DeKalb County ERPS Committee Meeting - June 2, 2026
DeKalb County ERPS Committee Meeting - June 2, 2026
The Employee Relations and Public Safety (ERPS) Committee of the DeKalb County Board of Commissioners met on June 2, 2026, at 7:15 PM ET. The meeting was chaired by Commissioner Ladina Bolton (Super District 7) and included committee members Commissioners Marita Davis Johnson and Nicole Masaya, with Commissioner Ted Terry (Super District 6) and Commissioner Patrick (District 1) also attending. The committee took up several items, including routine consent items, a new ordinance to regulate animal tethering, a pension death benefit, and a proposed enhanced pension tier for public safety officers.
Consent Calendar
- Minutes Approval (Item 2026-0990): The committee approved the minutes from the May 21, 2026 ERPS meeting. Motion carried with a unanimous vote.
- Fire Station Street Lighting Lease (Item 2026-0903): Approved a lease agreement with Georgia Power for street lighting at new Fire Station 16 and Fire Station 27. Fire Station 16: $540 per month; Fire Station 27: $81 per month. Commissioner Terry asked about alternative metering arrangements, but administration explained that the county lacks a lighting division and must use Georgia Power poles. Unanimously recommended for approval.
- PPE Inspection & Cleaning Change Order (Item 2026-0687): Approved Change Order No. 4 to Contract No. 1210840 with North America Fire Equipment Company, Inc., not to exceed $75,000, to extend inspection, care, maintenance, and cleaning of turnout gear through October 27, 2026, while the county completes a new bid. Unanimously recommended for approval.
- SCBA Change Order (Item 2026-0303): Approved Change Order No. 1 to Contract No. 20000432 with MES Service Company LLC, not to exceed $80,000, for purchase, repair, and maintenance of self-contained breathing apparatus (SCBA) through October 30, 2026, while the county completes a new bid. Unanimously recommended for approval.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Support for Tethering Ordinance: Sanali Sandane (Chair, DeKalb Animal Services Advisory Board) testified in strong support of the revised ordinance, describing tethering as a common factor in neglect and cruelty cases and citing a case with 12 dogs seized from one property in October 2025. Peggy McCarthy (Board Director, Georgia Pet Coalition and DeKalb property owner) testified about public safety risks, citing CDC data that 87% of dog bite attacks involved lack of supervision and that children under five were almost half the victims in a study of fatal attacks. Lisa Milot (Annie and Zach Stanton Distinguished Professor of Canine Welfare Law, University of Georgia; Director of Animal Welfare, State of Vermont) testified that similar bans in other Georgia counties did not lead to shelter overcrowding and that tethered dogs are more likely to be intact, contributing to pet overpopulation.
Discussion Items
Animal Tethering Ordinance (Item 2026-0596)
Commissioner Long Spears (District 2) presented a proposed ordinance to prohibit all unattended tethering of dogs in DeKalb County. The ordinance would eliminate the current 12-hour timed tether allowance and require owners to be in direct, attended control during any tethering. It also establishes minimum enclosure space requirements (100 sq ft for dogs over 30 lbs, 200 sq ft for multiple dogs) and prohibits transporting animals in open-air vehicles.
- Commissioner Davis Johnson sought clarification on enforcement and requested a red-line version of the ordinance showing changes from the current code.
- Chair Bolton raised concerns about unintended consequences for low-income and unhoused residents who may use tethering temporarily while accessing services, and asked that alternative language be considered.
- Director Fulham of Animal Services and Director Wallen indicated the ordinance would be easier to enforce and noted that current law already allows for voice control for dogs on one's property.
Motion to Defer
Commissioner Davis Johnson moved to defer the item for two weeks to allow production of a red-line version and further consideration of language regarding enclosure definitions, voice control, and low-income/unhoused populations. The motion was seconded and unanimously approved.
Pension Death Benefit (Item 2026-0941)
The committee approved a home rule ordinance to add a death benefit for beneficiaries of any county employee killed in the line of duty. Eligible employees would receive an immediate pension payout equivalent to 30 years of service, regardless of length of employment (even one month). The cost is under $50,000 annually and will be funded from existing pension contributions. The first reading is set for June 9, 2026, with final adoption on June 23, 2026, and an effective date of September 1, 2026.
- Chair Bolton expressed disappointment that the benefit cannot be made retroactive to two public safety officers killed in 2025, due to state gratuities clause restrictions. Commissioner Terry noted that a separate life insurance benefit approved earlier does apply to those families.
- The motion to approve was made and seconded; the committee voted in favor (Chair Bolton recorded as “aye” after expressing her disappointment).
Enhanced Pension Tier for Public Safety (Discussion Only)
Administration presented a proposal to transition sworn police officers and certified firefighters from the current Tier 3 pension plan to the richer Tier 2 plan, effective January 1, 2027. Key provisions include:
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Increasing the benefit multiplier from 1% to 2.25%.
