New Gwinnett commissioners find money in budget to audit spending

When they vote Tuesday to approve the county budget, a few new items will be part of the proposal.

First, the proposed budget now includes $200,000 for a performance audit. Nicole Love Hendrickson, the new chairwoman of the commission, said that was a priority. She wanted to see where money could be saved and reallocated, especially as the county’s needs continue in response to the coronavirus pandemic.

Commissioner Kirkland Carden likened the audit of government spending to taking a just-purchased used car to a mechanic to see what might need to be fixed.

“I want to assess the condition that it’s in,” he said of county spending. “I think it’s going to be important to find out where we can save money to fund programs important to this board.”

For the first time since the 1980s, Gwinnett’s board of commissioners is made up entirely of Democrats. They have pledged to build a more inclusive government.

In addition to the audit, the proposed changes include $200,000 for warming stations, to help homeless residents find shelter when the temperatures dip below freezing.

Matthew Elder, the director of HomeFirst Gwinnett, said a partner had received a grant to pay staff at such a shelter overnight, after failing to find enough volunteers to do so as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.

But Elder said he doesn’t think the one warming station he operates, near Norcross, is enough. Gwinnett is so large, and with limited accessibility on public transportation, there’s an opportunity for more services, he said.

“There’s certainly a need for more than one in Norcross when there are families in need in Duluth, Buford, Lawrenceville,” he said.

The warming station Elder operates opens when temperatures fall below 35 degrees.

Other additional expenditures include new staff in the clerk of court’s office, juvenile court’s family treatment court and planning and development; adjustments based on the salaries of elected officials; and more money for community outreach.