#OneNewton Family,
Welcome to the Chairman’s Corner. In this space I will take some time to share with you not only what is going on in Newton County’s government but also to just chat about what is going on in our community as a whole.
Yes, this is unprecedented times we are living in but it is a time that will go down in history and one that we will not just be a part of but lead. I am proud to say that your Newton County government is leading. Some of that leadership you are seeing now and some you will see in the near future.
Newton County, along with the rest of the world, continues to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic. We saw an increase in our numbers recently and I want to make sure the spread stops. I have regular conversations with Dr. Audrey Arona, Director of the Gwinnett, Newton and Rockdale County Health Departments, and am working closely with her and her team to make sure Newton County is doing its part. Do as I do, and check out the health department website https://www.gnrhealth.com/ often for updates and tips on COVID-19. You can find a situation report posted on this site every Tuesday, including cases broken down by zip code.
Social Distancing guidelines have eased throughout Georgia. However, we are still fighting the spread of COVID-19. To stop the spread, if you are sick, please, please stay isolated. If you are not feeling sick, you may still have the virus. It is so important that you wear a mask in public and maintain a distance of six feet. I know if we make these small adjustments to our daily lives we can make a large dent in the numbers in this County.
COVID-19 hasn’t just effected our health but many people were out of work during the shelter in place order. We are now returning to work and I believe the local economy and workforce will persevere. We recently saw a strong rise in jobs in Newton County with our unemployment rate falling to 10.3 percent in May from 12.5 percent in April – 1,020 people went back to work from April to May.
Our own employees at Newton County recently went back to work and I am happy to see the smiling faces of the hard working men and women who provide the services our community enjoys.
Newton County reopened to the public June 15
Newton County had some of its employees coming to work daily throughout the shelter in place order and I applaud them and their efforts. We also had employees working from home and they continued to give maximum effort. Last but not least, our public safety members, from the Sheriff’s Office to Fire Services and beyond came to work every day putting their own safety at risk. I thank you. I thank you. I thank you.
We truly are blessed with wonderful people who make up Newton County. I couldn’t be more proud of our employees. Newton County employees are working hard to provide services to all our citizens, as your commissioners are working hard to make sure everything runs smoothly.
FY21 Budget approval set for July 14
We are currently in the middle of our budget process and I am amazed by the work our commissioners are putting in to ensure that Newton County residents have the services they need while at the same time do not become overburdened by taxes.
I am proud to say we will have a budget very soon, which will see additional public safety assets, including two new fire stations, continued service of your roadways and waste management system, and funding to maintain our buildings, parks and economic development.
Anyone can find out all they want to about the budget process or anything going on with their county government by checking our website. Did you know that not only is our proposed budget is not only available at http://www.ncboc.com/DocumentCenter/View/2896/Proposed-Budget-Book-FY-2021 but we also have a full transparency portal on our site. You can also watch all our meetings, either on Facebook live, https://www.co.newton.ga.us/AgendaCenter or our YouTube channel.
Thank you for letting me tell you a little about what is going on in Newton County and stay tuned for our next Chairman’s Corner.
Marcello Banes
Chairman, Newton County Board of Commissioners.