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The Summerville Council Monday decid
ed to continue workini with the Chat
tooia Development Authority despite the
authority's decision to charge the city in
terest payments on the spec building at
the City Industrial Park. The authority
County Gets $175,432
From 1985 Beer Taxes
Chattooga Coun?' received
$175,432 last year from malt
beverage taxes and the citg' of
Summerville received $87,325.
Geo:]gia's 73 beer
wholesalers delivered more
than 53 million cases of beer to
approximately 12,000 retailers
statewide, according to the
Georgia Beer Wholesalers
Association.
The wholesalers, who are
responsible for collecting the
excise taxes and remittinj
them to the state and loc
authorities on a monthly basis,
delivered $58.8 million to the
state treasury and distributed
$64.6 million to 366 Georgia
cities and 138 counties.
The amount of revenue rais
ed in Georgu is the second
highest in the U. S. According
to the association's director,
’B6 Session Discussed
By Johnny Crawford
The 1986 General Assembly may be
noted for what it did not accomplish rather
than what it accomplished because of an
unprecedented adjournment in the waning
hours of the session by the State Senate.
Key measures that hati been hotly debated
earlier in the session were left unfm'shed
by the General Assembly due to the quick
adjournment.
Although the session was a disappoint
ment to many, State Rep. John Cra’u.;[ord,
who voted with the majority of the House
to continue the session only to see the
Senate vote to adjourn, said tfi‘tlzt more local
legislation with important impact in Chat
tooga County passed this session than in
recent years.
The follow;"r:f is an interview with Rep.
Cmflord conducted by Editor James
Bu
THE NEWS: What has been the public
reaction to this {m'l abrupt ending to the
General Assembly?
CRAWFORD: Anybody that brinfs
flthiwp about the General Assem
s, “Why did you quit so early?"” I thi
most of them think we should have stayed
until we finished our business. The House
voted to stay and the Senate voted to
leave.
THE NEWS: Do you have any theories
on Iw'l;y the Senate voted to adjourn so
ear
€RAWFORD: I really don't know.
THE NEWS: Do you think it was a wise
move by the Senate?
CRAWFORD: I can't understand why
they did it. You have to say they were
following the leadership's advice. Somehow
they thought they would come out better.
I know I would hate to have to go around
and explain why we quit early. »
THE NEWS: What are some of the key
measures you favored that were not com
leted this year thanks to the abrupt en-
Sln of the session?
BRAWFORD: I think one of the m?or
things was the tort reform measure. I feel
like we should have done something on
that.
THE NEWS: That would have allowed
judgu to flult settlements in lawsuits?
RAWFORD: It would have allowed
the judges to adjust the settlements and
also allowed the juries to look at other
sources of payment such as insurance
policies the plaintiffs get.
THE NEWS: How would that measure
reduce liability insurance premiums for
counties, cities and businesses?
Girders On The Ground
shipments of beer were down
.02 percent nationwide while
Georgia had a 2.5 percent in
crease. The 123.23 million does
not include revenues from state
and local licenses fees for
retailers and wholesalers.
The director said Georgia
has one of the hifi?est excise
taxes on beer in the country.
On every case of beer sold,
SI.OB is paid to the state and
$1.20 goes to the local licensi:g
authority. Georgia's combin
tax is over five times the na
tional average of 41 cents per
case.
MD&C::;II William Griffin
i ) ic impact
of the wholeam"fixdmtry
in Georgia is estimated to be in
excess of 81 billion.
The total received from the
tax by surrounding counties
Che Summeruille News
had originally promised the city no in
terest payments would be charged.
Above, the steel support frames have
been delivered to the construction site of
the building on Bolling Road.
and cities includes: LaFayette,
$67,815; Rome, $534,159;
Ringgold, $16,475; Calhoun,
$264,936; Dade County,
$144,758; Walker County,
$243,741; and Floyd County,
$367,037.
Griffin noted that various
efforts are currently underway
at the federal level to increase
beer taxes. ‘‘The federal tax is
currently 65 cents %eel:
case . . . and proposals are
i% made to increase the
federal tax to over $5 per
case!”” Under the current
federal tax structure, alcohol in
liquor is taxed at a higher rate
&w beer. Proponents of a
eral tax increase to equalize
beer and distilled spirits taxes
estimate that such an increase
will add $1.32 to a six-pack of
see BEER TAX, page 16-A
CRAWFORD: In my opinion you can’t
say it would have. The emphasis on this
was to cut down on frivolous lawsuits. Of
course, the frivolous lawsuit bill did pass.
