More on the actions of THE MAJORITY

Forsyth County, the City and Annexation

In light of the recent decision by THE MAJORITY (Conway, Ledbetter, and Tam) of the Board of Commissioners to vote to extend the Wholesale Water Users Agreement with the City of Cumming I believe a discussion of HB962 is important to illustrate that THE MAJORITY (Conway, Ledbetter, and Tam) of the BOC are placing the interest of the City of Cumming ahead of the interest of the citizens of Forsyth County who they were elected to represent.

There once was a bill before the General Assembly known as HB 962, The Fair Annexation Act.The Fair Annexation Act is designed to correct the imbalance in current law by vesting counties that are providing urban services or exercising zoning powers with a key role in the annexation process. The objective of the bill is to:

1. Establish a level playing field for counties and unincorporated property owners and residents;
2. Provide accountability in the annexation process;
3. Solidify the county’s comprehensive plan;
4. Protect counties’ land use planning and service delivery plans;
5. Make it clear that merely tapping a new source of tax revenue for the city is not sufficient justification for annexation.

The Association County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) requested that counties adopt a resolution in support of HB 962. I asked the County Attorney to prepare this resolution and it was on the agenda for the February 2nd, 2006 Board of Commissioners meeting. In an amazing show of support for the City of Cumming, THE MAJORITY (Conway, Ledbetter, and Tam) voted to table the resolution and, by proxy, show support for a city’s right to annex property in the county, at will. This commissioner took the time to send a fax in support of the bill to the members of the subcommittee of the State Planning and Community Affairs Committee, which was hearing the bill.

The bill had a hearing before a subcommittee of the State Planning and Community Affairs Committee on February 15th and again on February 21st. According to an article on page B3 of the February 25th, 2006 Atlanta Journal Constitution, the bill now appears dead in committee despite the support of officials from nearby counties including Gwinnett and Fayette.

Why are the actions of THE MAJORITY (Conway, Ledbetter, and Tam) of the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners suspect in regard to this issue? Why was THE MAJORITY (Conway, Ledbetter, and Tam) reticent to support this important piece of legislation? Recent legislation passed by the General Assembly and signed by the Governor sets population as a determining factor in the division of future SPLOST revenues if a county and it municipalities cannot agree on the division of revenue. The present division, based on estimated populations, would give the City only 3% of SPLOST revenue versus the 15% it now receives. With the unfettered ability to annex at will, it is conceivable that the City of Cumming could embark on a program of annexation to ensure that it has a claim on a larger share of SPLOST. Is it the intent of THE MAJORITY (Conway, Ledbetter, and Tam) to fill the treasury of the City at the expense of the citizens of the county?