Loganville Mayor Vetoes Vote

Loganville Mayor Ray Nunley has vetoed Thursday’s vote that would have waived tap fees that the of Loganville is putting in to help the homeless and support hungry children in the community.  Nunley said while he appreciates the services performed by the church, waiving the fee would be offering a free service, which is in violation of the law.

“We don’t have the authority to forego these services – they are tied to the debt service,” Nunley said.

In a letter giving the required five-day notice of his veto, Nunley cited the section of the City’s current bond ordinance, which the motion violates. According to Section 4.1,  “No free services shall at any time be furnished from the System.” Every service except for public parks, fire hydrants and fire sprinklers have to be billed for tap fees in order to comply with regulations of the debt service.

The council had voted 3-2 in favor of the motion made by Councilman Mike Jones to waive these fees, with Councilman Skip Baliles and Rey Martinez also voting for it. Council members Mark Kiddoo and Michelle Lynch voted against it and Councilman Dan Curry abstained because of a prior relationship with Wayne Naugle, the pastor of the church.

The mayor is asking that that the request be brought back up before the city. Naugle said while he’s obviously disappoint he’s sure the city will work with him to find a solution.

“We’ve worked with the city before on projects and I’m sure they will work with us on this,” Naugle said. “I understand the city has guidelines it has to abide by.”

City Manager Bill Jones said the tap fees amount to about $4,000. However, it only applies to sewer. Everything else requested by Naugle could be approved. The church had wanted to include showers and washing machines to offer to people in the community who might be sleeping in their cars.

“This is a service to the community and I’m sure there are members in the community who would be prepared to help raise these funds, including me,” Jones said.