06/18/2026
I am going to say this...
If you pull previous budget meetings, you will see that I asked to go through the budget line by line. As many of you know, I read every document. I do not just vote on something because it is placed in front of me. I wanted to ask questions, review the details, and understand what we were voting on before approving millions of taxpayer dollars.
Those requests were denied.
We were told to trust the finance director, the county manager, and the chair to bring forward the budget. But trust does not replace oversight. Commissioners are elected to review, question, and make informed decisions for the people we serve.
What I find interesting is that some of the same people sitting on the board now were part of the votes that denied commissioners the opportunity to go line by line in previous years. Now, this board appears to be able to do things differently than what commissioners were previously allowed to do.
Under Newton County’s enabling legislation, the county manager works with the finance director and consults with the chair in developing the annual budget for the board’s consideration. The legislation also limits commissioners from entering into administrative acts or requesting services from county employees except through the county manager. At the same time, commissioners are allowed to ask questions and request information needed to carry out their duties.
That distinction matters.
There were times when the attorney stated that, based on the enabling legislation, the chair could say no to commissioners working on the budget line by line or working directly with departments on budget items. If that was the interpretation used then, the same law should be followed consistently now.
I believe in following the law first. If the enabling legislation was used to deny commissioners access in the past, then we need to be honest that things are now being done differently. The public deserves to know whether this new process fully aligns with the enabling legislation or whether the board is operating differently from how the law has been applied for years.
This is why you saw myself, and Commissioner Henderson, on record voting NO on several budgets. It was not because we did not support employees or county operations. It was because we were being asked to vote on a full budget without being allowed to properly review it line by line.
The only year I voted yes was because the employee pension was included. I asked for that motion to be separated from the full budget, but that did not happen. I was not going to vote against the employees’ pension.
So yes, I support transparency. I support commissioners having the information needed to make responsible decisions. But the process must be clear, consistent, legal, and available to every commissioner, not just some.
Newton County deserves a budget process that is fair, transparent, and applied equally across the board.
Newton County Ga Government The Newton Citizen Covington News
