Newspaper Page Text
The Upson Beacon
Thursday, April 8, 2021
Page 5A
Supreme Court Rules for Georgia
in Florida Lawsuit Involving Flint
On April l, the U.S. Su
preme Court unanimously
ruled in Georgia’s favor in a
lawsuit filed by Florida over
access to water in the Chat
tahoochee and Flint rivers.
Florida filed the suit in
2013, claiming that Georgia
overuses water from the two
rivers, which feed into the
Apalachicola River in Flor
ida, ultimately winding up
in Apalachicola Bay, where
a large portion of Florida’s
oyster production occurs.
Florida first directed
blame on Metro Atlanta,
which draws water from
Lake Lanier, which is fed by
the Chattahoochee. Florida
later took aim at farm use of
water from the Flint River
in Southwest Georgia. Flor
ida asked the court to place
severe water use restrictions
on Georgia that would have
SPLOST,
because this is a statutory re
quirement for this process to
be able to kick off officially,”
County Manager Jason Tins
ley told attendees. “We now
have met the first require
ment to call a referendum.”
Using what Tinsley and
City Manager Russell
Thompson agreed is a “con
servative estimate” of one
percent economic growth
annually, the six-year
SPLOST would generate
more than $23 million.
From 2017 through 2020,
the current SPLOST gener
ated from $3 million to 3.66
million per year, averaging
seven percent annual
caused enormous economic
harm to Southwest Georgia
farms and their com
munities.
Florida said Georgia’s
water use resulted in lower
water flows, causing in
creased salinity and result
ing in economic damage to
the oyster industry.
“Georgia Farm Bureau is
pleased with the Supreme
Court’s ruling in Georgia’s
favor in the lawsuit over ac
cess to water from the Chat
tahoochee and Flint Rivers.
Farmers in Southwest Geor
gia could have been devas
tated by the severe
restrictions Florida pro
posed,” GFB President Tom
McCall said. “The state of
Georgia and Georgia
farmers have implemented
numerous water conserva
tion measures in the past 25
growth.
Although a new judicial
facility is at the heart of the
discussion, SPLOST funds
provide a myriad of services
for Upson residents ranging
from recreational activities
to emergency 911 service.
“A lot of our expense is
tied to sewer infrastructure,”
Thompson said. “Without
the sales tax, it would mean
an additional $25 per month
on the average city utility
bill.”
Revenue from SPLOST
equates to approximately
four mills of tax for the
county’s general fund, ac
cording to Tinsley, and al-
years that preserve water
and minimize the amount of
water Georgia farmers use
to grow their crops. We
think the Supreme Court
recognized this with its rul
ing.
“Georgia Farm Bureau
has worked tirelessly for
years to ensure that Georgia
farmers maintain access to
the level of water required
to clothe and feed America
and the world,” McCall con
tinued. “This ruling is an ex
ample of the advocacy work
Farm Bureau does for
farmers and why it’s impor
tant that Georgia’s agricul
ture community support
our organization by being
members. GFB continues to
support Georgia’s farmers
as they practice responsible
water use and constantly
pursue improvements in
most five mills of tax for the
city budget, according to
Thompson.
An intergovernmental
agreement among the
county and two cities will be
required before mid-Sep
tember for the issue to be
placed on the November bal
lot, according to County
Clerk Jessica Jones. Other
wise, the next opportunity
would be May 2022, causing
a lapse in collection.
“A lapse would not only
result in lost revenue for the
county and cities, but also
would create a nightmare for
anyone conducting business
in Upson County,” Tinsley
water-use efficiency.”
The state of Georgia
maintained that the prob
lems with the oysters were
the result of overfishing
rather than from Georgia’s
water use. The case was ini
tially tried by Special Master
Ralph Lancaster, who rec
ommended that the court
deny Florida’s petition, in
part because the U.S. Army
Corps of Engineers, which
controls the water flow in all
three rivers, was not a party
to the case.
The Supreme Court sent
the case back to the special
master. A second special
master, Paul Kelly, was ap
pointed to oversee the trial,
and he, too, recommended
that Florida’s request be de
nied. Kelly said Florida had
failed to prove its case.
Continued from Front
said. “They would go from
collecting eight percent to
seven percent, then back to
eight percent over a period
of a few months.”
Tinsley added that the
county would need approx
imately $7.5 million to uti
lize for debt service on a new
judicial facility, which would
be about half of the county’s
proceeds based on previous
split percentages with mu
nicipalities.
Officials from all three
governments are expected to
discuss revenue splits and
additional projects re
quested prior to the next
scheduled meeting May 19.
House Fire,
Continued from Front
fighters that she saw smoke and
removed her dogs from the res
idence, according to Chief Harris.
Officers from the Thomaston Po
lice Department were present to
assist and to direct traffic on
Highway 19, along with EMT re
sponders.
