Athens Banner-Herald (Registration Required)

If House Bill 296, now making its way through the General Assembly, had been law last year, Clarke County School Superintendent Lewis Holloway wouldn't have been able even to think about wasting taxpayers' dollars in gaming the electoral system for a favorable vote on continuation of a 1 percent local sales tax for school projects.

Current elections for special levies only make mockery of true democracy. Results fairer when turnout higher

By This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

Since local governments and school districts now rely so heavily on special sales tax levies to finance billions of dollars worth of new roads and schools, elections to approve such taxes ought to be held when turnout is the largest.

Instead, local officials often try to schedule the vote on days when nothing else is on the ballot and turnout will be abysmally low, believing that the fewer voters who participate, the more likely the tax proposal will be approved.

That's a cynical way to run government, but change may be coming in the form of House Bill 296. If approved by the Legislature and signed into law, it would require local officials to hold votes on tax levies only on certain election dates.

Macon Telegraph

Forces on both sides of annexation reform in the General Assembly are circling wagons over two measures which if approved would radically change the way cities can annex property into incorporated limits.

In very broad terms, House Bill 2 would restrict a city's ability to annex property by requiring municipalities to agree to a binding arbitration process with the county if it objects to the proposed annexation. House Bill 123 would allow property owners to de-annex from cities without a vote from their respective city council.

By This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution

From the front steps of his "dream home," Kevin Jackson can see Snake Creek rippling through the crevice of two wooded hills in southeast Carroll County.

Trails line the side of the creek leading to the historic remnants of a mill that has been built along an area that Jackson calls "a freak of nature" —- the Snake Creek Gorge.

In the 11 years since Jackson, his wife and two sons built their country home along Snake Creek, they have hiked the hills, kayaked along the creek and perfected their fly-fisherman skills.

"Both my boys were raised right here —- on my dream property," says Jackson, who has lived in rural Carroll County all his life.

Jackson feels so strongly about his piece of paradise that for much of the past decade, he has dedicated his time and effort with fellow interested citizens to help protect the Snake Creek watershed.