annual Planning Meeting 2025-03-06.

Here is what we got in response to an open records request for the agenda and board packet for the Lowndes County, Georgia, three-day Annual Planning Meeting, which you may recall was held on Jekyll Island with one day’s notice to the public.

There are packet materials for many of the agenda items, including Finance (in some detail), SPLOST VIII, VLPRA (in great detail), TIA I and II, Comprehensive Plan, and E-911.

[Lowndes County Commission, Annual Retreat 2025-03-05-7, Agenda and Board Packet]
Lowndes County Commission, Annual Retreat 2025-03-05-7, Agenda and Board Packet

I don’t seem to see materials for South Health DIstrict, Utilities, Public Works, or Lowndes County Fire Rescue. If any of those are in here, somebody please point them out.

Not listed on the agenda there are long sections by the Engineering Department, and lists of the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee staff.

The board packet, received in response to a LAKE open records request, is on the LAKE website.

Agenda:

Lowndes County Board of Commissioners
2025 Annual Planning Meeting Agenda
March 5 1:00 p.m. — 4:30 p.m.*
March 6 8:30 a.m. — 4:30 p.m.*
March 7 8:30 a.m. — 1:00 p.m.*
(*times may vary based on length of discussion)
The Westin — Jekyll Island
110 Ocean Way, Jekyll Island, Georgia

Wednesday-
1:00 p.m. Finance
2:30 p.m. SPLOST VIII
3:00 p.m. SPLOST IX
Thursday-
8:30 a.m. VLPRA
10:00 a.m. South Health District
11:00 a.m. TIA I
11:30 a.m. TIA II
12:00 noon Lunch
12:45 p.m. Utilities
2:00 p.m. Public Works
3:00 p.m. Comprehensive Plan Review
Friday-
8:30 a.m. Lowndes County Fire Rescue
9:30 a.m. E-911
Continue reading →

One Day Notice: Lowndes County Annual Planning Meeting, Jekyll Island, GA 2025-03-05

Update 2025-03-13: Packet: Lowndes County Commission Annual Planning Meeting 2025-03-05.

Update 2025-03-07: Cancelled: Lowndes County Commission meetings 2025-03-10-11 2025-03-10.

If you were signed up for Lowndes County’s civicplus alert system, yesterday you got a notice that today starts the three-day Lowndes County Annual Planning Meeting on Jekyll Island.

No agenda is posted.

The name of the venue is not mentioned, but at 110 Ocean Way, Jekyll Island, GA, is The Westin Jekyll Island Beach Resort, with rooms listed at $299/night, or $372 with taxes and fees.

[One Day Notice: LCC Annual Planning Meeting, Westin Jekyll Island Beach Resort 2025-03-05-07]
One Day Notice: LCC Annual Planning Meeting, Westin Jekyll Island Beach Resort 2025-03-05-07

Generally I agree the budget of the Lowndes County Commission is frugal.

But not this resort island splurge away from the eyes of the taxpayers and voters.

LAKE has filed a Georgia Open Records Act (GORA) request for the agenda and board packet. The three-day statutory limit does not expire until after this retreat is over. We would have filed the request earlier, had we known. Continue reading →