DeKalb ops committee reviews draft standing-procedures report; law department to vet flagged language
Summary
The DeKalb County operations committee reviewed a new report that separates proposed standing-procedures items for legal review and committee discussion. Staff will send a revised draft back after commissioners submit edits; law department review is expected mid-to-late November.
The DeKalb County Board of Commissioners Operations Committee reviewed a new standing-procedures report and instructed staff to circulate a revised draft after commissioners submit edits for the committee’s next meeting.
Commissioner Marita Davis Johnson, chair of the Operations Committee, opened the discussion and invited staff to summarize the document. Sean (staff member) told the committee the packet includes a memo and two appendices: one listing items that need county law-department review and another listing items the committee could discuss internally. He said proposed new language appears in italics and that items flagged in red require law review while items in orange are for committee discussion. He said the law department had received the report and expected to return comments “in mid or late November.”
The report’s format prompted several requests from commissioners for clarifications. Commissioner Marita Davis Johnson asked that the committee’s operating-budget rules be added to the report; she said commissioners need explicit guidance on “what happens if we go over our operating budget.” Commissioner Ted Terry asked TJ (budget director) to explain how overspending would be treated for individual commissioners’ office budgets; committee members said that procedural language should make clear whether spending approvals are blocked by purchasing or finance in the absence of an appropriation.
Committee members also asked that staff incorporate any additional suggested language before the next operations meeting and that the draft be distributed in advance so commissioners have time to read it. Sean said staff will incorporate commissioners’ suggested edits into the orange (committee-discussion) version while the law department completes its review of the red items.
No formal action was taken on the procedures report during the meeting; commissioners agreed to continue review at a future operations meeting after staff and the law department submit updates.
The committee also confirmed that the Charter Review updates will be discussed at the November 4 operations meeting and asked staff to circulate prior recommendations and a refresher package beforehand. Chair Davis Johnson said she expects commissioners to receive materials in advance so the committee can use meeting time for substantive discussion.
