The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Adding to commission spurs debate
Proposal to increase seats by two stirs delegation scrutiny.
Gwinnett County commissioners and legislators are preparing for a showdown next month over whether to add two more seats to the commission.
State Rep. Pedro Marin, D-duluth, said he and a bipartisan group of Gwinnett legislators want to try again to add two more seats to the board after a failed attempt four years ago.
The commission has remained the same size since 1968, but since then Gwinnett’s population has grown exponentially. According to last year’s census — the basis for redistricting — the county grew by 19% in the past decade alone, to more than 957,000 residents.
“If we can increase the board by two, that will be a great service for our constituents because you will have more access to your commissioner,” Marin told The Atlanta Journal-constitution. “They would have less people to represent.”
At a Monday meeting between commissioners and the Gwinnett legislative delegation, the delegation chair, state Rep. Sam Park, said he expects to propose new county commission and school board maps Jan. 10 when the legislative session begins.
It’s unclear what those maps will look like.
Marin said he hasn’t counted votes in favor of expansion. Proposed maps would need the approval of 10 of the 18 state representatives and four of the seven state senators in the Gwinnett delegation. Most are Democrats, but the maps would need to pass muster with the Republicans because their party controls the Legislature, which has ultimate veto power over the maps.
The county at the Monday meeting presented a list of reasons to keep the current structure of four commissioners and one chair elected at large.
Adding more commissioners would necessitate subcommittees and slow the process of approving ordinances, contracts and other functions of government, according to the county. The list included eight larger counties with five commissioners and a gold-standard AAA bond rating, including Los Angeles County in California and Harris County in Texas, which contains Houston.
“We think the four districts and one chair is working well,” said Joel Wiggins, the county’s lobbyist.
In metro Atlanta, Clayton and Cobb Counties have five commissioners, while Dekalb and Fulton have seven.
State Sen. Clint Dixon, a Buford Republican, caused a stir last month when he introduced special session bills that would have ballooned the commission size to 10, with a weakened chairperson, and made the school board nonpartisan. Dixon’s bills also redrew and renumbered commission and school board districts in ways that would likely have spawned legal challenges. He abandoned the legislation a week later.
After the county’s presentation Monday, Dixon told The Atlanta Journal-constitution that he still supports the idea of increasing the commission size to seven.
“I see their side of it, but for me it’s simply representation,” Dixon said.
State Rep. Donna Mcleod, a Democrat, said she was also undecided.
“We’re running an efficient county right now,” Mcleod said. “I don’t see anything detrimental to the status quo.”
But, she said, she wants to see growth projections for the next decade.
“Whatever we do now will last for 10 years,” she said.
Park, a Lawrenceville Democrat, said he had not committed to either scenario.
He said three public hearings will be held on Gwinnett’s commission and school board maps, one per week after the legislative session begins. Legislators have been told to get local election maps to Gov. Brian Kemp for approval before March 7, when the election qualifying period begins.
“There will be an opportunity for compromise, as there should be,” Park said. “I certainly personally want to support anything that will ensure the success of the county and the efficiency of Gwinnett County government.”
Marin said he hopes the public is presented with proposed maps that show four districts and a chair as well as six districts and a chair. He said he wants to abide by public opinion.
“This is important for Gwinnett,” Marin said. “Let’s hear from constituents.”
Residents will have the opportunity to ask questions about redistricting at the next open house in a series hosted by commissioners tonight from 6-7 p.m.