DeKalb County Operations Committee Meeting Summary - March 3, 2026
DeKalb County Operations Committee Meeting Summary - March 3, 2026
The DeKalb County Operations Committee, chaired by Commissioner Marita Davis Johnson and including Commissioners Ladina Bowden and Robert Patrick, convened on March 3, 2026. The meeting addressed consent calendar approvals, numerous contract change orders and extensions, and a focused deliberation on the county's ongoing charter review process.
Consent Calendar
- February 12, 2026, Meeting Minutes: A motion was made and seconded to approve. Passed unanimously.
- February 17, 2026, Meeting Minutes: A motion was made and seconded to approve. Passed unanimously.
Discussion Items & Key Outcomes
- Item (Held): Impoundment Cost Recovery Resolution: A resolution reaffirming the county's authorization to seek cost recovery for court-held dogs was held due to the sponsoring commissioner's absence and pending an update from the Law Department.
- Item 2025-1855: Dissolution of Obsolete Boards & Authorities: A resolution directing the Law Department to lead the dissolution of obsolete boards and commissions. The Law Department clarified it would begin with an inventory and research. Motion to approve made and seconded. Passed.
- Item 2025-1189: Digital Accessibility Compliance: A resolution adopting digital accessibility measures to meet Title II of the ADA. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260188 (Change Order #6): Fire & Intrusion Alarm System: A $275,000 extension of the contract with All-Star Fire LLC through June 30, 2026, while a new ITB is developed. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260189 (Change Order): UPS Maintenance Services: Extension of the contract with AC and DC Power Technologies LLC through June 30, 2026, pending a new contract bid. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260301 (Change Order): Parking Deck Repairs: Extension of the contract to complete punch list items through April 30, 2026. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260216 (Purchase): John Deere Dozer for Landfill: A $739,227 purchase for a new waste handler dozer. Commissioner Terry inquired about the availability of diesel-hybrid or electric versions to lower emissions; staff committed to looking into it. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260242 (Purchase): Flatbed Truck for Tire Repair: A $160,875 purchase of a Kenworth T280 truck for emergency tire repair and maintenance. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260292 (Change Order #8): Oracle Cloud Permitting Platform: A $679,710 increase to implement the OPAL system for planning, permitting, code enforcement, and licensing. Staff confirmed user departments were satisfied with the selection. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260255 (Change Order): Landscape Maintenance Services: Extension and fund increase totaling $644,854, including $170,000 for the MARTA station beautification project at Kensington station. Discussion addressed how upgraded services (e.g., planting) are scoped outside the basic maintenance contract. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260393 (Change Order #10): Commercial Janitorial Services: An extension and $984,786 increase through June 30, 2026, while an RFP is finalized. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Post-Vote Inquiry: Commissioner Terry questioned the cost distribution ($737,000 for three facilities vs. $165,000 for over a dozen libraries and rec centers). Staff was directed to provide a detailed breakdown of services by location to all commissioners before the next full commission meeting.
- Item 260176 (Change Order): Mailing Services for Voter Registration: A $10,000 extension through June 30, 2026, to cover mailing for the March 10th special election (House District 94) and potential runoff. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Item 260199 (Change Order): Commercial Printing & Voting Signs: An extension through June 30, 2026, for signage services related to the special election. Motion made, seconded. Passed.
- Chair’s Administrative Direction: Chair Johnson commented on the high number of extension requests, strongly encouraging departments to submit purchasing requests on time. Staff noted the recent implementation of requiring yearly purchasing plans from departments to mitigate this.
Charter Review Deliberation
A significant portion of the meeting was dedicated to reviewing and finalizing recommendations on several sections of the proposed Charter Review.
- Section 27: Open Records Officer: The committee debated whether to mandate a county Open Records Officer ("Shall") or leave it to the CEO's discretion ("May"). Commissioner Johnson preferred leaving it discretionary to allow flexibility, while Commissioner Terry supported mandating it for lasting structural improvement. The consensus of the committee was to change the recommendation from "Shall" to "May".
- Section 28: Future Charter Review Commission: Discussion focused on the frequency and nature of future reviews. The original recommendation mandated a review every eight years. Commissioner Johnson strongly advocated for "May" instead of "Shall" to avoid imposing a mandatory responsibility on future administrations. Commissioner Terry supported a tied schedule, proposing it coincide with the post-redistricting decade. The committee reached consensus to recommend a "May" provision, starting in 2041 (tied to the next decennial redistricting cycle), initiated by consensus between the CEO and the Board of Commissioners.
- Section 31: Repealer (Full vs. Specific): The committee considered repealing the entire 1981 Organizational Act versus a specific repealer for conflicting provisions. Commissioners expressed concern that a full repeal could create unintended legal gaps. The consensus leaned towards an amendment-based approach where the act is replaced with updated language rather than a wholesale repeal.
Overall Charter Review Status
Chair Johnson concluded that the committee had not completed the review of all sections (specifically Section 3 of the memo). She announced a special meeting would be called to finalize the outstanding recommendations before the legislative crossover deadline. The meeting was adjourned following a motion and a second.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon, everyone. I'm Commissioner Marita Davis Johnson and I chair the ops committee. My colleagues that are with me on the ops committee is Commissioner Ladina Bowden and Commissioner Robert Patrick. Have uh you all had an opportunity to read the uh minutes of February the 13th of February the 12th. Uh make a motion to approve 0362. Second. Okay, all in favor? Aye. Okay, the minutes are passed. Uh have you all had an opportunity to read the February 17th meeting? Minutes. I move to approve item 2026 0363. Second. All in favor? Aye. Okay, those minutes are approved. Um first item is a resolution of the Board of Commission of the Camp County. Uh reaffirming the county's um prior authorization to seek recovery of cost of impoundment of care for uh court held dogs pursuant to the Code of Georgia for 1198, urging that the CAP County Law Department to resume filing costs of care petitions and to create a court held dog coordinator position. And I think that uh that item has been continued as Demetrius here. John, didn't we continue that item for the note? Um we held that item because the sponsoring commissioner wasn't here in preparation for an update from law. Okay. Well, she's not here right now, so we'll continue to hold it. Yes. Okay. The next item is uh 1855, a resolution of the Board of Commissioners because County redirected the law department to initiate the dissolution of obsolete boards commissioning uh authorities and to consolidate sustainability efforts. Um we it was on hold. But uh I think that we are pretty much I think that it makes sense uh because if we are not using these uh boards or committees, they need to be uh moved on. So is there a motion? I move to approve item 2025 1855. I'll second them, but I do have a follow-up question. Okay. Um is the expectation that we just approve the resolution and then it goes to county staff, or is the idea that we kind of work a lock step with whoever would review these and have that? If we approve this county attorney, what happens from here? If this commission passes this resolution, we would have a discussion with the sponsoring commissioner about what exactly is desired of the law department, obviously an inventory of existing bodies that you are considering, um, the age of them helpful research to help identify what you would need to do to remove those that are obsolete. So you'll talk with the sponsoring. Right. And I'm I'm I've gotta say, madam chair, that I'm trying to make the best sense of this in terms of the law department initiating. The only thing I could see the law department doing that would be clearly appropriate is the initial research to help make informed help allow you guys to make informed decisions. Okay, thank you. We're we're we kind of launched Kellen to get through. And Zach, I I want to allow about 30 minutes at the end so that I can go through charter review because we're getting ready for crossover. Yes, ma'am. So could you identify what is pressing on this while we are going through? Yes, ma'am. So we have an appropriate we have a motion to approve and a second on 1855. All in favor? Aye. Aye. Okay, so that's uh that's passed.
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