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Lowering normal retirement age from 67 to 62.
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Ceasing the county’s 6% contribution to the 401A plan (net cost to county: $2.1 million per year).
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Allowing employees to buy service credit for prior Tier 3 years by paying the 2% contribution difference.
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Commissioners Bolton and Terry noted that prior committee discussions had envisioned transitioning all Tier 3 employees, not just public safety. Commissioner Patrick urged the administration to chart a path for all other employees, possibly in the following year.
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Commissioner Davis Johnson and Commissioner Terry expressed support for the public safety focus as a recruitment and retention strategy.
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Administration indicated they would bring the formal agenda item in September.
Key Outcomes
- Approved items: Minutes, Fire Station street lighting lease, PPE and SCBA change orders, and the pension death benefit ordinance—all recommended to the full Board for approval.
- Deferred: Animal tethering ordinance (Item 2026-0596) for two weeks to allow further revision and a red-line version.
- Next Steps: The death benefit ordinance will have its first reading on June 9, 2026, with final vote on June 23, 2026. The enhanced pension tier for public safety will be brought back in September. The committee also noted a pending item on illegal tire dumping (District 1).
- Adjournment: Motion carried; meeting adjourned. The committee reminded attendees of the Committee of the Whole meeting later that evening at 5:30 PM at Lou Walker Senior Center.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon. I am Ladina Bolton, your Super District 7 Commissioner, and this is the ERPS Committee, Employee Relations and Public Safety. Also on that committee with me are Commissioners Marita Davis Johnson and Commissioner Nicole Masaya. Joining us today, we have Commissioner Ted Terry of Super District 6. We are gonna do a bit of moving around on the agenda. We do have a discussion that we're eager to have, but we're gonna wait on Commissioner Longspears. She'll be here momentarily. So at this time we'll start at the top of the agenda item 2026 0990, which is which are the minutes from the May 21st ERPS meeting. Do we have a motion for that item? Make a motion to approve uh 26099 0. The minutes for the March 21st 2026 meeting. Second, all in favor. Aye. Motion carries recommendation for approval. Moving along to item 20 under fire rescue, previously heard items. Item 2026 0903. All commission or commission districts four, five, six, and seven. This is for fire stations 16 and 27. Street light street lighting lease agreement. Good afternoon, sir. Good afternoon, madam chair. Uh as you stated, this is for the lease agreement for the street lighting for uh the new builds of fire station 16 and fire station 27. Um it seeks to uh uh allow for a spLOS funding for the initial payment for these uh street lights and for the monthly payment for that with the lease with uh Georgia Power. Okay, I see the amounts listed on here fire station 16, 540 per month, fire station 2781 per month. Were there any questions or comments from committee members? Commissioner Davis Johnson, no and Commissioner Patrick of District 1 has joined us for our ERPS meeting. Did you or Commissioner Terry? Commissioner Terry. Yes, thank you, Madam Chair. Um, I think uh Zach, you were y'all were looking into seeing about whether the uh metering of our own lights uh would be a greater cost savings than the Georgia Power standard streetlight agreement. I did forward after the last committee meeting where this came up, um, the email from Director Pelton, former director Pelton of Transportation. Uh it was related to street lights, um, I think along a highway. And uh he did note that the transportation department had worked out um like a meter as opposed to the street light tariff. And so the the the goal of me asking about this was that we would get more favorable uh terms on the power uh the cost of powering those street lights. So just wanted to see if there was any update on the other ways that are in our toolbox to deal with street lights. So quick answer is yes, there are other ways, but not in this situation. So what Director Pelton was talking about on Buford Highway and on I-20 were agreements between DeCab County and Georgia DOT where the county pays the light bill, Georgia DOT install the equipment. And in one case, it was upgrading from sodium vapor, high pressure to LED. The rest of the street lights we put in, like at Fire Station 7 in the public right away on local streets, you have to use Georgia Power because at the present time the county has no lighting division. So we don't have a maintenance division that replaces the polls, installs the equipment, and we're using Georgia Power polls. So for them to allow us, they wouldn't allow you to put your lights on their pole easily. Okay, and we'd have to put our own polls in, and then there's a setback issue. So this is for the foreseeable future the most efficient and cost-effective way. Okay, all right. So, madam chair, I think that makes sense to me. So um that was I think that was probably the confusion I had. So if we were installing our own lights, like kind of those like streetscapes lights that you see in some uh corridors. If we were those were our lights, then we can manage them right because there are short distance separation the top of the pedestrian fixture we call it and the bottom of the transmission wire, the 10-foot clear zone. Or for instance, in a park, I believe some of the park street lighting in the parking lots are metered with the park as a whole. Gotcha.
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