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VOLUME C — NUMBER VI
Pay lilaises Likely For County Officials
By JAMES BUDD
News Editor
_State Rep. John Cnvlord’
said he plans to introduce four |
local bills in the Genenl]
Assembly shortly and the
ot
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Signs Scholarship To Tennessee Tech
Indian stellar athlete Juan Evans,
center, is shownuhesiimafuu scholar
ship to Tennessee Tech in Cookeville,
Tenn. Shown looking on is Head Coach
Buddy Windle, left, and father Alvin
Evans, right. Evans passed for over
Local Jobless Checks Top
$400,000 During January
The amount of jobless
benefits paid to Clnttoo’n
County residents nearly
doubled from December to
January, according to the
Gogs'lblpcrtmtol Labor.
L reports that 3,843
jobless insurance benefit
checks were mailed to Chat
ooy votaling 8403.037. I
to! o .In
December, & total of 2,091
mmmmnt checks from
state federal sources were
mailed to Chattoogans total
ing $227,377.
a 7 2
ago — a total of 1, |
jobless benefit checks were :
mailed to county residents
totaling $127,817. |
Due largelg to seasonal ]
factors, more Georgians drew |
unemployment insurance |
benefits in January than in |
December, Georgia Commis- |
sioner of Labor Joe D. Tanner
During January, the [
G ia Department of Labor |
(I;gfl‘ wrote 250,617 i
unemployment insurance
checks vn{wd at $23,342,894, |
Suspect Charged With
2 Robberies At Store
mcfihmfl?flxmdch:rgedlfimfithtwm
of robbery by force in connection with two separate
%&fifl?‘? fi;gi‘i’ emes St., Summlle. was
ey Ly T
i invectm. e rcvm:‘bd“gnt Watts held
m'::meaxpplymm Izm¢ywm!ymw2
taken by force.
The Summerville N
Lyerly Democrat said
statewide m«hfion bills in- |
troduced this session will like- |
ly give the Chattooga County |
sheriff, commissioner, tax |
commi'::‘ioner and probate |
ju ty raises. |
dX‘bill intrp:xuced and pass- |
ed by the Geornn”Semto
raises the annual salary
of the Chattooga County
sheriff and commissioner from
$25,376 to $27,406 over the
next tw:fz;n.utanwford.
Cra explained the bill
raises all Goorgoalurifi: in
counties of 20, to 29,999
by the nmA hm::d.. Ct;nat2
tooga's. w in 1
provides that g sheriff and
county commissioner shall
e New Tods
Colr:;r;mm i.rry Powell's
sa ill rise in accordance
to the increase given Sheriff
G-z"McConnoll.
wford said a bill passed
by the House gives 28rob|tn
jud% in counties of 20,000 to
29, a raise in base pay
from $17,700 annually to
$20,100 over the next two
;:ars. meaning Chattooga
obate Judge !on Pn’ym will
see an income boost of $2,400.
1,200 Jnrds and 13 touchdowns this year
and also %layed as a defensive back. He
made all the area All-Star teams either as
a quarterback or a defensive back. He
also plays basketball where he averages
19 points per game.
ug from 175,358 benefit
checks written for
$17,069,117 in December,
Commissioner Tanner said.
In Jnnu:z’, 1984, a total of
234,739 benefit checks valued
at $21,850,549 were written
by DOL, up from 196,456
czodn wulisgatla.fl‘l.%b in
December, 1983, he said.
‘‘Seasonal factors, in
cluding cutbacks in retail
trade, construction and
lumber manufacturing, along
with layoffs in textile and ap
parel industries, caused our
payouts to jump over the
month,” Commissioner Tan
ner said.
For the week end:ng Feb.
9, State DOL wrote 50,521
checks for a total of
$5,355,195, up from the
47,427 valued at $5,008,392
written t.he',previouo week
which ended Feb. 2.
Unemployment insurance
benefits are paid from the
State trust fund, valued at
$486,780,664 as of Feb. 13.
For the week onding.feb.
