Riley says new county is financially viable
The Carl Vinson Institute of Government has released its study of Milton County. The new county would consist of the cities of Alpharetta, Roswell, Johns Creek, Milton, Sandy Springs and Mountain Park and would have an estimated population of about 311,121.
The estimated revenue for Milton County is about $209.6 million with expenditures estimated between $133.1 million and $147.9 million.
The Road to Milton County
According to District 3 Fulton County Commissioner Lynne Riley, the process of recreating Milton County would be similar to the recent city incorporations and involve just as much resident input.
A Johns Creek resident herself, Ms. Riley said a “cafeteria plan” would allow residents to pick and choose what they wanted in the county charter. But first, if it passes the legislature, the measure would be voted on in a statewide referendum on the 2010 ballot. Then, just as with the city incorporations, the legislature would have to pass the charter legislation. This would most likely happen during the 2011 or 2012 session, said Ms. Riley. Then a transition period to taking over county services from Fulton County would take about four years and the county would “open” in 2014 or 2015.
The case for making Milton County, said Ms. Riley, would be to create a county with a great deal of flexibility, easily affordable services and the opportunity for cost savings. Although she would no longer be able to serve as a county commissioner if Milton County were recreated, she would be involved in the new county government either as a resident volunteer or elected official.
Government Services
The Carl Vinson study assumes the new county would provide the following services:
Superior Court
State Court
Magistrate Court
Probate Court
Juvenile Court
Public Health
Emergency Shelter
Senior Services
Libraries
Emergency Management Services
Animal Control
Elections and Voter Registration
Government Administration
Tax Administration
School System
Based on the study, Ms. Riley said recreating Milton County is viable. She said a separate Milton County Board of Education would be created and the study shows that schools would remain at their current level of service delivery in north Fulton.
Because Milton County would have no unincorporated areas, the county would not need to provide police, fire, public works, transportation or water services, as those would be handled by each city.
Impact on Fulton County
The creation of Milton County would reshape Fulton County, changing its population from 900,200 to about 589,079. The median income, now estimated at $47,092 would drop to an estimated $36,930. The estimated median income for Milton County is $86,743.
According to Ms. Riley the new Fulton County would suffer no shortfall if Milton County were recreated.
“All the [tax] money goes into a shared pot right now, the money is shared equitably across the whole county,” she said. “With just a marginal adjustment, services in the remaining Fulton County could stay at the current level. Opposition to recreating the county, as it was with the creation of the cities, because Fulton County would be losing tax revenue is simply not the case.”
The full study is available at http://www.cviog.uga.edu/miltoncounty. Check our website for more details as more information becomes available.
Labels: Alpharetta, city milton, Johns Creek, milton county, Mountain Park, north fulton county, Roswell, sandy springs
# posted by
Brian Vanderhoff @ 8:22 AM
