Thursday, February 22, 2007

Georgia The Overgovernmented


Can someone please explain to me why a city needs permission from the legislature to set up a parks department?

A BILL to be entitled an Act to create the City of Johns Creek Parks and Recreation Authority; to authorize such authority to acquire, construct, equip, maintain, and operate or contract for services to provide athletic and recreational centers, facilities, and areas, including, but not limited to, playgrounds, parks, hiking, camping, and picnicking areas and facilities, swimming and wading pools, lakes, tennis courts, athletic fields and courts, clubhouses, gymnasiums, auditoriums, youth centers, senior citizen centers, stadiums, performing arts centers, cultural centers, related buildings, golf courses, and the usual and convenient facilities appertaining to such undertakings and extensions and improvements of such facilities; to acquire parking facilities and parking areas in connection therewith; to provide that bonds be validated as authorized by Article 3 of Chapter 82 of Title 36 of the O.C.G.A., the “Revenue Bond Law”; to provide for construction; to provide for personnel; to provide for conveyance of property upon dissolution; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
The amount of top down regulation in this state is insane. We have a constitution so contorted it has to be amended to change how we ticket speeders. We have 159 counties including metro counties so large it is argued services cannot be provided adequately and counties with less than 5,000 residents and unincorporated county seats.

We like to pretend we are about independence and individuality in these parts when the reality is small government entities can't pass gas without asking permission of the legislature.

We are suffocating under the oppresive weight. It is past time for radical surgery on the distended body of our bureaucracy before our own governmental gluttony chokes away the life.

4 comments:

Amber Rhea said...

We like to pretend we are about independence and individuality in these parts when the reality is small government entities can't pass gas without asking permission of the legislature.

Quote of the day!

Anonymous said...

Question: is the State of Georgia ultimately going to be on the hook if Johns Creek defaults on their bonds?

If the answer is yes, whether strictly legally (which does not seem to be the case in extremely cursory research) or simply by virtue of being the people who would have to bail out a bankrupt municipality, then I can see the General Assembly keeping tabs on when a city can *issue bonds* for anything.

Now, if Johns Creek wants to raise sales or property taxes to buy parks without going into debt, I can't see any reason for the GA to be involved, but I can see an interest in avoiding or lessening bankrupt cities.

-Richard.

griftdrift said...

Then maybe they shouldn't have any effin parks. And why should the state bail them out? If they default, they default. Their charter gets revoked and the public lands get sold to settle the debt. Done and done.

Anonymous said...

Parks & rec. authorities are different animals from a regualr parks & rec. dept. and should get state approval. They have taxing authority. When done right, like in Chicago, it can work fantastically. Done poorly, it's a cesspool of patronage and nepotism.

I hear ya on the amount of top down regulation and pure bureacratic bloat, but "authorities" of any kind should be watched closely.