Friday, September 7, 2012
After approving a controversial fire district ordinance, the city sought guidance from Attorney General Sam Olens' office.
Mayor Gene Hobgood said he would seek an opinion from Attorney General Sam Olens' office on the legality of implementing a intended to help the city meet some of its long-term fire service needs. The office sent a PDF of its opinion to Canton-Sixes Patch on Thursday, one day after Hobgood summarized the findings at a press conference. Open the attached PDF to read what the attorney general's office had concluded. Related content Don’t miss any of the local news you care about. Subscribe to Canton-Sixes Patch’s free newsletter, like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter.
Thursday, September 6, 2012
"It is now time to develop and consider plan B," Canton Mayor Gene Hobgood said.
Read What the AG's Office Said When Canton Mayor Gene Hobgood vetoed a fire district ordinance that critics feared would erase a decade of voter-approved senior tax exemptions, he said he would seek an opinion from Attorney General Sam Olens' office on the legality of implementing the measure. Some in the city thought that the district should be considered a fee rather than a tax because it is intended to help the city meet some of its long-term fire service needs. Hobgood and the Canton City Council learned the findings Monday in the form of an email from city attorney Bobby Dyer. Hobgood shared them with local media outlets Wednesday, a little more than a month after the council voted Aug. 2 to override the mayor's veto and less than 24 …
Wednesday, September 5, 2012
Two were scheduled for this Thursday, one at 10 a.m. and one at 6 p.m.
The city of Canton abruptly canceled two scheduled public hearings to discuss a controversial fire district tax, and scheduled a press conference to discuss the matter at 10 a.m. today. "It appears that the chosen method to create funding for the fire district may not be appropriate," city clerk Susan Stanton said in an email to local media outlets. "So the city and council have to regroup and rethink the matter." After weeks of passionate pleas from seniors, heated exchanges from the council dais, and repeated jeers and interruptions from the crowd, the Canton City Council voted Aug. 2 to override the mayor's veto of a controversial fire district ordinance that critics fear will erase a decade of voter-approved senior tax exemptions. When…
Friday, August 3, 2012
The 5-1 vote establishes a special district to help the city meet some of its long-term fire service needs, but Mayor Gene Hobgood is worried about the potential for legal challenges.
After passionate pleas from seniors, heated exchanges from the council dais, and repeated jeers and interruptions from the crowd, the Canton City Council voted Thursday night to override the mayor's veto of a controversial fire district ordinance that critics fear will erase a decade of voter-approved senior tax exemptions. Immediately after the 5-1 vote, which establishes a special district to help the city meet some of its long-term fire service needs and shifts some of that burden to Canton's elderly, frustrated residents cleared the room and senior John Rust started to organize a recall of the five council members who "ignored the expressed wishes of every person that was in the meeting." Earlier in the night, speaker after speaker …
Etowahwah
2:35 pm on Thursday, September 6, 2012
Hope, it is our City Manager, not the Mayor's staff, that causes our legal bills to rise. Combined with his mismanagement of our city affairs and the Council's inability to terminate him, we are truly in a laughable situation. I agree with cleaning house, but it needs to start with the City Manager and the amateur City Council members! more ›