SCBC Post 1 Candidates answer question about wasteful spending

The Toccoa-Stephens County Chamber of Commerce’s sponsored Candidate Town Hall gave citizens an opportunity to hear from the candidates who have qualified for the Stephens County Board of Commissioners and the Stephens County Board of Education posts.

Dawn Jameson was the moderator for the event. One of the questions Jameson asked the Stephens County Board of Commissioner candidates was what they considered to be wasteful spending and how would they ensure that funds were spent wisely.

“As a county commissioner, you will have significant financial control, what types of spending would you consider wasteful spending,” she asked?

These are the responses from the candidates for Post 1.

Republican candidate Craig Beatty says he’s a banker and doesn’t like wasteful spending.

“Well, that kind of brings the banker in me out, I don’t like wasteful spending. I’ve spent the last 20- 25-years preaching frugalness and preaching wise spending. I think this is most important when departments are creating their budgets to get input from their department heads as well as the staffing of those that’s where the best information is going to come from, from those leading the efforts,” Beatty said.

Republican candidate Dennis Black says the County is wasting money on the Marshal’s Office.

“Three county marshals with three brand new trucks, uh, three county marshals with three brand new trucks. That would be my first thought. People of Stephens County has got to be treated with respect, and I’ve been all over this county hearing tales of how these people are being treated by those marshals,” Black said.

Republican candidate Larry Krul says the question is loaded.

“Anything that provided waste. That’s a loaded question. You’d have to put it on the table there’s so many things out there. It’s almost an unanswerable question here tonight, I really don’t have an honest answer for it, other than spend our money responsibly because the citizens of the county have put it in the commission’s hands,” Krul said.

Republican candidate Tara Simmons says under County Administrator Phyllis Ayers’ leadership, she believes that the County Commission has done a good job by not wastefully spending tax-payer money.

“That is a very difficult question to answer. Right now, we have a great county administrator, Phyllis Ayers who does a lot of cost accounting and provides that information to the county commission board. That is not a decision I’m comfortable making, that is a question I would want the public to weigh in on. What they believe, if we have to make a cut, where do we cut? I believe all of the services we currently offer are needed or we wouldn’t have them. Our commissioners have done a good job. We wouldn’t have them if they weren’t needed,” Simmons said.

Republican candidate Bo Webb says where the county is at now, the current leadership has done a good job with the budget; but, added that there can always be cuts made.

“What types of spending would I consider wasteful—it’s a good question, I have been looking at the types of spending that we have been doing, and to be honest with you, where we’re at now, I think Phyllis and the team has done a good job at streamlining the budget. Now, could there be tweaks or adjustments done to trim, there’s always that. You can find fat in any budget. But where inflation is at now and the cost of wages. Every business owner in this town will talk about how much wages have gone up; it’s going to be tough to find those cuts. If we look hard enough, eventually staff is going to change and stuff, we just have to make sure that we have people in there that’s holding the budget offices accountable, holding the individual directors accountable, I think that’s where you’ll find those cuts,” Webb said.

To listen to the complete audio from the candidate town hall visit wnegradio.com.