BOC Work Session; Sets Millage Rate

September 6, 2013:

A brief meeting was conducted by the Board of Commissioners this morning to approve a millage rate. The new millage rate was approved by a unanimous vote to be set at 6.687 percent.
September 5, 2013:

The Pickens County Board of Commissioners held a work session this morning. Several topics were covered for informational purposes as well as future consideration. One topic was an update on the tax digest and county budget process which is moving along well. All departments had submitted their proposed budgets to CFO Faye Harvey by last Friday and several meetings are scheduled with each department to discuss their proposals. In the meantime, the tax digest should be provided to the county by the end of next week.

The area of Jerusalem Church Road/Hill City Road/Henderson Mountain Road was another discussion as continual water problems plague the area. Utility Director Larry Coleman approached the board about the possibility of putting in a larger line in a different area to combat the problem. Originally the road was a state road and right of way dictated the line had to be 50 feet from the road. Now that the road is county, they can, at their discretion, move the line to run beside the road. The current problem is the pipe runs through a low-lying area and a corn field. When the area is farmed it creates problems with the buried line. If it were moved to the more immediate road area this should be absolved and access will also improve. He recounted 45 major leaks in the past 15 years which affects people in the entire area for extended amounts of time.

Commission Chair Robert Jones disclosed they received word from the Georgia Department of Transportation that the county will get 70 percent of emergency funds for the damage caused by recent flooding. The price tag on damage to county roads is $100,000. The county will have to provide 30 percent (or $30,000) to match the DOT’s contribution.

Please see the video for all announcements and complete details on the work session.