South Fulton mayor uses veto for 3rd time

In the new city of South Fulton, Mayor Bill Edwards has already used his veto power for the third time.

He rejected council’s proposal to make election day a city holiday. He shot down a plan that would have hired an assistant for each of the city’s seven council members. And after a 6-1 vote in favor of a new city seal, he told council members the version they chose had pieces that could be construed as religious symbols, and sent them back to the drawing board.

“I don’t like to veto,” the mayor said. “If I don’t do it, it makes us look worse than what we are.”

It’s a frustrating start for the four-month-old city, and state lawmakers are taking note. They worry that arguments about whether an ankh, the Egyptian symbol for life, is on the city seal will distract from the important work of transferring police, fire and other services from Fulton County. After all, there’s a deadline to get it done. The city only has until next November.

“It’s a new city. It’s going to have these kind of bumps in the road,” said Rep. Roger Bruce, D-South Fulton.

Still, he’s proposing changes to the city charter that would clarify that elected council members are supposed to focus on policy, leaving the day-to-day operations of South Fulton to the city manager. He’s also suggesting a change to the veto process, which now lets council members override the veto at the next meeting, if they can get five votes.

That’s not enough time, Bruce said. If the mayor is vetoing so many items, he and members of council need a chance to talk out their differences. He’s suggesting a 30-day window before a veto can be overturned, as well as a public comment period where residents can weigh in on the vetoed item.

Normally, there is no waiting period before a veto and its override.