Cobb commissioners split on legislative brief
The Cobb County Board of Commissioners voted 3-2 on Jan. 26 to approve the legislative brief that will be sent to the Cobb County legislative delegation of the Georgia General Assembly.
Opposed were Commissioners JoAnn Birrell and Keli Gambrill.
In favor were Cobb Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid and Commissioners Jerica Richardson and Monique Sheffield.
Birrell noted the language has changed from “consider” to “approve.”
She added, “I don’t support this. I do think it’s a good idea to decide as a board collectively to recommend to the delegation. I can’t vote to approve something when I don’t know the funding or the specifics of each individual item.”
Cupid said this 2021 legislative brief to the Cobb legislative delegation is “not providing any specifics” but “that we are in support of matters that fall within these policy areas.”
If there is a bill that comes about from the Cobb legislative agenda, Cupid said the specifics would come back to the BOC for an individual vote.
“In the past, we did not have that consensus before we had representation going down to the State Capitol,” Cupid added.
Specific areas being recommended to the Cobb legislative delegation are:
- Include the Board of Commissioners on matters of redistricting and cityhood.
- Address commissioner salary bill, equalizing the pay for all district commissioners.
- Update SPLOST-eligible expenditures to include cloud-based software.
- Proposed revisions to the Georgia Utility Facility Protection Act (GUFPA) will adversely affect Cobb County. Removing exemptions for traffic control devices and traffic management systems are not necessary. If the county is required to join the 811 system, the cost could exceed $500,000.
- Proffer any assistance possible to help Cobb County secure state grant funding for the renovation/expansion of Gritters Library.
General policy areas on the Cobb BOC legislative platform include:
Public Health: Support initiatives that enable us to address the COVID-19 health pandemic and improve the overall health of Cobb county citizens, including addressing health issues that have disproportionate detriment to our citizens.
Transportation/Transit: Support policies that strengthen our transportation network to relieve congestion, improve safety, reduce trip times and support commerce. Also improve mobility to provide citizens reasonable access to work, education, recreation and improved quality of life.
Elections: Support initiatives that enable full and fair access to voting.
Policing: Support policies that foster safety across all communities and safety for our public safety personnel.
Housing: Support access to safe, healthy, quality housing for all citizens across the county and income levels.
Information: CobbCounty.org/board/county-clerk/agenda-and-minutes
