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Politics & Government

Representative Scott Holcomb and Senator Steve Henson Host Town Hall Meeting

Topics discussed included HOPE scholarship and pre-K funding, Sunday alcohol sales, taxes, and more.

Despite the downpour outside, a decent crowd assembled at on Monday night for the Town Hall meeting hosted by Senator and Representative .  Information sent out beforehand listed an agenda including the budget shortfall, immigration, HOPE and pre-K funding, Sunday alcohol sales, and transportation.  Those attending were invited to submit questions via e-mail before the meeting or on paper during the meeting.

The evening started with a welcome and introductions from Senator Henson and Representative Holcomb.  Holcomb indicated that it was his first Town Hall Meeting since being elected last fall.

DeKalb County Commissioner Jeff Rader (District 2) spoke first, indicating that the commission adopted a budget last week which includes cuts across the board (9% in most cases, with a 4 1/2% cut to public safety).  Millage rates will be set in June, defining the county's tax base, and more details on budget cuts can be determined at that time.

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Jonathan Weintraub, representing DeKalb County CEO Burrell Ellis's office, spoke next.  He discussed foreclosures in the area (there have been 18,000, with about 3, 000 more expected this year).  His talk also focused on code enforcement and community development/sustainability despite the looming budget cuts.

Two community leaders also spoke at the meeting.  Van Johnson, from the Northlake Community Alliance, announced two events coming to the Tucker/Northlake area this spring.  The will take place March 19 in the Northlake Mall parking lot, and the will take place on April 30 in the Resurgens Bank parking lot off Henderson Mill Road. 

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In addition, Beth Nathan, President of the North Briarcliff Civic Association, spoke on park development and conservation.  On March 26, the Civic Association Network will be hosting a walk/run/bike/skate event, the "Embrace Our Green Space Race," to benefit parks in the area.  

The remainder of the meeting was devoted to answering questions by meeting attendees and those that were submitted via email.  Senator Henson and Representative Holcomb took turns addressing concerns.  Some key points:

The HOPE scholarship is in trouble for several reasons, one of which is that federal higher education spending has been cut by $1 billion in the last 10 years.  As a result, tuition has had to increase.  The scholarship will be out of money in two years unless changes are made.  Governor Deal has proposed having the scholarship cover 90% of tuition, with those students graduating high school with a 3.7 GPA (and maintaining a 3.5 GPA) receiving 100% of tuition on what is to be called the "Zell Miller Scholarship."  There have been many concerns and complaints about this proposal, most especially that it would be retroactive and affect students who are already in college.

In the same proposal, Governor Deal has proposed cutting the Georgia Pre-K program to a 4-hour day instead of the current full (6-hour) schedule.  This would enable the state to add 5,000 seats to the program, but prompts questions in regard to transportation, teacher salaries and benefits, and scheduling for both parents and schools.

Henson and Holcomb both emphasized their desire to hear the community's input on all issues, but especially these.

In regard to Sunday alcohol sales, it appears the bill which would allow counties to vote on whether or not to allow this has been tabled for now.

Rep. Holcomb spoke briefly on the "Billboards vs. Trees Debate," indicating that he had voted against House Bill 179, which would allow clear-cutting around billboards.   The bill passed and is moving across to the senate.  To this, he stated his displeasure and said that "it's easy to be in the minority when it's the right thing to do."  Senator Henson also indicated that he will vote against this bill when it goes to a senate vote.

Today (March 1), Rep. Holcomb plans to introduce his first bill, which would ban BPA from plastics.  He cited "keeping children safe" and "giving notice to manufacturers" as his objectives in introducing this bill.

As far as illegal immigration is concerned, Holcomb insisted that it's a federal problem.  He said that he doesn't think 50 different state laws are a viable solution, and that, "frankly," he is "appalled that the federal government has stuck their heads in the sand and left this issue to the states."

Speaking of House Bill 59, which would ban illegal immigrants from public colleges, Holcomb is inclined to vote against it.  He stated his reasons to be that denying access to people who can't prove they're here legally mostly affects children, and "they didn't necessarily chose to be here.  Rather than denying them education, let's give them the opportunity to better themselves and become productive members of society."

There was much discussion of the Personal Services Tax, as well.  Senator Henson indicated that he doesn't think it's likely to move through the General Assembly, as it's tough to collect and has the potential for a lot of abuses.  There has also been talk in the Assembly of adding the grocery tax back on.  Again, Rep. Holcomb asked for citizen feedback on the issue.

Senator Henson spoke briefly on the water litigation in place.  In 2009, a federal judge ruled against the state's movement of water from Lake Lanier to the city of Atlanta.  As the order stands now, in "2012 the spigot for Atlanta will be cut off," but "don't panic!" Henson said.  The Governor and his staff are in mediation for resolution.  Possibilities include raising existing reservoirs and building new reservoirs, as well as focusing on conservation. 

Henson and Holcomb spoke briefly on the DeKalb County School District's closure and reconsolidation process.  Public Hearings on the current proposal will be held tonight and Thursday at the county's Administrative and Instructional Complex off Mountain Industrial Boulevard, and the school board's vote on the plan will take place March 7. 

Both men indicated that they supported the Lakeside district's SCORe plan and that they had been "making phone calls and lobbying hard" for Livsey to remain open, "not just for next year," and keep current attendance lines.  In addition, Senator Henson said "I am concerned, and SACS is concerned, that we didn't get a permanent superintendent before starting this process."

Jeff Rader answered the last question of the night, which addressed volunteerism in DeKalb County.  He cited the "Park Pride" movement, which facilitates community volunteerism for park maintenance, as well as "DeKalb Friends of Libraries," which is looking at the potential for using volunteers to help stretch staff and allow libraries to keep longer hours.  "This is a terrific community for volunteerism," he said.

In summary, many issues were touched on at last night's meeting, but the prevailing theme of the night was a request that community members get involved and make their wishes known.  All of the speakers stayed after the meeting to answer further questions, and they encouraged everyone to contact them with any issues or concerns.

Senator Henson can be reached at Henson718@bellsouth.net or 770-939-5969.

Representative Holcomb can be reached at scott@repscottholcomb.com

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