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SECTION A: VOL 28 • NO. 28
The Official Legal Organ ofDeKalb County, GA. Serving East Atlanta, Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chamblee, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, Dun woody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Tucker, Stonecrest and Stone Mountain.
THURSDAY, JANUARY 17 - 23, 2019
www.THECHAMPIONNEWSPAPER.com
SHOW ME THE MONEY
County discusses 2019 budget
BY HORACE HOLLOMAN
horace@dekalbchamp.com
DeKalb County officials held a special
called finance, audit and budget committee
meeting Jan. 11 to review the fiscal year 2019
recommended budget. Commissioners have
until March 1 to approve the budget and will
discuss the budget in committee meetings
throughout January and February.
County officials said DeKalb eliminated
a $24.7 million deficit and increased the fund
balance to $103 million. Called the county’s
“rainy day” fund by DeKalb County CEO
Michael Thurmond, the $103-million fund
balance could cover approximately two
SEE MONEY ON PAGE 6
DeKalb County COO Zach Williams discusses the county’s budget during a special called
finance, audit and budget committee meeting Jan. 11.
Consent decree deadline looms | predictions/explanations
On Aug. 23,2017, a record 6.4 million gallons of sewage spilled into Snapfinger Creek. The spill was
caused by a 16-inch-diameter tree growing out of a concrete junction box.
BY HORACE HOLLOMAN
horace@dekalbchamp.com
For more than a decade, DeKalb
County has been in hot water with
the Environmental Protection Agency
(EPA) and Georgia Department of
Natural Resources, Environmental
Protection Division (EPD) over
violations of the Clean Water Act.
In 2011, DeKalb County entered
into an agreement with the EPA and
EPD known as a consent decree. The
decree requires the county to clean,
repair, enlarge and maintain its sanitary
sewer pipes so sewer overflows are
reduced. The deadline to implement
changes under the guidelines of the
consent decree is mid-2020.
In an interview with The Champion,
DeKalb County Commissioner Nancy
Jester said DeKalb won’t meet the
deadline standards set by the federal
court order.
“We’re not on track,” Jester said,
“not at all. Our obligations will not be
met.”
“We haven’t done the rehabilitation
work we need to do...we haven’t done
the work necessary and all of a sudden
sewer spills are down,” Jester said.
“This problem has been here for a long
time I get that, but we’re two years in
and the evidence points to a lack of
progress.”
In a statement to The Champion,
county officials said it’s important
to understand how and why the
county’s progress in addressing
terms of the consent decree has been
delayed. County officials said between
2011 through 2014, DeKalb failed
to select a consent decree program
manager. Without a manager, several
programs, maintenance, assessment
and rehabilitation projects were not
completed.
County officials said the county got
back on track 2017. In 2017 county
officials expanded county sewer
cleaning efforts and cleaned major trunk
lines for the first time in more than
50 years. The cleaning effort helped
remove 5.1 tons of debris from the
county’s sewer system.
“After much political interference in
watershed department operations, lack
of appropriate oversight and contract
delays and failures, [DeKalb County]
CEO Michael Thurmond enhanced
communication and coordination on
all consent decree projects,” county
officials said in a statement.
According to DeKalb County in
2018 more than 642 miles of small
diameter lines were cleaned, and more
SEE DECREE ON PAGE 6
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FALLEN OFFICER
RECOGNIZED AS
OFFICER OFTHE
YEAR
PAGE 2
'COCOA WITH
THEPO-PO'
Decatur police
deliver warm smiles,
drinks
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