Transportation Investment Act of 2010

The Transportation Investment Act of 2010 was passed into state law in June of 2010. It places the transportation future of Georgia into the hands of the voters by providing for the establishment of 12 regional roundtables. Dacula and Gwinnett County fall into the Atlanta Regional Roundtable along with the other 10 metro Georgia Counties and their cities.

The law provides for a roundtable made up of the county commission chairman and a mayor from each of the counties located in the region. For the Atlanta roundtable the mayor of Atlanta is also included. The Atlanta Roundtable consists of 21 members. From an unconstrained list of projects that meet certain criteria, a final list for each of the 12 roundtables will be chosen. When the referendum which will be held in the summer of 2012 is held, the voters of each regional roundtable will be voting to approve the 1% sales tax which will fund the projects of each region.

Soon, you will be seeing the unconstrained (read all the projects that meet the criteria) project list for Gwinnett and her cities. As you can imagine, not all projects on the unconstrained list will make the cut to the final list.

The 1% sales tax over a ten year period is expected to keep about $7 billion dollars in the Atlanta region. Fifteen percent of the money is devoted directly to cities and counties in the Atlanta region, with the remainder to be used for projects with regional impact.

The law provides for an aggressive time line. The final project list is due to each roundtable by October 15, 2011.

For additional information please see the Atlanta Regional Commission’s website for the Transportation Investment Act.

Congratulations to our new Commission Chairman

Congratulations to Charlotte Nash, our new Chairman, Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners!

VOTE!

VOTE!

March 15, 2011

for

Charlotte Nash

Three Days Left to Vote

If you have not voted in the Special Election for Chairman of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners race, I invite you to visit the Elections Office on Grayson Highway in Lawrenceville either today or Friday to vote for the best qualified candidate in the race—Charlotte Nash. Your last chance to vote will be at your regular polling place next Tuesday from 7AM to 7PM.

Your participation in this election is critical for Gwinnett County. I encourage you to ask your neighbors to join with you in voting today, Friday or next week on Tuesday.

I am supporting Charlotte Nash, and I invite you to support Charlotte also.

What's Happening in State Government?

Just to give you a headsup on an issue that on the surface looks like it only affects you and the General Assembly. I believe this also affects you at the local level, i.e. School Board, County Commission, and Municipal.

I've attached a commentary from the Political Vine web site, and it has commentary from a leading law firm. Please pay attention.

"Two days ago, the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission (formerly known for 25 years prior to 2011 as simply "Georgia State Ethics Commission") issued an advisory opinion that greatly expanded the definitions of "lobbying" and being a "lobbyist" in this state.

And, despite the hue and cry from ethics lawyers, legislators and other parties about how the 2010 overhaul of the Ethics in Government Act was never intended to go this far, by a vote of 4 in favor to 1 against, the Commission voted to expand the lobbying law as follows...and PV excerpts the subject brief issued by Stefan Passantino of McKenna Long on these new interpretations:

"...anyone appearing before a public official to advocate a position on legislation - even if done on a single visit or if done in the context of invited legislative testimony - will be considered to be a “lobbyist” by the State of Georgia regulatory body. This will mean that any business owner or employee acting on behalf of a client will be required to register as a lobbyist before advocating a position on legislation to Georgia public officials such as members of the General Assembly.

"The ramifications of this interpretation of existing law are dramatic and must be heeded immediately. Under Georgia’s newly imposed registration scheme, registration fees for lobbyists have been increased to $300 annually plus $10 for every additional client added plus $20 for each lobbyist badge issued.

More importantly, the penalties imposed for failure to register and file mandated disclosures have increased significantly under the new law with potential penalties of up to $10,000 for each report the “lobbyist” fails to file. With lobby registrations now being due twice per month while the General Assembly is in session, failure to understand and comply with the Georgia Government Transparency and Campaign Finance Commission’s interpretation of existing law can result in crippling penalties and compliance costs.

Thus, commencing immediately, clients with employees who communicate with Georgia legislators need to examine their agents’ conduct and political law compliance protocols. The scope of the State’s interpretation expressly includes, but is not limited to:

* Any formal or casual meetings with members of the General Assembly at the Capitol or other locations in which legislation is discussed;
* Testimony before a House or Senate committee, even if invited, unless that testimony is 'unbiased' and is offered solely 'for the purpose of educating the members of any agency or governmental entity in the consideration of an issue;'
* Participation in 'Capitol Day' events, unless done as an uncompensated member of a trade association and not as an employee of a business; and
* Letters, emails or other correspondence to members of the General Assembly related to legislation."

