Drought Work Session

We'll be doing a bit of "liveblogging" coverage of the Commission drought work session. We've already dialed up the red carpet coverage pre-meeting coverage of Blake Aued dropping his note pad. Stay tuned for more excitement.

Finally starting up; Heidi apologizes for sitting with her back to the audience, apparently because of the large screen used for the work session.

Fun fact: We are now in what is called an exceptional drought, which means it's only expected to be this dry once every 100 years.

We're now apparently liveblogging JobTV. Oh wait, just kidding. And there it goes again. I guess that job in Monroe was more important than the three words I missed. Seriously, can I get a job managing the feeds for Channel 7? Cause this guy sucks. Also, that slide is giving me a headache.

Seems like the bottom line is that the steps taken so far are kinda working, and we'll probably be ok so long as we keep conserving like we've been doing and so long as it rains somewhere in the normal range the rest of the year and early next year. If not, we'll eventually have to take Step F, which apparently involves some mandatory reduction in usage. Violations will involve a 10 times rate for amounts over the limit, that plus a $1,000 surcharge for a second offense, and all of that plus a service disruption for a third offense.

No change in current drought conditions would place Step F as occurring on December 14, 2007. We would then have to start to use internal back-ups (Lake Chapman and the Loop 10 reservoir, which I didn't even know we had until tonight) on February 23, 2008 if things didn't improve before then.

However, it unfortunately sounds like a mandate from Sonny may force us to go to Step F sooner than that. We have to cut an additional 10%, even though we've already taken steps that other communities haven't taken. No good deed goes unpunished.

Maxwell is talking about paper plates and such. Now he's suggesting a 4-day work week. Cool!

Hoard makes the case for multi-year averages instead of a 12-month average in calculating the base from which a % must be reduced, suggesting that a 12-month average unfairly penalizes companies that have proactively taken steps to conserve in recent years. I don't disagree, except that it might drive up the amount of reduction that has to come from residential.

Girtz: "This is a great drought, and I thank you for it."

Guvmint low-flow showerheads for the poor, courtesy of fines against violators? That might work.

Ok, I've got to go eat and watch BC-VT. My civic engagement only goes so far. I'll refrain from ordering water.

What can Broun do for you?

Saw this on a blog from the Bobby Saxon campaign. Saxon, you may recall, is challenging Congressman Paul Broun in the 10th District. (The Flem is also running.) Saxon is a Democrat, but by most accounts, the most serious Democrat to run in the 10th in a while. Being quick to respond when Broun acts the fool is a good indication that he might actually be a serious candidate.

Sez Bobby:

What can Broun do for you? Not much if you’re a Georgia child in need of healthcare

ATHENS, Ga. – Democratic Congressional candidate Bobby Saxon released the following statement on last night's vote in the House of Representatives to re-authorize the State Children's Health Insurance Program (S-CHIP). S-CHIP is the parent program for Georgia's successful PeachCare program, which provides affordable health insurance to hundreds of thousands of Georgia children.

“I'm deeply disappointed that Congressman Broun chose to put party above principle with his vote last night. I'm not a doctor like my opponent is, but I do know the Hippocratic Oath, and its charge to protect patients from harm.

“With his vote against children's health care, Congressman Broun has broken that promise and, if he had his way, hundreds of thousands of Georgia children, and their families, would be harmed.

“I'm going to fight to keep our promise to our children, because this is about more than just a health care bill. Healthy children do better in school, they learn more, and they succeed. That's good, not just for the children and their families, but for the future of America's workforce and economy. When I am elected to Congress, I will always put the interests of our families and children first.”

Bobby Saxon is a small business owner and has served in Iraq, Afghanistan and led a Homeland Security mission. Saxon also serves as Chair of the Jackson County Democratic Party and is a member of the Democratic Party of Georgia State Committee. Please go to www.BobbySaxon.com for more information on Bobby Saxon and his campaign for United States Congress.

Ok, not bad. I don't know whether this went to reporters (how about it, Blake?), or his email list or what. I picked it up from Tondee's Tavern. Still, nice one, Mr. Saxon.

The Flem is loose!

So it's official. The Flem is running. (HA!) If you're interested in hearing him make it officially official, you could tune into Tim Bryant's show tomorrow morning.

Anywhich, Broun tells our pal Blake that he ain't skeered. Which is good, because if he were actually quaking in his boots, it would make it harder for the Flem to smack him around.

But, as previously mentioned, don't rule out hometown boy Bobby Saxon. As Blake points out:

"The Iraq veteran from Jackson County manages to slam the surge and the New York Times, and both praise and criticize MoveOn.org, all in the same press release. Well played, sir."

He's right, you know. It's a small thing, but it's a smart triangulation move, and shows a level of political sophistication that hasn't been seen in this district in quite some time.

Roundup: September 9th, 2007

Here's some stuff.

• JMac no likey Food Lion. What's next, war on Ingle's?
• I wax eloquent about the GlennTax. (Preview: it sucks!)
• Jim T talks about noun wars. As a veteran of the gerund conflicts of '87, I can't agree more. Never again. (Ok, seriously, Jim makes good points here.)
• Bill Shipp continues to barrel down the slippery slope from "crotchety" to "irrelevant" with this column. One point I'm going to make in opposition to this piece: Hillary Clinton is currently ahead of Obama, and by a not insignificant margin, in Georgia. And guess what, even that doesn't matter, because it's five months until we vote. A lot can happen in five months.
  
• A few days ago, Blake's blog had an interesting thread with some good comments on poverty.
  

Locals Sound Off On GlennTax

From Blake's piece yesterday:

"Imagine if Speaker Richardson was in control of this community," Dodson said Thursday at a Clarke County Democratic Committee meeting. "How much money do you think Athens would get from state coffers?

"We are going to have to beg for money in Atlanta," he said. "We would lose all local autonomy. ... It's the end of home rule in Georgia. It's the end of local control, unless you happen to be a community that's very closely aligned with whatever power structure is in Atlanta at the time."

The issue of local control also concerns Charles Worthy, president of the Clarke County Board of Education.

"I just can't imagine having state taxes funding the local school system," Worthy said. "When you look at it realistically, you're taking local control away from the school system."

...

A vote in the state legislature on whether to place the plan on the 2008 ballot still is at least six months away, but it's already drawing opposition. Davison attended a meeting Wednesday between Richardson and local officials from across the state, and said opposition was nearly unanimous.

The meeting was organized by the Association County Commissioners of Georgia, which opposes the plan, as does the state's other major local government group, the Georgia Municipal Association. Elected officials of both parties in Savannah, Albany, Cobb County and Rome, among others, also have criticized it.

"It was very clear ... that no one seemed to like this plan, and I would say I was in the minority as far as party affiliation," said Davison, a Democrat.

...

So far, local lawmakers are waiting to see the details of Richardson's proposal before deciding how to vote. State Rep. Bob Smith, R-Watkinsville, said he is planning several hearings this fall to gauge constituents' interest.

"I want to see what they have in writing," Smith said. "I've got several questions to be answered, local-control questions."

State Rep. Doug McKillip, D-Athens, said he hopes his bill giving low-income workers a break on their state income taxes will be part of the reforms the legislature eventually votes on. He said he is skeptical of Richardson's plan, especially since a tax on services and a renewed grocery tax would hit the poor hardest.

"If you are going to overhaul the tax system, I would like to see the regressive nature of the taxes that are being suggested eliminated," McKillip said.

You gotta admire Glenn's ability to bring unity between Georgia's two parties, even if it is only unity in opposition to the GlennTax. Here's hoping the GlennTax proposal dies a slow and unceremonius death.