Politics & Government

Commissioner Darnell Previews her Town Hall Meeting on Fulton County Taxes

District 5's Emma Darnell wants to hear from residents about how to make Fulton County taxing more fair.

Fulton County Taxes: The Real Story is a town hall meeting being held on Sunday, August 11th at the Harriett Darnell Senior Multipurpose Facility on Fairburn Road. Fulton County Vice Chair and District 5 representative, Commissioner Emma Darnell, will lead a discussion to inform residents about the "inner-workings" of our Fulton County tax system.

According to Darnell, "2014 appears to be the year when the recession will catch up to Fulton County," and many people will see their county services diminished.  The Commissioner did not speculate on what exact services will see a reduction, but she did point out that those most affected will most likely be children, seniors, and disabled individuals.

One of the key issues that does well to frame all the other issues, is the problem with Grady and its funding.  Currently, according to Commissioner Darnell, Fulton County residents are the only citizens amongst the various metro counties, paying and subsidizing Grady Hospital.  The problem is that Fulton County residents are not  the only people receiving services at Grady, and in fact Grady is servicing the entire region.

So why do the other metro counties and the State of Georgia refuse to help pay the costs?  Why are Fulton County residents forced to carry the entire load?  This is also true with MARTA costs, the county jail, libraries and more.  What can be done to make things more fair for Fulton County tax payers?

Commissioner Emma Darnell and others will discuss these matters and more at her "Everybody Pays, Who Benefits?" Town Hall Meeting on Sunday at 4:00 p.m.


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