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-w- CARROLL COUNTY, CL
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CARROLL COUNTY, GEORGIA'S ONLY LOCALLY OWNED LOCALLY OPERATED NEWSPAPER
NEWS REPORTING / NEWS RECAP / NEWS ANALYSIS
JUNE 2020 • VOLUME 26 NUMBER 6
www.starnewsgaonline.com
StarNews monthly traditional print publication /StarNews Online daily local news
Tyus-Carrollton Road
closure until July 17th
Carroll County Public Works closed
Tyus-Carrollton Road at the new bridge on
Monday, June 8th for road realignment.
That section of road is scheduled for
reopening on Friday, July 17th at 4:00 p.m.
Having trouble getting
your unemployment
check? Try these new
online tutorials from
state labor department
Common mistakes have prevented
eligible recipients from receiving
timely compensation or a check at all
from press release
The Georgia Department of Labor
(GDOL) now has online tutorials designed
to help claimants succesfully get though the
claims process. The department has identi
fied several common mistakes claimants
make during the claim filing process and
when requesting weekly payments. With
the purpose of ensuring that claimants
receive proper weekly benefit payments in a
timely fashion, the agency has posted two
instructional tutorials on the necessary steps
for requesting weekly payments, both for
Pandemic Unemployment Assistance
(PUA) and Regular State Unemployment
Insurance (UI).
These tutorials walk claimants through
the process, sharing links and helpful exam
ples. These tutorials can be found on the
GDOL website under the PUA landing page
(https://dol.georgia.gov/pua) at Request
PUA Payments Tutorial or under the indi
vidual claims landing page
(https:// dol. georgia.gov/individual-claims)
at Request Regular UI Payments Tutorial.
“Claimants receiving a correct weekly
benefit amount is largely reliant upon their
request for payment each week and the
See GET YOUR CHECK page 3
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County commission adopts 2020-2021
budget: S55.56M / S2.23M increase
22 new positions funded including new 13 firefighters
for Stations 17 and 18, and 5 new sheriff deputies
Firefighter positions to be partially funded with SAFER grant
by Sue Horn
At the June 2, 2020 regular meeting,
the Carroll County Board of
Commissioners adopted the 2020-2021
Fiscal Budget to become effective July
1st. The $55,569,500 budget is a S2.24M
($2,236,500) increase over the budget
adopted August 2019, and a $5.30M
increase ($5,306,000) over the budget
adopted June 2018. As of July 2020, it
will cost $4.63M ($4,630,791) per month
to operate Carroll County government.
The budget was adopted with an amend
ment: 5-2 vote to approve.
The commission meeting was held in
the Carroll County Ag Building, Newnan
Road, Carrollton, to accommodate the
social distancing rules of six feet between
attendees. In attendance were Chairman
Michelle Morgan, district commis
sioner/vice chair George Chambers, and
district commissioners Montrell
McLendon, Clint Chance, Tommy Lee,
Steve Fuller, and Ernie Reynolds. The
meeting was live streamed and posted
online on you.tube. (Not every commis
sioner or presenter had a microphone; not
all of the recorded meeting is intelligible.)
District 1 Commissioner Montrell
See COUNTY BUDGET page 3
Chamber forms “Blue Ribbon Task
Force” and hosts series of meetings
Chamber has goal to “accelerate recovery, identify challenges,
offer solutions, and provide resources to promote recovery”
by Prissi Sullivan
The Carroll County Chamber of
Commerce is carrying on—not so much
“business as usual,” but seeking to
develop policies and strategies for operat
ing in the constantly evolving present
business environment being defined by
the CoVID-19 pandemic. The chamber’s
mission has not changed: to build a
stronger business community by engaging
progressive leadership and diverse
resources. The chamber hosted their first
in-person meeting since the onset of the
pandemic May 20, 2020, choosing the
media for this intitial face-to-face. Seven
people were in attendance—all masked
and all seated the prerequisite 6 feet apart.
Daniel Jackson, chamber president and
CEO, spoke on the challenges the cham
ber has faced since the outbreak of Covid-
19. “We were having an incredible year
until mid-March,” he stated. “All of our
events were packed to capacity. In the
See CHAMBER AMID CoVID page 18
Local protests held in response to the
murder of George Floyd in Minneapolis
by Prissi Sullivan
Approximately 400 people took part
locally in a moving protest Monday, June
1st, against the murder of George Floyd,
murdered May 25th in Minneapolis at the
hands of four police officers. Instead of
three different events, one huge event was
Recap of hazard pay for
area first responders
by Prissi Sullivan
Covid-19 is considered especially
contagious, and social distancing has
been mandated by executive order by
Governor Brian Kemp. However, in the
day-to-day conduction of business, espe
cially governmental business, social dis
tancing is difficult, if not impossible to
maintain. As a result over the course of
this months long pandemic, local gov
ernmental entities have approved hazard
duty pay in varying amounts.
See HAZARD PAY page 7
held. The initial phase took place on the
campus of the University of West
Georgia, where students rallied for about
two hours. Afterward, police officers,
Phillip Ball, Michael McDowell, and
Sergeant Omereo Potts escorted the
group to the parking deck on Barnes
Street, downtown Carrollton, to meet
with other groups. From there, protestors
marched to the amphitheater. A separate
protest was also held at the downtown
Villa Rica amphitheater on Monday
afternoon.
Members of the C.O.P.S. (Community
Oriented Police Services) Unit took the
lead in engaging in communication with
the groups-Black Lives
Matter/Carrollton and several student
organizations of the University of West
Georgia—that wanted to gather the same
day. The sheriffs office and University of
West Georgia police were on hand too.
Chief Joel Richards and Deputy Chief
See PROTESTS page 17
Primary Election
Run-Off: AUGUST 11
Local E-SPLOST
passes: 63.72%-36.28%
25,347 cast a ballot out of 80,431
active voters: 31.5% participation
State Court Judge run-off
on August 11th between
Erica Tisinger and Met Lane
Incumbent Ernie Reynolds wins
District 5 Commission seat without
a runoff: 55.30% in three way race
by Sue Horn
The results of the
Tuesday, June 9, 2020.
combined General Primary
and Presidential Preference
Primary Election are in with
25,347 Carroll Countians
having cast a vote out of
80,431 active voters:
31.5%. A record number of
mail-in votes (Absentee By
Mail) were cast 12,300+ (at
press time) with the reason
attributed to the continuing
presence of CoVID-19 and
possible transmission by
voting in person.
The local Educational
SPLOST to benefit three
area school systems passed.
63.72% of voters (13,595)
said YES to renewing the
one penny tax to begin
January 1, 2023 to raise
$143M. NO votes were
7,742, or 36,28%.
A runoff will be held for
state court judge seat with
Erica Tisinger, 11,609 votes
(48.71%) and Met Lane
8,467 votes (35.53%) fac
ing off Tuesday, August
11th. The third candidate in
that race was Nathaniel
Smith who received
15.76% of the votes, 3,757.
Carroll County incum
bent Commissioner for
District 5 Ernie Reynolds
won hands down avoiding a
runoIT receiving 55.30% of
the vote in a three way race
with opponents Lee Powers
and James Fulford. Powers
received 26.05%, 877
votes, and Fulford received
18.65%, 628 votes.
There will be a runoff for
the Republican candidates
for State Representative
See RESULTS page 27
Ernie Reynolds
Erica Tisinger
Cason Hightower
Tyler Paul
Smith
