Clayton schools chief calls for more county input in airport takeover bid

Morcease Beasley, superintendent of Clayton County Schools, says the south metro community should be at the table during discussions of a possible state takeover of Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport.

Beasley on Tuesday urged Clayton residents to contact state representatives to push them to include county leaders in the talks, which have gained momentum in recent days. The county should be included, he said, because a majority of the world’s busiest airport — which is owned and operated by the city of Atlanta — is in Clayton.

“As the majority of Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta Airport is located in Clayton County, it is important for the residents of Clayton County to know this community is at the very center of this historic moment,” Beasley said in a release Tuesday.

Currently, local leaders in Clayton have no formal governing authority at the airport. A top issue for Clayton is the impact a possible state takeover of the airport could have on future income the county and school system could get from the airport. Up until last year, Clayton Schools and the county government had split as much as $18 million annually from a fuel tax at the airport.

Former Gov. Nathan Deal ended the collections last summer after the Federal Aviation Authority said it would begin enforcing a policy prohibiting the use of taxes collected at airports for any purpose other than an airport. Clayton later lost an appeal of the FAA’s enforcement in the 11th Circuit Court.

“The stakeholders of Clayton County Public Schools, of Clayton County, and every city in the county need to realize that we are in this together and we all need to be part of any resolution to the actions that could take place,” he said.

Some Georgia legislative leaders are pushing for the state to control the airport because of concerns about corruption and mismanagement by the city of Atlanta, which is embroiled in a federal investigation that began during the tenure of former Mayor Kasim Reed.