9, a total of 12,307 initial, or
first-time, claims were filed in
The Georgia Senate passed |
a bill giving all Georgla Tax |
Commissioners a 10 percent |
across-the-board pay hike. |
Rep. Crawford said he
believes the bills will pass
both chambers of the General
Assembly and will be signed
Rowr AOS b
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‘ g #
GARY McCONNELL
| Georgia Department of Labor
| offices throughout the State,
| Commissioner Tanner said,
| Of the 12,307 initial claims
| filed statewide, a total of
2,957 were filed in metro
Atlanta. The previous week,
cndgi:eg Feb. 2, a total of
10,946 initial claims were filed
| statewide, with 2,513 of those
lfihd in the metro Atlanta
area. As an economic in
| dicator, initial claims are con
| sidered reliable because they
regisl:ar newly-unemployed
*he total number .of
jobless Georgians drawing
;unemrloyment insurance
i benefits m:ior tl?'eb u;ven-duy
genod ending Feb. 9 was up
| by 3,102, Commissioner Tan
| ner said. That figure increased
| from 47,399 to 50,601, the
1 Commissioner said.
! In Georgia, the maximum
benefit amount that :djoblua
;g«son can draw under the
| State's regular unemployment
| insurance progum is 8125
' weekly for 26 weeks. The
l same weekly benefit amount
| may be drawn in Georgia for
an additional eight weeks
' under the Federal upplemen
tal ComFenutjon (FSC) pro
gram. SC provides tem
porary federal assistance
through which persons who
I exhaust their benefits under
lGeorgia's regular unemploy
ment insurance program may
qualify for up to eight addi
tional weeks of benefits, The
FSC program is funded from
federal Eeneral revenues at no
cost to eorFi.n employers,
Currently, the average
unemployed Georgian draws
tnpproximawly $lO4 a week
for 11 weeks. At this time last
year, the average unemrloyed
Georgian drew about SIOO a
’ week for the same length of
time.
© Copyright 1985 by Espy Publishing Co., Inc
SUMMERVILLE, CHATTOOGA COUNTY, GEORGIA 30747 — THURSDAY, FEBRUARY 21, 1985
into law.
The representative said he
rla:ls. to introducho. local
islation boosting t nh?
o.tm State Court ':fudge e
Espy by 10 percent and also
raising the salary of State
Court Solicitor Kobby Lee
Cook Jr. by 10 percent. Jug&:
Espy curmn‘tg makes sls,
nnnu&glg' while Cook makes
$lO, from his job as
solicitor.
o A Io;:al bll‘l‘ewillboiuuodw;j
raising the c tion
for members of the mnm’f
County School Board y
820w350.meetm. bfinfll&‘]
Chattooga’'s schools in line
with boards from other coun
ties of similar size, said
Crawford.
Also planned for the
General Assembly agenda are
two local constitutional
amendments that must be
changed into local law due to
last November's vote by
Georgians to streamline the
state's constitution.
Crawford will introduce
the bills transforming the
former amendments into local
law after they are properly
advertised.
Strict Enforcement Of Busing
Approved For County Schools
By KAY ABBOTT
Staff Writer
The Chattooga County
Board of Education agreed to
more strictly m\f‘orco its obser
wvance of sc ool~tl’\:&tn1
districts at its February
According to reports by
r
bus drivers and school prin
cipals, a number of students,
particularly those residing in
the Pennville school district,
are riding county buses to
schools outside of their
districts. According to a long
standing boar mfolicy.
students are re(’ui to at
tend the school in their own
district if they ride county
buses. With special upi)roval
of the board and school prin
cirl, a student may attend a
school outside his district if
there is a proven need. The
permission i:’dgnntad for a
one-year period and must be
renewed annually, Parents
mustnfrovide transportation
to and from school in these
cases,
Su}firintendont of Schools
Don Hayes stated that those
who ignore district divisions
cause an imbalance in the
county population. One school
may have problems with over
crowding while another has to
cut back programs because of
reduced attendance. ‘‘We
have seven food schools,”’
Hayes said. “I think it is un
fair for a child to leave one
school community for
another, The only way to get
Powell Won’t Help State
Build Prison In County
Ch-t.toofia County Com
missioner Harry Powell Mon
day sifned a resolution saying
he will not permit the Geor‘fin
Deg:rtment of Offender
Rehabilitation or the City of
Summerville to use county
right-of-way for supplyinfi
utilities to a propose
750-inmate caglaecn.y state
prison in Pennville,
Officials of the Georgin
Degnrtmem of Offender
Rehabilitation expressed
"diu;rpointment" upon learn
ing of the resolution, but said
it would have little impact on
t.hcisghns.
R spokesman Bobby
Whitworth said it is uncertain
exactly where the utilities will
enter the 191-acre site from
U.S. 27, but he pointed out
the state does have the right
to condemn property to secure
easements.
Whitworth said it was
“unusual”’ not to have the
cooperation of local officials
once a prison is announced in
fn area. He said therfe is u?uali
y some opposition from loca
officials before plans are
finalized, but once the prison
fioi‘nstmgion become;r morfe
ikely the o ition from of
ficinlr- mbsm.'
Rep. John Crawford ex
'\ The former amendments
that will be introduced are:
« * A 1982 amendment that
allocates all proceeds from
any local option sales tax (if
approved by the voters) to be
used for reducing the cour:s'
sthool tax levy. The amend
ey Y
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JON PAYNE
better schools is for the
children to stay there and
‘make them better.”
