One year ago Wednesday, Interim DeKalb County CEO Lee May was sworn in as the county’s leader.
May ascended to the job after Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal suspended then-CEO Burrell Ellis from office as he fights 14 felony charges. May was previously the presiding officer of the DeKalb Commission, representing southeast DeKalb.
Under May’s oversight, the county is on pace to hire 160 new police officers and 100 firefighters by the end of the year, said spokesman Burke Brennan. He said May improved residents’ quality of life when crews filled about 2,000 potholes after last winter’s storms, and when code enforcement officers cracked down on unsightly properties.
A new county budget passed last week includes funding to give employees a 3 percent raise and to fund greater ethics enforcement without raising taxes.
But May has run the county at a time of controversy.
Ellis’ trial for allegedly pressuring county vendors to give campaign contributions is scheduled to start in September. May and all six county commissioners are facing ethics complaints. And more neighborhoods such as Tucker, Stonecrest, Lakeside and Briarcliff are trying to gain local control of their government by becoming cities.
Acting on May’s proposal for a county chief integrity officer, the county commission recently voted to increase funding for the Board of Ethics to pay for the position and two staff members. The funding elevates the Board of Ethics’ budget to more than $400,000 on an annualized basis.
May will likely return to the county commission after Ellis’ trial. If Ellis is found not guilty, he would resume his position as CEO. If he’s found guilty, a special election would probably be held.
About the Author
