Category Archives: LCBOE

Transparency in government is essential to the public trust –VDT

VDT editorial yesterday, Violating public trust,

Georgia Attorney General Sam Olens successfully fought for and implemented changes to the state’s Open Records law, believing that transparency in government is essential to the public trust. The law passed in 2012 states, “The General Assembly finds and declares that the strong public policy of this state is in favor of open government; that open government is essential to a free, open, and democratic society; and that public access to public records should be encouraged to foster confidence in government and so that the public can evaluate the expenditure of public funds and the efficient and proper functioning of its institutions.”

The VDT asked for records from the Lowndes County school system and didn’t get them. Their experience sounds quite similar to many LAKE has had with the county government in particular, with records not being provided in the statutory three days, and sometimes not even an excuse or a list of what might eventually be available.

That plus failure to make even agendas for the Planning Commission available in a timely fashion so citizens can see whether they need to attend (somebody explain to me the expense of agendas; clearly I don’t understand this Internet suff), and even in response to open records requests returning paper when the documents are obviously composed in electronic formats, agendas for County Commission meetings that are just plain incorrect, resulting in people taking time off from work to show up unnecessarily for a Sabal Trail pipeline item that didn’t happen, a public hearing that wasn’t listed as such on the agenda, a secretive retreat “work session”, and not even being clear about what tax dollars for SPLOST would go for. That’s not even all; just a sample of county government lack of transparency.

And it’s not just the County Commission. Look at Continue reading →

the expense of agendas @ GLPC 2014-01-27

The Greater Lowndes Planning Commission meets tonight at 5:30PM, but there’s no agenda posted anywhere online. At the same meeting at which he asserted “we have broadband”, and “transparency is not a problem” County Chairman Bill Slaughter said the county doesn’t publish agendas or minutes for the Planning Commission because of “the expense”.

“the expense”
v.
“When officials act like
they have something to hide,
they often do”

I suppose I don’t know much about this Internet stuff, so maybe somebody can explain it to me: what’s the big expense in publishing the GLPC agendas and minutes the same way the county publishes its own agendas and minutes? Yet if you search for the Planning Commission on the county’s website, all you find is its name in a list of Boards, Agencies & Commissions; tonight’s meeting is not even listed in the county’s online calendar.

For that matter, what would be the big expense in posting the entire agenda packets, like for example Continue reading →

Warren Buffett moves from nuclear to wind

How to get Georgia Power and Southern Company off of nuclear and onto offshore wind and onshore solar power: stop approving Construction Work in Progress (CWIP) rate hikes for nukes that are already a billion dollars over budget and more than a year late. So far Mississippi is doing better about this than Georgia, by capping ratepayer and taxpayer costs for Kemper Coal. Iowa did, and look what happened.

SimplyInfo wrote 23 December 2013, What Power Companies Do When Nuclear Is No Longer An Easy Option, Continue reading →

Solar Oakland Schools expect 45% savings

Maybe local school districts would like to do this. Dublin, GA High School did. Lowndes County School District has the bond rating to do it.

SunPower PR in WSJ today, Oakland Unified School District Plans to Reduce Electricity Costs by Nearly Half with SunPower Solar Systems at 16 Schools,

SAN JOSE, Calif., Dec. 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ — SunPower Corp. (NASDAQ: SPWR) today announced that it is designing and building high efficiency SunPower solar power systems for 16 schools in the Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) in Oakland, Calif. Once completed in 2014, the district estimates it will reduce electricity costs at those facilities by 46 percent.

“Our contract with SunPower will enable Oakland Unified School District to Continue reading →

Videos: SPLOST VII Resolution, child proclamation, and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-10

They voted to put the SPLOST VII Resolution on the ballot in November, “to reimpose the tax”, with not even a hint of those town halls that never happened. They reappointed Mac McCall to ZBOA. The Proclamation was for a boy who called 911 to help an old neighbor who was trapped under a refrigerator (nope, not for South Georgia Pride). And we learned that nobody has to fear arrest or threat and everybody can speak their mind in the Commission chambers; nevermind recent history to the contrary.

Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes. See also videos of the previous morning’s Work Session.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

Visible Option 3 for sewer for middle school @ LCC 2013-09-10

In a surprise move, Commissioner Crawford Powell insisted on showing the audience what the Commission was voting on regarding extending sewer service for the Lowndes County Board of Education, at the Lowndes County Commission Regular Session 10 September 2013.

8.b. Sewer Service Requested for Lowndes County Board of Education

Utilities Manager Mike Allen said LCBOE wants sewer service for Lake Park Elementary to help out their failing septic tank; he recommended Option 3.

Commissioner Crawford Powell asked for Option 3 to be displayed or read. IT Director Aaron Kostyu noted that if there was a copy it could be projected. Allen moseyed over to the table by the podium with a copy, pictured here, with transcript below.

Option 3) Direct county attorney to draft two documents: Continue reading →

Videos: SPLOST VII Resolution and mystery proclamation and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-09

Charlie Clark The big surprise in the eleven-minute meeting was they called up former County Engineer Charlie Clark to explain the Utility Director’s comment about making a profit on wastewater to Lake Park Elementary School. Yes, the SPLOST VII Resolution is to put it on the ballot in November, “to reimpose the tax”. So much for those town halls that never happened. Yep, it’s Mac McCall for reappointment to ZBOA. No Proclamation this morning, so it could still be for South Georgia Pride like Valdosta Mayor John Gayle refused to proclaim last year. And they vote tomorrow night at 5:30 PM.

Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

SPLOST VII Resolution and mystery proclamation and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-09

Presumably the SPLOST VII Resolution is to put it on the ballot in November. So much for those town halls that never happened. I’m guessing the ZBOA appointment is for the finally-expired term of Dave Kirk; they appointed John “Mac” McCall last December to the unexpired part of Kirk’s term, so McCall would be the odds-on reappointment. Maybe the Proclamation is for South Georgia Pride like Valdosta Mayor John Gayle refused to proclaim last year. Why do we have to guess what all those items are for, anyway? Why don’t they just make the agenda items descriptive, or, even better, link the board packet items in with the agenda? The two For Consideration items are more intelligible, but would still make more sense with those board packet materials.

Here’s the agenda.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

Watkins family on other cases

It’s not so much what you know as what you can prove, says a concerned father, and the mother wants better representation for others whose children like her daughter have gotten caught in a felony with little if any evidence at school.

Know Your Rights say the Watkins parents Mrs. Watkins said after her daughter was tackled at school be a deputy, she found “there are a lot of children in the judicial system that may not have good representation.” She and Mr. Watkins and George Boston Rhynes are starting an organization to at least show concern. George said in one visit to juvenile court he encountered two families with problems with probation and law enforcement knocking down doors and searching without search warrants.

Mr. Watkins wants to help people know their rights. Things we older folk may have done as children now there are laws against, and the children and their families need to know things like the difference between a felony and a misdemeanor, and the importance of writing things down. “Details is all that matters.” Later he noted that Continue reading →

Mrs. Watkins says her 14-year-old daughter was charged with a felony at Pine Grove Middle School despite no evidence

Mrs. Watkins said a sheriff’s deputy used excessive force against her daughter and despite no evidence her daughter was charged with a felony. George Boston Rhynes asked:

If your child would have been been caught with what her child have experienced, wouldn’t you want somebody in Valdosta and Lowndes County and the state of Georgia and the state and the nation to know what had happened to your child?

Mrs. Watkins about her daughter at Pine Grove Middle School According to Mrs. Watkins, between 11AM and noon on 14 May 2013 she Watkins was called by the principal of Pine Grove Middle School saying her daughter had assaulted her. When Mrs. Watkins got there Deputy Robert Adkins told her he was going to charge her daughter with several charges, even though he had no statement from anyone. When she got home, she found a facebook video of two children attacking her daughter, who wasn’t attacking anyone, and the teacher was never struck, which the deputy also confirmed he had not heard happened. Yet Mrs. Watkins said none of the other children were charged and her daughter was charged with a felony. See for yourself what she said, in a lot more detail:

Here’s the video:

Continue reading →