It’s to cut down on what a lot of folks say
are outrageous awards. The theory is if in
surance companies are paying out less
money our insurance rates will go down. Of
course, there are no guarantees they will
go down.
THE NEWS: Was a lot of this brought
on bithe Jan Kem!s case?
CRAWFORD: No, the Kemp thing
came after the bill had lpassed the House.
For several years people thought the set
tlements were too big.
THE NEWS: Do you think Jan Kemp's
$2 million-plus settlement with the Univer
sity of GeoFrgh is too high?
CRAWFORD: Most of that was in
punitive damages. | i:lsst don't see how she
was hurt. If she was dismissed unfairly, she
should have sotten her back png'eand some
penalty. I understand that maybe $200,000
was the back pay.
THE NEWS: How damagin? was the
Kemp case to the University of Georgia
and Georgia's educational system in
general?
CRAWFORD: In the long run it may
be helpful. It is my personal (()finion that
if you dgo to the University of Georgia you
shouldn't have to have any kind of
see 'B6 SESSION, page 10:A
=
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JOHNNY CRAWFORD
SUMMERVILLE, CHATTOOGA COUNTY, GEORGIA — THURSDAY, MARCH 20, 1986
Building Project Hits Finance
Snag; Mayor Appointed Judge
By JAMES BUDD
News Editor
Financing of the spec
bmldufi at the Summerville In
dustrial Park on Bolling Road
has become bogged down in
red tape due in part to a last
minute change in an informal
agreement between the city
and the Chattooga Develop
ment Authorit¥. :
Members of the Summer
ville Council expressed dismay
and anger MongaK night at the
development authority’s deci
sion to charfe the city interest
payments for their contribu
tion to the 8180.002(Project.
The cit{t:lorrow its con
sgitutional i c'lt of 8}50,000 gor
the project and was oolnng or
an additional $30,000. The
Chattooga Development
Authority oriiinally agreed to
buy one-sixth of the spec
building with the stipulation
that the authority’s holding
would be bought back once the
building was purchased by an
industry. :
The on‘%ga.l‘ eement, ac
cordin%wto thtsil;y Manager
Grady McCalmon and authori
ty member Will Hair was for
‘‘zero interest.”
McCalmon said the authori
tK appargn7tly wants to ctl::rge
the city 6.7 percent —t!
ing rate at local commcrgrl
banks — for 12 months. “It
sl:il}1 botherah me that tll:e
authority is charging us,” he
said. I still feel lif; tiey could
charge us zero interest.” |
According to authorit,y
member Hair, the authority’'s
attorney, Ed Surles, dxs‘find
that no charges should be
levied on the city. ‘I was try-
A NEWS* EXCEUSIVE T T
Darden To Support Aid
For ‘Freedom Fighters’
In House Vote Today
By JAMES BUDD
~ News Editor
SeventhG Dist.riclt3 g‘;)n
ssman George ‘‘Buddy”
§:rdet;l tog The Summervi{le
ews he plans to support a
controversial SIOO mx&%: aid
package for contras fightin§
the communist regime o
Nicaragua when it comes up
for a House vote today,
Thursday.
Intense political maneuver
ing developed recently in
Wul‘:::‘fon over the contra
h:_ir:i age along partisan
es.
Darden, a Marietta
Democrat, met with President
Reagan at the White House
Tuesday to discuss the
measure which calls for S7O
million in military aid and S3O
million in humanitarian aid to
be doled out over an 18-month
period to Nicaraguan contras.
The Reagan Administra
tion, which has strongly sup
ported aid to Nicurafiuun
rebels, has played l\lxlp the theme
that Nicaragua ;vf develop in
to a springboard for exportin
Mnrxf:‘mn&mto other areas o%
Central America.
‘““The reason I am voting for
it is because of the ungiue
security importance of Central
America to the U. 5.," said
Darden. *'lf this were not for a
country that is closer to Atlan
ta, Georgia than many cities on
the West Coast my opinion
ml%\t be different.’
arden, who last year sup
orted a $27 million
fiumlni‘tuign aid package to
Darden Forum Scheduled
In Chattooga April 7
Congreuman George
*Buddy" Darden will conduct
a town forum April 7 at the
Chattooga County Library at
n, who ts the
7th District of northwest
Georgia, is expected to address
current issues before Congress
ing to g:t it on a no interest
basis, but I don’t think Ed
Surles would go along with it,”
said H(air.h ‘h(’)arigin)ally we
agreed (with the city).”
