January, 2011

A Note from Mike

Hello, Everyone:

Despite the snowy conditions of last week, 2011 is getting off to a fast start in Gwinnett County government. At our first meeting on January 4th, we welcomed Lynette Howard and John Heard to the Board of Commissioners, and we passed a budget that will leave the county about $18 million in the red. We cut operating expenses by 3%, and capital expenses by 39%. While this is an improvement over previous years, I will not be satisfied until the budget is balanced. Over the course of the next six months, we will find additional ways to reduce expenses in order to make up the shortfall.

In order to reduce expenses, the Board has eliminated the traditional retreat we normally have in November. The retreat was used to evaluate the previous year and to set goals for the upcoming year. Despite the lack of a retreat, the board has identified a number of priorities for 2011. You'll read about mine in a minute, but first I want to share an idea I had that became a board-wide goal.

Board members, both old and new, realize that in the past, the board as a whole has not done a good job listening to and communicating with our residents. This began to change last year with the Engage Gwinnett citizens committee, which was able to provide valuable input on how the county could deal with the effects of the recession and still provide the services citizens expect. Many of their ideas and recommendations were included in the recently passed budget.

This winter, the Board is conducting what I'm calling a "Listening Tour", a chance for all the commissioners to meet with residents, hear their ideas and concerns, and discuss possible solutions. We will hold one of these town hall style meetings in each commission district over the next few weeks. The first one will be this Thursday, January 20th here in District 3. We will meet with residents at 7 PM at Fire Station 30, 1052 Ozora Road in Loganville. On Monday, January 31st, we will be at the George Pierce Park Community Center, 55 Buford Highway in Suwanee. The meeting dates and locations for the remaining two districts will be announced soon.

I encourage you to attend one of the meetings, meet our new commissioners and tell us what's on your mind. And, by the way, the listening tour isn't replacing my Meetings With Mike, which I've held every month since taking office. The next Meetings With Mike will be on February 12th from 10-Noon at the Dacula Park Activity Building.

I spent some time during the holidays thinking about my 2011 goals, and I would like to share them with you:

• I would like the county to establish an Innovation Committee composed of residents who would, like Engage Gwinnett, come up with recommendations for controlling expenses and improving the way the county provides services to citizens. Two committee members would be appointed by each commissioner. For example, I would like them to find a way to reduce the county's personnel costs by 5% per year.
• The county should create an Animal Welfare Task Force that would make recommendations to improve the way our animal shelter operates and to make any needed modifications to the animal control ordinance. This would include looking at how animal control is handled in peer counties, the composition and reporting responsibilities of the Animal Advisory Board and the possibility of involving more volunteers at the shelter.
• Drug use by Gwinnett's youth is a continuing problem that needs more attention. I would like to have a summit on drug use, with a focus on CAP (Control, Awareness and Prevention).
• The findings of the Grand Jury last fall recommended that the county should reform the way it deals with ethics issues. I would like the county to establish a permanent Ethics Commission this year to address this.
• The Engage Gwinnett committee recommended the county should take better advantage of volunteers in order to be able to provide services without raising personnel costs. I want to start a campaign to promote "1 million volunteer hours for Gwinnett". At a minimum, we should start a marketing campaign to raise awareness of how people could volunteer, and provide a website where those interested in volunteering could register.
• The county must take a hard line on providing services to illegal immigrants. While we are already in full compliance with state law, we should require all applicants for business licenses to enroll in E-Verify in order to ensure their employees are here legally. We should also determine if there are any public benefits that are going to ineligible recipients.
• I would like our transit system to become self sufficient, not requiring a contribution from the general fund in order to operate. A plan to do this for the 2012 budget should be in place by mid year 2011.
• Finally, the Engage Gwinnett Committee recommended that the department of Planning and Development should be renamed the department of Planning and Economic Development to reflect its role in helping our county attract new businesses. It's a great idea. Let's do it.

The county may not be able to fully implement all these goals this year. I'm sure that the new Commission Chairman will want to set some priorities after the election in March. However, these goals are achievable, and we need to start to implement them.

2010 was a difficult year both for the county and its residents. I'm hoping that we can make 2011 the year of the turnaround, allowing us to continue to set an example for the metro area and the state that "Gwinnett is Great".

I hope to see you during the listening tour, or at an upcoming Meetings with Mike. You can also contact me by email at mike.beaudreau@gwinnettcounty.com, or call my office at 770-822-7003.

Mike

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