Beginning with an interior at
tack, fire fighters were forced to
back out of the house due to
heavy smoke, and began a defen
sive attack.
TFD deployed a master
stream from engine three and
suppressed the fire with copious
amounts of water until the fire
was under control. TFD re
mained on site and continued to
suppress any hot spots that
flared.
No lives were endangered
and, as of Monday, the cause re
mains undetermined, according
to the TFD incident report.
Photo by Luke Haney
Indecent Exposure,
Continued from Front
then stood back and showed
[the clerk] his penis,” ac
cording to the report.
Raines “lingered inside the
store for a moment,” then
left and walked toward Waf
fle House, she stated.
TPD Sgt. Derrick Little
said he viewed video secu
rity confirming the clerk’s
account of the incident.
Another TPD officer lo
cated Raines near Waffle
House parking lot, but “he
kept walking and would not
talk about the events at
hand, or give us his name,”
according to Little’s report.
A foot chase and fall en
sued, resulting in $1,000
worth of damage to an of
ficer’s body camera and
$266 in damage to the of
ficer’s vest, the report read.
Raines eventually was cap
tured in front of O’Reilly
Auto Parts.
In addition to the two
felony charges, Raines is
charged with misdemeanors
public indecency, giving
false name, address, or
dascpa
Driver Adams + Sharpe
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(706) 647-1924, ext. 3 (706) 647-1924, ext. 4
birthdate, and marijuana
possession, less than one
ounce.
Other unrelated charges
reported by TPD include
Bailey Scott Coker, felony
exploitation or intimidation
of disabled adults, along
with misdemeanors simple
battery against a person 65
years or older, battery
(Family Violence Act), and
failure to appear; and Nich
olas Wayne Bridges, felony
theft of lost or mislaid prop
erty and criminal trespass
(FVA).
The Upson County Sher
iffs Office reports arrests
and charges including Mat
thew James Witchey, felony
probation violation for ag
gravated cruelty to animal;
Benjamin Cade McKinley,
illegal possession of ecstasy
and illegal possession of a
controlled substance; and
Joseph Zach McKinley, pos
session of methampheta-
mine and possession of a
Schedule I controlled sub
stance.
DON’T BE THE DEALER.
BE THE DIFFERENCE
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The EMA Digest:
Wx Radios
By Martha Anne McCarty
Upson EMA Director
How does a weather radio work
and is it really necessary?
A Specific Area Message Encod
ing (SAME) capable weather
radio can be programmed for
your specific county, in addition
to counties that surround us.
These radios sit silently, waiting
for activation tf om the National
Weather service when severe
weather is developing. They can
be programed to receive
watches and warnings, or even
warnings only. They are electri
cal devices that have a battery
back-up system, so if power is
interrupted, the radio will still
work for a time.
Your weather radio receives the
very same specific information
that E911 receives from the
NWS at the same time. You
could be sleeping at night and
severe weather approaches.
NWS sends out tone activations
and these radios wake up and
alert you to impending danger.
That is not a luxury, that is a ne
cessity. Knowing to take cover
before a storm’s impact is life-
safety at its pinnacle.
Many models are available,
from local stores to online re
tailers. We do not endorse any
specific brand, but we do highly
suggest that it be SAME ca
pable, whatever the brand. Ex
pect to invest about $30-$50
for a decent weather radio. It
may be an investment that
saves your life.
C ^RAL GE0# g
Lee Bray
706 648 3747 (Office)
706 975 6896 (Cell)
509 N. Center Street
Thomaston, GA 30286
Fire and 'Water Damage Restoration
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REGISTER FOR OUR FOR My LIFE®RETREAT
Just This special offer is valid for our in-person
retreats and online course through 2021 for
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Email: GuestServices@BelnHealth.com for promo code
Healed From Chron
I attended the For My Life® Retreat
for the first time ten years ago. I
had chronic fatigue syndrome and
multiple chemical sensitivities. I
wasallergicto myenvironmentand
most foods, and I was so tired all
the time. I had to stop my practice
as a clinical psychologist because I
could hardly function anymore.
When I came to the For My Life Retreat, I received so
much incredible knowledge in the Biblical teachings. I
was healed completely in three days. When I went home,
I was able to reopen my practice.
ic Fatigue
Flowever, I didn't really continue practicing what I'd
learned. I finally realized that I needed to come back to Be
in Health and get a refresher. I knew that if I came back,
God would meet me in the same way He had before. I am
really grateful that I did because the knowledge went in
on another level. God met me to show me the deepest
level of where I've been stuck, restore me to His love, and
set me free. -Sandra C.
Read Sandra's whole testimony: bit.ly/sandra-mcs
Health
Watch Hope of the
Generations Church
services live on
Sundays at 10:30 am
at BelnHealth.com
Or join us in person!
Be in Health is a ministry of Hope of the Generations Church
4178 Crest Hwy (74W), Thomaston, GA 30286
Need Prayer? Call: 706-646-1488