Per sources, this morning employees of Joe’s Recycling found the business’s power meter and phone lines cut in an overnight robbery attempt. Thieves have also recently broken into parked Blossman Gas trucks for metal and destroyed a hot transformer bank behind the old Food Lion looking for copper.

Will the thieves get caught, get shot, or accidentally electrocute themselves?   

Glorified press release erm, article about new fire station planned for the Hinkle community on Lookout Mountain. The proposed new fire hall will be built next to a shopping center the county is building for a family that contributed much to the Commissioner’s campaign last year.

The county plans to use next year’s SPLOST money to build another outrageously fancy fire station like the one in Villanow for a community of fifty people, replacing an existing fire department that doesn’t have enough volunteers to put out a burning cigarette. Remember that when you see SPLOST on November’s ballot.

The people of Hinkle might prefer road work, garbage pickup, or something else. But the Davenports get THEIR wish: Another brand-new county building with no staff to operate it. Like the Villanow community center and the new library in LaFayette. Pretty buildings we wave at while standing outside locked doors.   

Monday Gov. Deal approved the ethics reform bill capping some lobbyist gifts to elected officials. Deal said the state’s elected officers are good people who don’t have any ethical problems (no joke – that’s what he said) but signed the toothless bill anyway.

Yesterday, May 7th, was the last day for Deal to sign bills passed during the legislative session that ended a month ago. He approved the 2014 state budget, which begins July 1st. Here’s a look at other bills the governor signed off on.   

Several GA state lawmakers have begun pushing a plan to end the state income tax. Doing that would require some combination of increased sales tax, re-taxing groceries, or cutting back state services. Neither Tennessee or Florida charge personal income taxes.

Voters might be more supportive of an increase in state sales taxes if state legislators also redo the laws about LOST, SPLOST, and ELOST county sales tax.

Tennessee has a state-wide 7% sales tax, accompanied by local taxes ranging from 1.5% to 2.75%. In Hamilton County TN, the combined state and local sales tax is 9.5% (except for Bebe). Georgia’s base is 4% (except on food) and counties can charge up to three extra 1% taxes. In Walker you pay 7% on everything except food, which is taxed at 3% for the county.

So Tennessee residents don’t pay any state income tax and the sales tax is just 2.5% higher than in Walker County. If SPLOST had passed last July Walker County would now be up to 8%. That’s completely unacceptable.   

Photo from outside the Walker Covnty Covrthovse from late March:

Do as we say, not as we do.

What do you think about City Club ?   

A year ago yesterday, LU broke the news that Walker County Schools would be eliminating 55+ teaching positions over the summer. Most of the teaching jobs were cut from special education classes, an area where Georgia lowered standards last year. The cuts were made possible by increased limits for classroom headcount.

(Several have pointed out that Elaine Womack doesn’t work for Walker County Schools anymore. We were aware of that – remember, this article is from last year. She never did e-mail back.)   

LHS Senior Devan Greene just finished his final year playing soccer for the Ramblers. His performance this season was remarkable considering an accident he suffered several years ago, and healing he credits to a miracle from God.   

An East Point, GA mom turned herself in yesterday after police said she stole $5,000 donated to her daughter’s Girl Scout troop. She faces a single charge of “theft by conversion” for the missing money.

She should try running for Sheriff.   

Public Officials Behaving Badly: Georgia Regents University spent more than $280,000 renovating a home used by its president, without official permission – in violation of state law. The university president, Ri­cardo Azziz, recently reimbursed the state for using college resources for a wedding party at the same home.   

Archaeologists have uncovered a Revolutionary War era British fort down in Wilkes County. Georgia played a minor role in the Revolutionary War but does have a few historical sites from that era.

According to “the Georgia Society Sons of the American Revolution” GA had eight major Revolutionary War campaigns and 150 different war-related events.   

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