MoCo Commission Sets Qualifying Fees for Upcoming County Races
In its regular monthly meeting on Monday, January 10, the Montgomery County Commission approved qualifying fees for various county offices for which elections will be held in 2022. Elections will be held in the May 24 primary (with July 21 runoffs if necessary) and November 8 general election to fill the District 4 and District 5 posts on the County Commission currently held by Commissioner Clarence Thomas and Commission Chairman Leland Adams; the District 3 and District 5 seats on the Board of Education currently held by Board Member Debra Gay and Board Chairman Jim Paul Poole; and the Magistrate Judge’s post currently held by Judge Ashley Thornton. Qualifying fees are $108 for the commission seats, $36 for the Board of Education posts, and $1,495 for the judge’s seat. Fees are based on 3% of the annual base salaries of these positions. The Commission also approved three consent agenda items: A purchase agree ment with Harris Local Government for software for the Tax Commissioner’s Office at a cost of $9,020 to be paid through SPLOST.
A Probation Servic es Agreement with Judicial Alternatives of Georgia, Inc.,( JAG) to provide probation services for the Montgomery County Superior Court.
A service agreement with Kofile Technologies, Inc., to perform imaging and indexing of the Montgomery County Clerk of Superior Court’s historical plat records at a cost of $10,500, which will be paid from the county’s operating budget.
The Commission also agreed to purchase a rubber tire backhoe for the Building and Grounds Department after many months of deliberation. This equipment will come from Flint Equipment of Macon, a John Deere dealer, at a cost of $132,430, the lower of two bids received by the County. The equipment will not be available to the Department for five months, during which time the Commission and County Manager will review the County budget and finances to determine the best possible way to fund the purchase.
The Commission also approved the adoption of resolutions to support Georgia’s annexation dispute resolution law, and to establish and post park rules and regulations for the County’s recreational properties. The Commissioners agreed to repair a pothole on Bear Creek Road; awarded the job of applying fertilizer on the fields and common areas at the Recreation Department to the Montford Group for a bid of $3,950; and voted to install security cameras at the Tax Commissioner’s office.
In other business, the Commission reelected Leland Adams as chair of the Commission, reelected Clarence Thomas as Vice-Chair, and appointed Dorothy Days to a sixyear term on the Board of Health.
During reports, County Manager Brandon Braddy noted that the County ended 2021 on sound financial footing with revenues exceeding expenditures. Actual net revenues exceeded expenditures by $211,850.39. EMA Director Donnie Daniels related that the EMA answered 282 fire calls in 2021 and that currently, the county is contending with 30 cases of COVID-19. He said his office still has some personal protection equipment available for county staff, but supplies are limited.
The Commission tabled the issue of updating the County Tax Map so that all proposals for the work might be reconsidered, and also tabled adopting a resolution to establish board seat numbers and their respective terms of office for the Board of Tax Assessors. An appointment to this Board was also deferred pending further study of the Board’s structure.
