{"id":7250,"date":"2013-12-23T12:03:17","date_gmt":"2013-12-23T17:03:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/?p=7250"},"modified":"2013-12-23T12:08:55","modified_gmt":"2013-12-23T17:08:55","slug":"secret-meeting-of-lowndes-county-commission-and-state-reps-lcc-2013-12-20","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.l-a-k-e.org\/blog\/2013\/12\/secret-meeting-of-lowndes-county-commission-and-state-reps-lcc-2013-12-20.html","title":{"rendered":"Secret meeting of Lowndes County Commission and state reps @ LCC 2013-12-20"},"content":{"rendered":"

\r\n\r\n\"Dexter<\/a>\r\nThe VDT report doesn’t say when or where, and doesn’t say whether\r\nDexter Sharper (District 177) wasn’t invited or chose not to attend.\r\n

\r\nThere’s nothing about this meeting in the online\r\n\r\nagendas<\/a>\r\nor\r\n\r\ncalendar<\/a>,\r\neven though that calendar lists\r\n\r\nPictures with Santa at the Historical Courthouse (12\/19\/2013)<\/a>.\r\n

\r\nThere is this undated\r\n\r\npublic notice<\/a> with no agenda:\r\n

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\r\n\r\n\"Paige<\/a>\r\nThe Lowndes County Board of Commissioners will meet with members of\r\nLowndes County’s Legislative Delegation on Friday, December 20,\r\n2013, at 4:00 p.m. in the Commissioner’s Conference Room located on\r\nthe 3rd floor of the Judicial-Administrative Complex, 327 North\r\nAshley Street, Valdosta, Georgia.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\nK. Paige Dukes, County Clerk\r\n

\r\npdukes@lowndescounty.com 229-671-2400\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"Tim<\/a>\r\nMatthew Woody wrote for the VDT 22 December 2013,\r\n\r\nCommissioners host local delegation<\/a>,\r\noddly omitting the when and where and much of the why from\r\nthe traditional\r\n\r\nwho, what, when, where, and why<\/a> of journalism.\r\n

\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"Amy<\/a>\r\nThe Lowndes County Commission hosted Sen. Tim Golden and House\r\nRepresentatives Amy Carter, Ellis Black, and Jason Shaw to discuss\r\nthe needs of the county in preparation for the next Georgia\r\nLegislative session.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"Jason<\/a>\r\nThe Local Option Sales Tax (LOST) and the earlier qualifying and\r\nprimary dates for Georgia representatives were among the items\r\ndiscussed.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\nCommissioners requested that the representatives help to re-enact\r\nthe original LOST referendum where the revenues would be based upon\r\npopulation and to show the reduction of property taxes on the bill\r\nas a credit against the amount of property taxes owed.\r\n<\/p>\r\n

\r\n\r\n\"Ellis<\/a>\r\n“It’s a struggle between the Association of County\r\nCommissioners of Georgia (ACCG) and the Georgia Municipal\r\nAssociation (GMA),” Ellis Black said. “It should be\r\nbased on the value of the property, not the population.”\r\n<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n

\r\nThat article includes a long list of items “the Lowndes County Commission wants the representatives to look at”, including\r\nThe Motor Fuel Excise Tax Exemption,\r\nBridges and Off-system Bridges,\r\nSPLOST VII (buried in the item on bridges),\r\nLibraries,\r\nAnnexation\/De-annexation,\r\nAlcohol Beverage Tax,\r\ntaxing online purchases,\r\nand no less than four items related to incarceration:\r\nInmate Heath[sic] Care,\r\nJuvenile Justice Reform,\r\nMagistrate Court Fees,\r\nand Assume Full Financial Responsibility for State Prisoners.\r\nYet there’s no publicly-visible agenda.\r\nAnd that list does not include anything about\r\n\r\nthe proposed Sabal Trail methane pipeline<\/a>.\r\n

\r\nThis one is pretty rich:\r\n

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