The champion newspaper. (Decatur, GA) 19??-current, December 26, 2019, Image 2

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Newspaper Page TextLOCAL THE CHAMPION, THURSDAY, DEC. 26, 2019 - JAN. 1, 2020 • PAGE 2 BROOKHAVEN { Brookhaven legislator proposes ‘clean’ fix to DeKalb ethics laws BY ASIA ASHLEY Asia@dekalbchamp.com Ga. Rep. Matthew Wilson, D-Brookhaven, announced Dec. 16 his plan to file a bill that will reconstitute the appointment process for the DeKalb County Board of Ethics. Wilson’s drafted bill follows the defeat of a November countywicle referendum, enacting Senate Bill 7, which proposed changes that would have altered the make-up, jurisdiction and authority of the board. The referendum was defeated by 61 percent of DeKalb voters. “When DeKalb voters Rep Matthew Wilson voted down SB 7 by 61 percent, they sent us a clear mandate: give us a clean bill to fix the constitutional issues first,” stated Wilson. “That is exactly what my bill does.” The ethics board has been dormant since an August 2018 ruling by the Georgia Supreme Court that determined that a majority of the board’s appointed positions were unconstitutional since they were not all appointed by elected entities. Wilson said he has been working with the DeKalb Citizens Advocacy Council to draft his proposed bill. His bill only proposes a change to the board’s appointment process, he said. Both DeKalb delegations serving in the state house and state senate would each get one appointment, in addition to single appointments by the chief judge of DeKalb’s Superior Court, DeKalb’s probate judge and DeKalb’s chief magistrate judge, Wilson said of his draft bill. The remaining two positions would be appointed by a consensus of the mayors and city council members of the cities wholly within DeKalb County: Avondale Estates, Brookhaven, Chamblee, Clarkston, Decatur, Doraville, Dunwoody, Lithonia, Pine Lake, Stonecrest, Stone Mountain and Tucker, according to the press release. “I hope the DeKalb legislative delegation will move swiftly in January to pass this bill so we can get the Board of Ethics back up and running without any further delay,” Wilson said. “We owe it to the voters of DeKalb County to respect their will, and I believe a stand-alone bill to fix the appointment process separate from any other proposed changes is the best way to do that.” Wilson said he plans to introduce the bill on the first day of the 2020 legislative session, which starts Jan. 13. Ga. Sen. Emanuel Jones, D-Decatur, on Nov. 7 also announced his plans to appoint a legislative task force to create a different bill for DeKalb’s ethics laws.

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The champion newspaper. (Decatur, GA) 19??-current, December 26, 2019, Image 2