DeKalb County Charter Review Commission to hold first public hearing Sept. 1

DECATUR, GA—The DeKalb County Charter Review Commission will hold its first public hearing and in-person meeting on Thursday, Sept. 1, 6 p.m.,  at the Manuel J. Maloof Center, 1300 Commerce Drive, Decatur.

Social distancing will be observed and masks are required. Free parking is available at the DeKalb County Courthouse parking lot for this evening event.  The hearing will also be broadcast on DCTV’s UStream channel.

Public input is being sought as the Charter Review Commission thoroughly examines the County’s current form of government and delivery of services to all DeKalb citizens.

Future public hearings will be held in locations throughout the county.

Created by the County’s Chief Executive Officer’s Executive Order and supported by the DeKalb Board of Commissioners and the DeKalb House and Senate Delegations, the Charter Review Commission, chaired by former State Sen. Steve Henson, is charged with examining the DeKalb County form of government by conducting a comprehensive review of the DeKalb County Organizational Act with the goal of identifying ways to improve the form of government to its highest quality and most efficient form. The current form of government derived from a study done in 1979.

The Charter Review Commission had been on hiatus since 2019 due to the pandemic. Monthly meetings resumed via Zoom in June. While public comment time has been provided at each virtual meeting, this will be the first in-person Charter Review Commission meeting and the first session focused expressly on hearing from the public about their concerns and issues as they relate to county government and the delivery of services.

This is the first of several public hearings the Charter Review Commission will hold throughout the course of its work. The Executive Order requires the Commission to hold at least one public hearing in each Commission district.