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PAGE 6B PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS THURSDAY. JANUARY 13. 2022
Biggest tax sale in Pickens history
puts properties in land bank
By Alex Goble
Staff Writer
agoble@pickensprogress.com
A tax sale of 276 delin
quent lots in Bent Tree
was completed in Decem
ber, with 62 lots sold and
213 placed into the Pick
ens County land bank.
The land hank consists
of properties that didn’t
sell in a tax sale, so the
county takes ownership of
those properties. Once the
property is part of the
landbank the county then
has the right to sell or
make use of the property.
“Bent Tree had those
lots for years that were sit
ting delinquent and HOA
fees were not being paid
on them,” said Tax Com
missioner Daniel Reeves.
“It was hurting Bent Tree
and all of those lots were
being taxed, but the taxes
were not being paid.”
“We hoped to get them
back on the tax record or
put them in the land hank
so they could be either
sold later in a surplus land
sale through the land hank
or made into something
useful,” Reeves continued.
Usage of the land hank
and county rules on prop
erty are somewhat com
plex, but moving property
into the land hank simpli
fies the process the county
must go through and
opens up options on what
the property might be used
for, from future sales to
passive green space. Any
thing else seems like an
impossibility as the lots
are small sized, on steep
terrain, and spread around
Bent Tree.
Initially there were
about 300 lots, but by the
time of the sale on Decem
ber 7, only 276 were up
for sale because some
property holders paid the
taxes after seeing their
property listed.
At the sale 62 lots were
bought, leaving 214 poten
tially for the land bank,
with one person redeem
ing a lot after the sale.
The number of lots
added to the land bank
stands at 213 now with a
majority of them being un-
buildable, according to the
tax office, because of ter
rain. Those had been orig
inally purchased as
membership lots, so own
ers could play golf, go to
the lake, or access the ten
nis courts. According to
Reeves, many of these
owners got older or lost in
terest in the Bent Tree
amenities over time.
Now the county land
hank will have to take in
terest and decide what is
the best use for the prop
erty. Reeves said they will
continue to explore op
tions.
THURSDAY. JANUARY 13. 2022 PICKENS COUNTY PROGRESS PAGE 7B
Battle for Republican base to play out in General Assembly
By Dave Williams
Bureau Chief
Capitol Beat News Service
ATLANTA - Election-year
politics will play a major role
in the 2022 General Assembly
session starting Monday, with
Republicans running in pri
maries this spring looking to
score points with the GOP
base.
The rush to the right to
court conservative Republican
primary voters will include
bills easing restrictions on
guns, cutting taxes and dou
bling down on changes to
Georgia’s election laws De
mocrats have labeled as voter
suppression.
“Gov. [Brian] Kemp will
try to position himself to block
[Republican primary oppo
nent] David Perdue, and the
[GOP} lieutenant governor
candidates are both in the Sen
ate,” said Charles Bullock, a
political science professor at
the University of Georgia. “If
one comes forward with a pro
posal, the other might say, ‘I’ll
see you and raise you.’ ”
But the leaders who run the
two legislative chambers -
Georgia House Speaker David
Ralston and Lt. Gov. Geoff
Duncan, who presides over
the state Senate - are vowing
not to let politics get in the
way of addressing mental
health and crime.
“Those two topics will be
my focus for the session,” said
Ralston, R-Blue Ridge. “I’m
not going to be distracted by
what other people do in their
campaigns.”
Ralston cited alarming sta
tistics on crime and youth sui
cides in his call for action on
crime and mental health.
Atlanta’s homicide rate
was the highest in two
decades in 2020, then was ex
ceeded by the 158 murders
that occurred last year.
There were 67 youth sui
cides in Georgia last year
through Nov, more than the 55
that took place in all of 2020.
Committees in both leg
islative chambers held hear
ings on crime last summer and
fall, and both are expected to
put forth legislation during the
upcoming session.
On the Senate side, Duncan
is pushing a dollar-for-dollar
state tax credit for individuals
and corporations who con
tribute to their local police de
partment or sheriff’s office
through a law enforcement
foundation.
