There was little dispute over how Fulton County should spend the first $4.8 million earmarked for community programs. But what to do with the last $478,000 has been more of a challenge.
Commissioners agreed last month to give nearly $5 million to community programs to help provide services to those who are poor, homeless, disabled or elderly. Most of the money has been allocated. But commissioners can’t reach an agreement on how to spend the money they originally planned to award to the Atlanta Legal Aid Society and three other legal organizations.
The board initially planned to give $478,000. Some commissioners were wary of the amount of money going to organizations they thought could find other funding sources. They capped all legal funding at $100,000.
Whether the remaining $378,000 should be restored to those groups or spent on other organizations is an open question.
Residents like April Ross, a Fulton County prosecutor who was shot by her estranged husband, pleaded with commissioners to increase the funding to the legal groups. She spoke on behalf of a group that helps women file temporary protective orders in domestic violence cases.
County leaders this year changed the process to allow community organizations to apply for money rather than simply receive grants.
But, with the addition of a cap, the county’s rules about how awards would be granted changed.
“The issue is fairness,” Chairman John Eaves said. “I don’t think you should change the rules after you’ve laid out the rules.”
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