~ The board un‘nlmoul.lfi
“issued an anno\:‘nc-m:int t.oh
“county ents sta that
EATEIE
tly en m?.’& inning
with tl‘;e 1985-86 school yo:r‘.
Al students who are atten
ding schools outside their
communities, even with the
school’s permission, must re
apply for permission, The re
?uests must be approved each
ollowing Kear.
“This has always been our
polic{.” Hayes 'stated. ‘‘We
simY y want to make the
public aware that this is still
in effect.”’
The superintendent
reported that six warrants
had been issued against
parents for truancy cases. The
cases are scheduled to be
heard in state court in the
near future. According to
Georgia law, lpnrents can be
fined ugut.o SIOO per day for
their child’'s absences from
school over the legal limit.
A total of $1,020.78 has
been received by the schools
in county taxes during
February. According to the
superintendent, a total of
$1,607,988 remains to be col
lected, of that approximately
$500,000 is considered un
collectable.
The board t;gproved a mo
tion made by King, seconded
by Johnson to borrow $60,000
for operational expenses,
In a motion by chairman
pressed diu;;sointment. at the
news, but said the pressure is
on the Legislature to lock up
eriminals. ““The pressure is on
a Legislature to lock these
peogle u})." said Crawford.
rawford said the opposi
tion to the prison here has not
stopped state officials from
planning to expand the prison
system and build the Chat
tooga facility. “Pefl)le are.
determined to build more
prisons,”’ said Crawford.
Powell said the county
would not allow the ‘‘use of
any of its groperty in connec
tion with the planning,
building or maintenance of
any such prison.”
He said the county will
“not voluntarily £rmit the
DOR, the City of Summerville
or any other entity to lay or
axpand any present or ex
isting lines tgnt may be on
county property or any of its
rifht-of-ways for the fiumse
o sugrlying these utilities to
the prison site.”
He went on to say DOR
‘‘should not exfiect any
cooperation from the govern
ing authority of ChattooFa
County until at least a public
referendum has been held on
the issue.” ,
PUIu
ment allocates the revenue
which would be generated
from an');‘local option tax to
both Chattooga and Trion
schools.
*A 1980 amendment
which grants a $2,000
homestead exemption from all
ad valorem taxes by the town
of Trion to residents 65 years
or older and settinfi a 4 max
imum exemption of $4,000
that may be set by the mayor
and council,
The House is expected to
consider several bills that
cleared the Senate. Among
the bills is a measure lllowinfi
newspapers that carry lega
advertisements to raise their
rates. The measure raises the
maximum chnrges for each
100 words from $56 to $6.50 for
the first four insertions. The
maximum cost for each 100
words for subsequent inser
tions would rise from $4 to
$5.50.
The House will likely con
sider a bill that allows :‘iudge
to impose an additional five
year jail term for a person who
uses a weapon in a drug tran
saction, The extra time would
not be mandatory but if it
Joel Cook, seconded by Joyce
Johnson, the board a?proqu
a $2,400 total annual travel
allowance for the superinten
dent, The board vous‘ to raise
the allotment from the SI,OOO
l‘ifmit approved in January
S e
same as previously given to
;(e_ttred s?:perintendent Bill
ing.
Local Bankers Opposed
To Branch Banking Bill
- Chattooga County bankers are
unanimous in their c:&?ooltton to a senate
passed ‘‘branch bai nx" bill that they
say would allow large Atlanta banks to
"g:bblo up” smaller banks throughout
the state.
Senate Bill 656 passed the Gooril:
Senate last ’l‘uudnz and is expected to
hotly debated in the House, wlm«li?‘j
John Crawford said the vote is likely to
vomlose. a
bill would allow banks to open
branches in any county inside one of the
seven metropolitan statistica! areas
which they already serve and also allow
bank: to open branches in any adjoining
county,
Banks may now open new branches on
ly in counties which tht?' already serve
and must purchase existing banks to ex
pand into other counties, The federal
government designates seven metro
statistical areas consisting of from two to
18 counties in and around Atlanta,
Albany, Athens, Augusta, Columbus,
Macon and Savannah,
Chattooga County bankers have ex
ressed concern that the larger Rome
gmkl. many of which have or will likel
be bought by large statewide banks heaci
quartered in Atlanta, will move into Chat
tooia County.
armers and Merchants arnident
Henry Watson said this week Georgia’s
inderenderlt bankers are orpoud to the
bill for two major reasons: it would reduce
the value of stock in the smaller, indepen
dent banks, and the larger banks would
gather derositl from smaller banks to
serve their larger accounts - not the
smaller ones,
“It's easier for a bank to make larger
loans than a lot of smaller ones like we
do,” says Watson, who fornwr.l{v worked
at a regional bank. Watson said his ex
rerience in hfier banks showed ‘'it makes
t mo‘:: difficult for smaller loans to be ap
proved.