Despite the erosg;(‘m of thxel
prgnni' ent, the counci
au orizzsrlc!ec%almon continue
to work with the authority.
“We make a motion under gro
test,”” said Councilman Phil
Cavin. “We just won't send
them a Christmas ham next
year.”
McCalmon said tacked-on
costs will have to be included
in the final cost of the building
to atj.::e bu{er_. *“All this does is
make our building more expen
sive and harder to market,”
“said McCalmon.
City Attorne{ Ben
Ballenger said he doubted that
the authority could charge in
terst, but said the authority
could 'in;lflly add the charge on
the cost that the city must pay
to buy back the one-sixth share
of the building.
~ Inother action Monday, the
~ council unanimously apgzoved
the lalpgoiul:ment of Mayor
Sewell Cash as (j:udge of the ci
ty Recorder’s Court effective
after Ralph Brown retires May
=%
However, City Attorney
Ben Ball said Tuesday
several leefi‘=r questions have
arisen concerning the
appointment.
Ballenger said the city
charter does allow the mayor to
preside over the court, but re
cent court decisions have ruled
unfavorably on whether or not
public officials can hold two
offices.
Ballenger said there is also
a constitutional question of due
groeeu because appeals made
om the court go automatical-
cgzl':lru. said hlexe was concerned
about giving the contras more
money%eause the $27 million
was never accounted for to his
satisfaction.
Darden said he asked
Re:fm about the accountabili-
I ppvec g Vet grtsidont
approv ident
assured him there md be
“total accountability.”
Darden said the SIOO
million falls far short of the
estimated SSOO million the
Soviet Union and Cuba have
poured into the government of
zz)ormnunislfJ leader D;nil:sl
rtega in Nicaragua and the
4.oo(?“advisors" the Soviets
and Cuba have there.
Darden expects an ‘‘ex
tremely close’’ vote today on
the contra aid package.
‘lt appears the majority of
the people in tfixi:gtl} Q‘iistfigt
su Fort some of aid,” he
sup.
Darden said he has met
Sandinista leader Ortega and
was unimpressed. ‘‘He needs to
take a Dale Carnegie course,”
said Darden. ‘‘He came across
as surly and made a point to
exsress his Marxist creden
tials.” The fatigue-clad com
munist “tries to appear as
another Fidel Castro," he said.
The congressman said the
Sandinistas do not appear to
have the support of the
populace and noted restrictions
of religion and the press have
mounted in recent months. The
Sandinistas began systematic
genocide on the Indian popula
tion along the Nicaraguan
coast.
Though leaders of surroun
ding nations in Central
and will handle questions from
the audience.
Darden, a Marietta
Democrat, was elected to his
ggct in 1983 after the death of
p. Larry McDonald. He was
re-elected to the seat in the
1984 election.
ly to the Mayor and Council.
Councilman Ronnie Pilcher
questioned if the court “‘could
bl:x used as a political-type
t 2 .'V
lgmh responded, “I feel like
I could run it to the best in
terest of the city.”
Cash, who would receive the
S3OO monthly salary for the
judfieship. said he would not
seek an increase in the posi
tion's pay as long as he was
e
mayor also indicated he
would change the meeting date
of the court from every other
Frid:z night to every other
Monr: ly;“at 9:15 a.m.
Pilcher questioned whether
or not the Monday court
schedule would be fair to work
ing persons who would have to
miss work for court
appearances.
Cash indicated people
should not break the law.
After some hesitation, the
council unanimously ap&x:ved
the appointment pending a
decision from attorney
Ballenger. “‘l'm going to have
to research it a lot more before
I afiive an opinion,”” said
Ballenger.
In other action:
* The council unanimously
approved authorization to
house city inmates in the Chat
tooga County Jail for a $lO per
diem rate and a $5 booking
charge. If city inmates are
housed in the county jail longg
than 14 days, the city will
charged S3B for mandatory
medical exams for the
prisoners.
Chief Arlen Thomas said
most prisoners have a court ap
mrance before the 14-day
imit in city court, so it would
be unlikely that the S3B fee
America have remained
publicallmuiet about the com
munist threat in Nicaragua for
fear of retaliation, Reagan told
Darden that the leaders strong
lfy supion the aid package to
ight the communists.