Donations would go to
ward raising officer salaries,
hiring additional law enforce
ment personnel, expanding
police training programs,
equipment purchases and to
help law enforcement agen
cies interested in “co-respon
der” program dedicated to
mental health emergencies.
Last summer, Ralston
called for a $50 million budget
appropriation to beef up law
enforcement and mental
health services.
He said the House also will
take up a comprehensive men
tal health bill that includes a
provision aimed at addressing
a shortage of mental health
workers.
“To do what we need to do
in mental health, we’re going
to have to incentivize people
to train in that,” Ralston said.
While tackling crime and
mental health, lawmakers also
will consider a proposal by
Kemp to expand gun rights by
allowing many Georgians to
carry concealed firearms with
out obtaining a permit.
“Law-abiding Georgians
exercising their constitutional
rights only strengthens public
safety,” Kemp wrote in a Twit
ter post.
Additional tax relief also
will be on the General Assem
bly’s 2022 agenda. Senate
President Pro Tempore Butch
Miller, R-Gainesville, who is
running for lieutenant gover
nor, pre-filed a bill last month
that would eliminate Geor
gia’s income tax.
But other Republican lead
ers aren’t likely to support get
ting rid of the tax completely,
which would force deep
spending cuts to make up for
the lost revenue. They will
likely get behind a more mod
erate approach to reduce the
income tax rate from 5.75% -
adopted in 2018 - to 5.5% or
perhaps lower.
“It’s an extremely tough lift
to go from something to zero,”
said Kyle Wingfield, president
and CEO of the Georgia Pub
lic Policy Foundation. “State
revenues have grown against
everyone’s expectations. ... I
don’t know of anyone who
thinks these revenues are
going to keep marching up
like they have been.”
Round two of Republican-
backed changes to Georgia’s
election laws also stacks up as
a battle between far-reaching
proposals aimed at appealing
to GOP base voters and more
moderate measures.
The General Assembly
passed sweeping legislation
last year that, among other
things, restricts the locations
of absentee ballot drop boxes.
Now, Miller wants to ban
them entirely, arguing they
didn’t exist in state law until
the onset of COVID-19 and
are vulnerable to voter fraud.
Ralston is behind more
moderate steps, including a
bill he plans to introduce to
give the Georgia Bureau of In
vestigation original jurisdic
tion to handle complaints of
election law violations with
out having to be invited by a
local government.
He cited allegations of
wrongdoing during the No
vember 2020 election from
former President Donald
Trump and his followers that
still dog Georgia today as evi
dence of the need for the GBI.
“Here we are 14 months
after an election and you’ve
still got people who don’t ac
cept the result,” Ralston said.
“Part of the reason for that is
we didn’t have an independent
non-political investigation go
in early.”
While additional tax relief
and election law changes are
examples of following up on
previous acts by the General
Assembly, the legislature has
yet to legalize gambling in
Georgia.
A years-long effort to pass
legalized gambling and tie a
portion of the proceeds to ed
ucation came closer than ever
to success last year when the
state Senate passed a constitu
tional amendment asking vot
ers to legalize sports betting.
However, the measure failed
to reach the House floor for a
vote.
This year, supporters’ strat
egy likely will be to lump
sports betting, pari-mutuel
betting on horse racing and
casino gambling into a single
constitutional change. That
way, voters could decide all
three at once on the ballot.
Still, sports betting has the
most momentum of the three,
said Rep. Ron Stephens,
chairman of the House Eco
nomic Development and
Tourism Committee, who in
troduced the standalone sports
betting legislation last year.
As a result, Stephens said
he plans to back “enabling”
legislation this year that would
spell out how sports betting
would operate in Georgia if
voters approve the constitu
tional amendment. Enabling
bills tied to horse racing
and/or casinos then could fol
low in 2023.
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SUNDAY MONDAY TUESDAY WEDNESDAY THURSDAY FRIDAY SATURDAY
8AM Yoga @ Pickens Rec. Center a
6PM Live music with Jerry Sorn @ 4
The Old Mulehouse
11AM Live music with Gary Hooper @
The Old Mulehouse ^
2-5PM Bluegrass Jam @ Panorama
Apple House, Ellijay
8AM-1 PM Pinochle @ Pickens Senior r\
Center 4.