Proponents of the bill say it would
enhance commstttion. but local bankers
disagree, ‘I think it will do the reverse,’”
said Watson. ‘lt will eliminate the
smaller banks. We have about 14,000
banks in the nation and it could dwindle
down to several hundred, It would greatly
limit comnpetit:ion."
Jerrell McCool, president of First Na
tional of Chact,oo'ga County, echoed Wat
son’s concern, ‘lt will make it more ad
vantageous for the Atlanta banks to gob
ble :{) the smaller banks,’”’ said McCool,
cCool expressed concern that in the
last six months moves have been afoot for
statewide banks to buy out formerly
locally-owned banks in Rome. C&SB recent
z bought Rome Bank and Trust, accor
ing to McCool and the Goo&gia Railroad
Bank is negotiating to buy National City
were imposed, it would have
to be served consecutively
with the drug sentence not
concurrently,
The Senate passed a bill
Monday that would prohibit
oil refiners from giving lower
price breaks to company
O
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. :
HARRY POWELL
Hayes declined to accept
the $1,400 increase in his
travel allowance, stating,
“There is ala of corner cut
ting to be d "?i school ex
renuu and [ if we are go
ng to cut out expenses we re
g:zng “tgwhlva to start at the
"gnchu ‘Mfld'l action,
ut I feel I need to be an ex
ample.”
Bank of Rome.
“Clut‘.tooga Count¥ may not be attrac
tive %ol‘),u in the future it could be,”
said M L.
Mori_nn Smith, executive vice presi
dent of First Federal Snvingu and Loan in
Summerville, said if S. B. 65 is approved
it would “‘destroy” the local flavor of the
banks in Chattooga County.
"“The holding companies are basically
the ones trying to push this thing
throu“l!h." said Smith. ‘‘All of your money
would be diverted to the main office.
What we do here is try to keep the money
in the communttz."
Smith said the measure would allow
banks to ofiouw on a smaller profit
margin enabling cheaper services in some
ingkances, but on the averase costs would
go 4p. “Larger banks on interest rates
may save you a half-point or a point, but
they charge you for every service they of
fer,” he sald “Whereas, we give a lot of
our services away. We cash checks free for
Social Socurlt{hreciplentu who don't have
an account with us, but you go to a larger
bank and .t:nfl'll charge Kou 81.""
Smith if a Rome oldlnsg company
owned a Chlttoos: County S & L and
“trh;:sl ggt bad’’ t awould be more con
cel about bailing Rome out than Chat
tooga County.
fi‘np. Crawford said this week he is oa
posed to the bill, but expects a close vo
in the House,
“The big banks are in financial trouble
not the smaller banks,” said Crawford.
“The government ends up having to bail
the!';il &t'te big banks) out gecausa they are
80 big.
Crgawford said smaller banks can fold
without the tremendous turmoil caused
when a larger bank teeters on the edge of
folding due to bad foreign loans, for in
stance, The government has no choice but
to bail the b?g operators out,
The measure needs only 91 votes in
the 180-member House to pass. ‘I look
for it to be a close vote,” he said. “'I think
the big banks have all the votes on the
comm!ttoa (to get it to the floor),” .
Crawford said he is uncertain if Gov.
Joe Frank Harris will pass the measure if
approved.
Georgia’'s independent bankers argue
against the measure because:
* Local degosita will be drained off to
the big city banks for use in loans and
develogment in their home office areas
*BO percent of the loans made in the
local communit{o:'ould not be fizantod as
acceptable by loan policy of large city
banks
* Locally owned banks are concerned
about the future growth and development
of their respective counties
* The best managed banks are com
munity banks.
Now In Ow
100th Year
Of Publication
PRICE 20*
owned service stations, In
dependent service station
ororatora want the legislation
¢ nimi:g they are being
s?‘ueez out of the market
place by refinery-owned sta
tions.
The Senate cleared the way
for a measure which would
allow cities and counties to in
cur short-term debt.
The legislation is a con
stitutional amendment which
would require voter upprovul
next year to become effective,
At present, cities and
counties are not permitted to
incur indebtedness for more
than one year at a time
without a referendum. The
legislation would permit those
jurisdictions to incur limited
debt over a period of five
years without public approval
through a referendum.
The debt would be limited
to an amount no greater than
one-quarter of one percent of
the total assessed property
value in the city or county and
there would be no cap.
The legislation is aimed ni
making it possible for loca
governments to provide
necessary.
The board discussed a pro
blem with the as yet un
completed Chattooga High
School roof. The superinten
dent reported that the roof is
leaking in six places and the
contractor has not responded
to requests to repair the leaks
.agreed to ask the con
tractor, Todd Construction
see BUSING, page 10-A