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Dawson County work session advances transit grants, bus purchase and staffing extension
Summary
At a May 7 work session, Dawson County staff asked commissioners to accept multiple transit-related grants, to approve a state contract to buy an 11‑passenger bus with cameras and GPS, and to extend a temporary part‑time driver for six months; the board deferred some financial-match approvals to the May 21 voting session.
Dawson County staff asked commissioners at a May 7 work session to accept several transit grants, approve purchase paperwork for a new county bus and extend one temporary part‑time transit driver through the end of the year.
"So we would ask for y'all to approve this funding," Mr. Akens said when presenting FY2026 Georgia Department of Transportation Transit Trust Fund program funds for a new bus and related cameras and GPS tracking. He told commissioners the grant requires no local match and that the county had already received the contract for signature.
Mr. Akens also explained a separate state contract to purchase an 11‑passenger Transit 350 HD bus, including on‑board cameras and GPS, and said the purchase is distinct from the grant‑acceptance step. Commissioners agreed to move the grant acceptance forward to the voting agenda because the contract had already been sent to the county, while discussion of the purchase itself remained more tentative.
On federal operating funds, staff presented an FY27 Georgia Department of Transportation Federal Transit Administration Section 5311 award in which GDOT would provide $220,000 and the county would be expected to match $220,000. "That does increase the county's portion," Mr. Akens said, noting the award is about $40,000 more than last year. Staff and commissioners discussed budget timing and agreed to place the 5311 contract on the May 21 voting agenda so the board can confirm the match in the FY27 budget before signing.
The board also heard a request to extend one part‑time temporary transit driver position for six months, to take staffing through the end of the year. Mr. Akens said the extension would cost up to $6,000, roughly half of which would be covered by grant funds depending on hours worked. "It'd be only on an as‑needed basis," he said. Commissioners suggested the May 21 session was sufficient time to finalize the extension.
Separately, Brad told the board the Dawson County Treatment Court received a $12,000 supplemental federal award administered through the CJCC and requested approval to accept the additional funding. Natalie described the FY2026 Violence Against Women Act award as "a renewal of the same VAWA grant" for the sheriff's office and said the application portal changes were the only substantive difference this year.
The work session did not record final roll‑call votes on these items; several grant acceptances and staffing items were recommended to appear on the May 21 voting agenda for formal approval.