10AM-12PM Pickleball @ Rec. Center w
5PM TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sensibly) @
Cool Springs Baptist
6PM Jasper City Council @ City Hall
7PM Mental Health Support Group @ First
Baptist Church Jasper
8AM-3PM Free COVID testing @ Mt. a
Zion Baptist Church
10AM-12PM Pickleball @ Rec. Center ^
5:30PM Coin Collector’s Club @ Amicalola
EMC Dean Center
5:30PM Yoga with Karen @ Pickens Rec.
Center
6PM Varsity Girls Basketball Vs. Ridgeland
@ PHS 7:30PM Varsity Boys Basketball
6:30PM Board of Elections Meeting @
Admin. Building
10AM-12PM Pickleball @ Rec. Cen- H
ter 0
11:30AM Families Anonymous @ King
of Kings Lutheran Church
Noon Rotary @ Chatt Tech
1-2PM Food Pantry open @ Jasper Sev
enth Day Adventist Church
10AM Grief Support Meeting @ Geor-
gia Mountains Hospice 0
10AM-12PM Pickleball @ Rec. Cen
ter
5:30PM Yoga with Karen @ Rec. Center
7PM Karaoke @ Rocco’s
8AM-1 PM Pinochle @ Pickens Senior ^
Center /
9AM Choose to Lose Weight loss
group @ Pickens Community Center
10AM-12PM Pickleball @ Rec. Center
6PM - Live music with Rick Stone @ The
Old Mulehouse
6PM Varsity Girls Basketball Vs. NW Whit
field @ PHS 7:30PM Varsity Boys Basket
ball
8AM Yoga @ Pickens Rec. Center
9AM PHS Wrestling Region Duals @ q
Heritage High School
6PM - Live music with Phil Blackwell/ Matt
Chastain @ The Old Mulehouse
11AM Live music with Mountain Gyp- /A
sies @ The Old Mulehouse
2-4PM GriefShare seminar/support
group @ King of Kings Lutheran Church in
Talking Rock
8AM-1PM Pinochle @ Pickens a
Senior Center Til
5PM TOPS (Take Off Pounds Sen- 1 v
sibly) @ Cool Springs Baptist
5:30PM Cardio Interval Class @ Rec. Cen
ter
6PM Planning & Development Meeting @
Admin. Building
7PM Nelson City Council @ Nelson City Hal
7PM Trivia @ Rocco’s
7PM Square Dancing @ Bent Tree. Cal
David & Dolores Johnson 706-692-7914
7AM Chamber Breakfast @ Chatt a A
Tech
5:30PM Yoga with Karen @ Pick
ens Rec. Center
11:30AM Families Anonymous @ A
King of Kings Lutheran Church I J
Noon Rotary @ Chatt Tech
1-2PM Food Pantry open @ Jasper Sev
enth Day Adventist Church
10AM-1PM Cool Springs Baptist r\
Church Food Ministry I 0
5:30PM Yoga with Karen @ Rec.
Center
6PM Board of Education Monthly meeting
7PM Karaoke @ Rocco’s
7PM Lions Club @ First Baptist Jasper
7PM Appalachian Beekeepers @ Senior
Center, Jasper
7PM Amateaur Radio Club @ Cornerstone
Church
7PM PHS Drama Night of One Acts @
PHS PACA
8AM-1PM Pinochle @ Pickens a A
Senior Center I LL
9AM Choose to Lose Weight loss
group @ Pickens Community Center
6PM Live music with Surrender Hill @ The
Old Mulehouse
7PM PHS Girls Varsity Basketball @ SE
Whitfield 8:30PM Boys Varsity
8AM Marine Corp League @ Pick- a ■—
ens Rec. Center T
8AM Yoga @ Pickens Rec. Center 1 ^
6PM Live music with Adrian Stover
@ The Old Mulehouse
3PM Varsity Girls Basketball Vs. Gilmer @
PHS 4:30PM Boys Varsity
7PM PHS Drama Night of One Acts @
PHS PACA
11AM Live music with Shani A r\
Palmer @ The Old Mulehouse I Q
2-4PM GriefShare seminar/sup-
port group @ King of Kings Lutheran
Church in Talking Rock
MLK Holiday (No School) a ^
8AM-1PM Pinochle @ Pickens I /
Senior Center
5PM Take Off Pounds Sensibly @ Cool
Springs Baptist
6PM Pickens Water Authority Board meet
ing @ Admin. Building
6:30PM Pickens County Water Authority
Board @ Cty. Admin. Bldg.