Darden believes the Soviets
wm&ld like to estabb anlish a bueh
in Nicaragua by allowing the
Sandinistas to consolidate
their power, but he doubts the
Soviets would be willing to
spend excessive amounts of
mone{ there considering the
fact they give Cuba $4 billion
annually in aid already.
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Calico Kids Appear Tonight
The Calico Kids Clo%frs will perform
several precision numbers in the annual
Chattooga County Follies which be;'i'ln
tonight at 8 o'clock at the Summerville
Junior High School Auditorium. Pictured
are members of the Calico Kids, from left
‘to right, front row, Amanda Parker and
Aymelia Whited. Second row, are Gina
would be charged.
Under the agreement,
which takes effect midnight
March 31, the city would agree
to support the county on any
lawsuit that mn{'l be brought
by a city inmate housed in the
county jail.
The agreement would allow
. %
Powell Hospitalized
Tuesday In Rome
Chattooga County Commissioner Harry Powell was
hospitalim Tuesday at Redmond Park Hospital and re
mained in “‘satisfactory” condition Wed.nuJay.
’ Hosgietd officials were unable to release further details
about the 69-year-old commissioner’s condition.
The Summerville News attempted several times to ob
tain information by phone about Powell's hospitalization
from the commissioner’s office in the courthouse, but there
was no answer.
Chattooga County Ambulance Director Donny Fowler
said he was unaware that the commissioner had been
hosgitalized and said there were no recorded uses of the
ambulance by Powell.
Trion School Renovation
SIOO,OOO Under Budget
By KAY ABBOTT
Staff Writer
The Trion Board of Educa
tion announced Monday that it
was agproximately SIOO,OOO
under u%ut in its Fiscal Year
85 Capital Outlay project to
renovate the Trion I:J.Emmury
R s
Bill ard members
that the surflus*funds meant
glpd news for the Town of
on.
“The schools had already
received s&groval from the
E}owwn lng :clhodlooo to be used in
air eond:twmnfi
and renovation project, whic
is our Fiscal Year 87 Capital
Outlay Project,” Kinzy said.
“Now we will only have to ask
for $25,819 from the town."”
In renovating the Trion
Elementar{) School, the board
had a total budget of $489,990.
Only $385,693 was spent of
that budget, much of the re
maining of $104,296 will be
transferred to the high Am:hool
renovation project. Approx
imately 825.800 will be retain
ed for painting and other need
ed items at the elementary
school.
Local effort in the project
o e total proge f the
total project cost o
Fiscal Year 87 high school
renovation ;r?ect is estimated
at $273,253. Total local funds
for the pm will be $116,313.
According to Kinzy, the 'B7
high school renovation project
Laws, Amber Wilson, Alison Maddox and
Stegha.nie Lewis. Back row, are Beth
Parker, Davette Pritchett, Mimi Barnes,
April Rich and Jennifer Yarbrough. For
more pictures and information, see inside
{.qhia week's issue of The Summerville
ews.
Price 20c
a city official to inspect the jail
occasionally to insu‘rlfwsood
conditions are maintained.
* Tabled a decision whether
to provide gas services to a
Marble ’xrinfis Road
residence. McCalmon sug
gested that the council con
see MAYOR, page 5-A
was on schedule until air con
ditioner specifications were re
jected by state planners this
month.
“The Atlanta office decided
that the decibel of the air
conditioners spm was too
high for classroom use,” Kinzy
are on their desk in Atlanta
now.”
A bid ing for the
ject is soheduled for April 17,
The renovation will proceed
this summer as scheduled if the
bids are on budget, according
to Kinzy.
“If the bids come over
budget, I recommend holding
the Pro'ect until next sum
mer, lemz y told the board.
He stated that he wished to
av:fil further delays tb:l;fi);ll:
co ent i i
schoor:)v schgule.
ey i
ec p e
H?es at Trion Elementary
and Clarence Blevins at Trion
High School after a 15-minute
executive session.
The board approved Jim
Simmons and Mary Hazfiood
as delegates to the SA
reorgamzational meeting
which was held Monday even
ing in Rome. Under QBE,
board members and lay people
are required to serve on the
CESA committee as system
representatives.
a'{‘he boards requesatied a cost
analysis of apr to paint
17 classrooms at Igg’on Elemen
tary School. The board will
vote on the issue at a later
see SCHOOL, page 10-A