Fresh Loaf

Outgoing Dekalb County CEO Vernon Jones and his incoming replacement, county Commissioner Burrell Ellis, have each publicly accused the other of mishandling the transition process.

“I have nothing but love for Commissioner Ellis, but due to the complaints from employees and appointed citizens, I made it clear to him and Kevin Ross they could not harass or threaten people who they suspect didn’t vote for Commissioner Ellis; and the meeting ended.”

-Jones, in a November 14 AJC story, explaining why he kicked Ellis’s transition team out of his office. Ellis denies the accusation and says Jones has not produced a single example of alleged harassment or threats.

“It appears to me that he’s just throwing a tantrum because he’s a lame duck with nowhere to go.”

-Ellis, in the same story. He accuses Jones of trying to keep Ellis’s team from reviewing county budget and management records.

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When DeKalb County Commissioner Burrell Ellis drops his title next year and assumes his newly elected role of County CEO, he’ll take office without some of the powers enjoyed by his predecessors.

On Nov. 4, more than 64 percent of DeKalb County voters approved an amendment that reins in some powers of CEO — the only office of its kind in metro Atlanta in which a single person oversees the day-to-day functions of government and sets the agenda for county commission meetings.

Once Ellis takes office, that agenda-setting power will belong to the commission according to rules it adopts. (Commissioner Jeff Rader says staff is currently at work on the rules.) If the CEO wants to introduce legislation, he would have to do so through a commissioner who would then send it to the appropriate committee. Rader says legislation could be expedited if it’s an urgent matter.

The CEO would still submit the budget, make staff decisions, and appoint department heads, among other powers. If a tiebreaker vote is needed, the CEO would cast it if each member of the commission requested he or she do so.

Introduced by state Sen. Emanuel Jones, D-Ellenwood, the amendment has an understandable critic: Vernon Jones, the soon-to-be former CEO.

(more…)

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Somewhat lost amid the shuffle of the presidential race and a handful of legislators losing seats were the various referenda (or referendums, for non-English majors) that appeared on local ballots. Here’s a wrap-up:

• Yes to TADS; no to private cities. By a close margin, Georgia voters approved a constitutional amendment to allow school boards to join with local governments in issuing bonds for tax allocation districts. But voters narrowly spiked a crazy proposal to allow private developers to levy taxes on homeowners. Less controversial was an initiative to provide tax incentives to encourage preservation of forest land; it passed handily.

• Fulton County libraries will be getting a facelift. Voters overwhelmingly approved a $275 million bond issue to add eight new branches, spruce up 24 existing branches and spend $85 million toward replacing the downtown central library. Expect a grassroots campaign to emerge against tearing down the old building. (more…)
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It’s ironic that a ballot question to limit the authority of the county CEO is being posed to voters just as the power-hungry Vernon Jones prepares to leave office. Still, it’s a sensible measure that can help prevent future friction between the county’s board of commissioners and its chief executive.

For the past five years, incoming CEO Burrell Ellis had been the commission’s presiding officer, but that was largely an empty title because Jones has presided at board meetings. The referendum would correct this backwards situation by authorizing the commission to, in essence, run its own meetings. Likewise, the measure would allow the commission to draw up its own meeting agenda, taking that power away from the CEO. (more…)

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“Forget it, Jake. It’s South DeKalb.”

With apologies to Chinatown, that’s what DeKalb voting patterns make me think of. Who imagined, back in 2004, that Cynthia McKinney would win back her Congressional seat without a runoff against such heavy hitters as Lianne Levitan and Cathy Woolard? Ditto for embattled CEO Vernon Jones, who easily won re-election that same year against six challengers, including a sitting commissioner, also without a runoff.

South DeKalb politics is like a sealed box; you can speculate all you like about what’s inside, but you never really know until you take the lid off on election day. (more…)

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For the second consecutive morning, Dekalb County is telling me not to drink tap water without first boiling it for at least three minutes.

To put it mildly, I’m irritated — not just because I can’t drink coffee at home this morning, but because of all the people who, upon waking, don’t read Dekalb County press releases, and who are therefore drinking dirty water this morning.

By my count, this is the second time in just a few weeks that a run-of-the-mill storm has knocked out the county’s supply of clean drinking water.

A water system that fails every time it gets windy is a broken water system.

After I get some caffeine in me, I plan to call Burrell Ellis and Stan Watson, the remaining two candidates for Dekalb County CEO, and ask what they plan to do to fix the problem.

The candidate who promises me potable tap water on a daily basis will get my vote.

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Here’s a quick rundown on the July 15 Georgia primary results. The big news was generated by high-stakes runoffs:

* U.S. senator: The two experienced Democrats — Vernon Jones and Joe Martin — vanquished three first-time candidates and will face each other in an Aug. 5 runoff. With 91 percent of precincts counted, DeKalb CEO Jones won 40 percent of the vote, while Martin got 35 percent. Martin — who entered the race late and has been criticized for a lackluster campaign — may have a slight edge in the runoff: He has more money in the bank, he seems more likely to pick up support from supporters of other candidates, and his largely white base historically shows up for runoffs better than does Jones’ base of black voters. What does Jones have going for him? A runoff in the contest for who will replace him as DeKalb CEO could spur turnout in his home county. The winner takes on Republican incumbent Saxby Chambliss in November.

* DeKalb County CEO: The contest for the most powerful local government post in the state heads for a runoff as well, although DeKalb Commissioner Burrell Ellis turned out an impressive showing with 46 percent of the vote. No surprise that he’ll face well-liked state Rep. Stan Watson in the runoff. But a 20 point head start has gotta give Ellis the edge. (more…)

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