7PM Trivia @ Rocco’s Pub
7PM Mental Health Support Group @ First
Baptist Church Jasper
9AM Jasper Municipal Court @ A Q
City Hall | O
4:30PM Chamber’s Business After
Flours @ Jax Coffee
5:30PM Coin Collector’s Club @ Amicalola
EMC Dean Center
5:30PM Yoga with Karen @ Pickens Rec.
Center
6PM Varsity Girls Basketball Vs. Cedar-
town @ PFIS 7:30PM Boys Varsity
11:30AM Families Anonymous @ \ Q
King of Kings Lutheran Church-
Noon Rotary @ Chatt Tech
1-2PM Food Pantry open @ Jasper Sev
enth Day Adventist Church
1 PM Out on a Limb Quilt Guild @ Pickens
Community Center
8:30AM Tax Assessors Board 4") A
meeting ©Administration Building ^ M
5:30PM Yoga with Karen @ Rec.
Center
4:30 PM Commissioners Work Session @
Admin. Building
5:30PM Board of Commissioners Meeting
@ Admin. Building
7PM Karaoke @ Rocco’s
8AM-1PM Pinochle @ Pickens r\ A
Senior Center ^ |
9AM Choose to Lose Weight loss
group @ Pickens Community Center
5PM PHS Swim Team region Champsion-
ship @ Dalton HS
6PM Live music with Trailer Hippies @
The Old Mulehouse
8AM Yoga @ Pickens Rec. Cen- r\ r\
ter
6PM Live music with Brad Morgan
@ The Old Mulehouse
11AM Live music with BrennenrjQ
Johnson @ The Old Mulehouse
2-4PM GriefShare seminar/support
group @ King of Kings Lutheran Church in
Talking Rock
5:30PM Cardio Tabata class @ r\ A
Rec. Center
7PM Square Dancing @ Bent Tree.
Call David & Dolores Johnson 706-692-
7914
5:30PM Yoga with Karen @ Pick-^^ r—
ens Rec. Center J 0
6PM Varsity Girls Basketball Vs.^ -
Heritage @ PHS 7:30PM Boys Varsity
6PM Jasper Planning Commission @ City
Hall
11:30AM Families Anonymous Iq/J
King of Kings Lutheran Church ^ 0
Noon Rotary @ Chatt Tech
1-2PM Food Pantry open @ Jasper Sev
enth Day Adventist Church
5:30PM PHS Varsity Soccer Vs. 2 7
Murray @ PHS
5:30PM Board of Commissioners Meeting
@ Admin. Building
6PM Jasper City Council Work Session @
City Hall
7PM Karaoke @ Rocco’s
7PM Jasper Lions Club @ Walker Hall,
First Baptist Jasper
8AM-1PM Pinochle @ Pickens r)Q
Senior Center ^ Q
9AM Choose to Lose Weight loss
group @ Pickens Community Center
5PM PHS Varsity Soccer @ Creekview
6PM Live music with TNT @ The Old
Mulehouse
6PM Varsity Girls Basketball @ Ridgeland
7:30PM Boys Varsity
9AM PHS Varsity Wrestling R
gional @ PHS / M
6PM Live music with Larry ^
Scroggs/Chris Motes @ The Old
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11AM Live music with Tom Blair @ Q A
The Old Mulehouse 0 0
2-4PM GriefShare seminar/support
group @ King of Kings Lutheran Church in
Talking Rock
5:30PM Cardio Power Pump class Q A
@ Rec. Center O I
7PM Square Dancing @ Bent Tree.
Call David & Dolores Johnson 706-692-
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