What I think this means is if you come to see me about something the City is planning to do, and you do anything except try to educate me, i.e. if you say vote against that item or if you send me an email or telephone me advocating for an item--you are considered a lobbyist and must register as such, paying the fees and making the reports required. The fines assessed if you don't are high. As I read the advisory, it doesn't apply to elected officials.

Just a thought--did anyone read the U. S. and Georgia Constitutions. Apparently, some feathers have been rustled, and free speech is out the window.

Chairman Special Election

Your chance to make a difference in Gwinnett County comes on March 15, 2011. We will elect a new Chairman of the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners.

Absentee voting is underway, and early voting at the Elections Office on Grayson Highway will start next week. Your regular polling place will be open from 7AM to 7PM on March 15, 2011.

While I don't usually endorse a particular candidate, I want to take this opportunity to recommend Charlotte Nash for Chairman. I do this for three major reasons: the job requires a person that can be up to speed on day one after the election, the job needs a person of integrity, and the job needs someone who knows Gwinnett County and Gwinnett County Government. Charlotte is the person for the job.

Join me in supporting and voting for Charlotte Nash on March 15!

What's up in the Georgia General Assembly

HB 87 is on the floor and by the time you read this, it may have passed the house. HB 87 is an immigration bill. The bill contains language that allows for example a 21 year old college student in LaGrange to sue Dacula official if that student thinks that a city official, agent, agency or the like is not carrying out the provisions as written in the bill. In other words the bill as written gives anyone in Georgia who is at least 21 years of age standing to sue any municipality, county or school system.

Here is a copy of an email that I sent to each of our member of the Gwinnett delegation about this matter. Several have responded, but I'm unsure if they understand my local concern about litigation costs. How can a local government budget for such contingencies? What amount and where will the money come from?

Mayor Wilbanks,
Thanks for your comments and concerns. This section of the bill was thoroughly debated by the committee and discussed in Rules. If you will do those things that are outlined in the bill to comply with the law the threat of a law suit will be diminished greatly. I believe the bill to be very straightforward.

Tommy Benton
Georgia House of Representatives
District 31

________________________________________
From: Jimmy Wilbanks [mailto:mayordacula@charter.net]
Sent: Thu 3/3/2011 7:51 AM
To: 'District 100 Honorable Brian Thomas'; Brockway, Buzz; Pak, BJ; Casas, David; Clark, Valerie; Sheldon, Donna; Harrell, Brett; 'District 107 Honorable Len Walker'; 'District 108 Honorable Terry England'; Mills, James; Benton, Tommy; 'District 51 Honorable Tom Rice'; Mitchell, Billy; 'District 95 Honorable Toney Collins'; 'District 96 Honorable Pedro Marin'; 'District 97 Honorable Brooks P. Coleman, Jr.'; Clark, Josh; 'District 99 Honorable Hugh Floyd'; 'District 41 Honorable Steve Henson'; 'District 45 Honorable Renee S. Unterman'; 'District 47 Honorable Frank Ginn'; Shafer, David; Miller, Butch; Thompson, Curt (CR); Butler, Gloria; Balfour, Don
Subject: House Bill 87, Illegal Immigration Reform and Enforcement Act of 2011, Rep. Matt Ramsey
Gwinnett Representatives and Senators,

Good morning, thank you for your service to our varying communities in Gwinnett County and to the State as a whole.

I’m sure that everyone want to see a comprehensive plan to secure our borders and deter illegal immigration. I have some problems with the language in HB 87, in particular the provision that provides that anyone 21 year of age or older can sue any local government for some perceived failure on the part of local agencies and/or officials to adhere to the language and intent of HB 87. Simply complying with the intent of HB 87 will cost local governments, and the unknown costs of litigation makes this bill unworkable at the local level. Unworkable, because local commissions, boards, and councils will not have any idea of what budget figure should be plugged in for potential litigation costs. I guess the best example of these unintended costs might be compared to requests for open records. Members of the General Assembly may know of cases where disgruntled members of the public have made numerous requests for records—just for the sake of disrupting the process. A similar situation might develop if HB 87 is passed as written.

Should HB 87 appear on the floors of your respective houses, I request that you make sure that the language in the bill is straightforward, clear and limits litigation costs and damages at the local level.

Thank you,



Jimmy Wilbanks
Mayor
442 Harbins Road
P. O. Box 400
Dacula, GA 30019

At The Center of Georgia's Innovation Crescent

City Hall:770.963.7451
Mobile: 770.560.0867
Fax: 770.513.2187



Representative Benton, who does not represent Dacula, was kind enough to respond. However, I am not convinced that the unintended consequences of the language in the bill is wise--diminished lawsuits--one unneeded and unnecessary lawsuit is too much.

I know you have read about abusive uses by the public of requests for public records. I'm afraid that HB 87, as written, will encourage such abuse.