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Ben Hill County Commission reviews $10.63 million FY2022 budget, adopts opioid‑settlement MOU and other resolutions
Summary
At its Dec. 7 meeting the Ben Hill County Commission heard a presentation of a balanced FY2022 budget of $10,630,290 and unanimously adopted several resolutions, including an MOU related to national opioid settlements appointing the county manager as the county's representative.
The Ben Hill County Commission met Dec. 7 at the courthouse annex and received a presentation of a balanced FY2022 budget totaling $10,630,290. County Manager Michael Dinnerman said the budget reflects a $720,000 increase driven mainly by salaries and benefits from a prior salary study, and noted additional cost pressures from fuel, information technology, attorney fees and COVID‑related expenses. He said some COVID costs for FY2020 and FY2021 may be recouped through the Georgia Emergency Management Agency (GEMA).
The budget presentation was followed by a series of adopted resolutions. Vice‑Chair Hope Harmon moved to adopt a memorandum of understanding with the State of Georgia addressing national distributor and Johnson & Johnson opioid settlements and directing execution of acknowledging agreements tied to the national settlement framework; the motion appointed County Manager Michael Dinnerman as Ben Hill County’s representative for that settlement process and passed with four votes in favor and one absence. The commission also adopted a reapportionment map drafted by the Legislative and Congressional Reapportionment Office and adopted a resolution to appoint the county Building and Zoning Director as the local government agent under the Abandoned Mobile Home Act.
Commissioners additionally voted to adopt a resolution supporting reforms to Georgia’s annexation dispute resolution law and to approve a revised Drug & Alcohol Policy for Ben Hill Transit that the county said is required by the U.S. Department of Transportation. Chairman Steve Taylor noted a Board of Elections appointment is upcoming and recommended reappointing Thelma Graham; the transcript records that recommendation but does not record a formal vote on the reappointment during the Dec. 7 meeting.
All recorded motions passed with the four commissioners present voting in favor; Commissioner John Mooney was absent. During the budget discussion Dinnerman commended Chief Financial Officer Darlow Maxwell for his work preparing the budget.
What happens next: the commission adopted the budget and several policy and appointment resolutions on Dec. 7. Any procedural follow‑ups (for example, execution of the opioid‑settlement MOU or implementation steps for transit policy changes) will proceed according to the terms of those resolutions and any applicable state or federal requirements.
