http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/ Tunnel Hill, GA News http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/931a89dcfc23721e716cd8a51f407b5a.html Georgia Gov Sonny Perdue has sent the following letter to school superintendents informing them of an adjustment to fees that will be paid by the state to the schools for students in dualenrollment programs:Dear SuperintendentsAs the Georgia Department of Education reported to you last week local school systems will no longer classify dual enrollment HOPE Grant courses as ldquo;Krdquo; weighted courses This action was necessary to prevent double funding: paying local school systems for the portion of the day that students are instructed by technical college faculty who are already funded by the HOPE Grant Throughout the decisionmaking process it has always been my intention to ensure that local systems still receive the necessary resources for this important programAt my request the Alliance of Education Agency Heads has worked since last fall to determine the appropriate funding for local systems whose students are dually enrolled and they have now completed that analysis Accordingly my budget recommendations to the General Assembly will include an administrative fee which recognizes the costs incurred by local systems when students are dually enrolled Although some details remain to be finalized and are subject to change by the General Assembly in most cases this amount will approximate 160 per FTE segment My office continues to work closely with Superintendent Cox and the Georgia Department of Education on the details of these fees and the method by which they will be paidI appreciate your attention to and interest in this very important program SincerelySonny PerdueGovernor http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/d71efa16522175af81d9454a78e9dfca.html The 9th District member of the State Transportation Board said Friday he is hopeful that funds for county and city road projects across the state could be restored later in the fiscal year http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/94dd6149e4cad1dad1efd4c913b7d9dc.html At Gateway Bank Trust employees field many questions from customers concerned about the national financial situationldquo;The banking industry as a whole is getting a bad raprdquo; said Mary Carpenter an assistant vice president at the Ringgold bank Just in the last few months the federal government has bailed out several large but struggling financial institutions using billions of dollars in loans from the Federal Reserve Other publiclytraded companies have gone bankrupt or been bought outAnalysts say the problems stemmed from granting so many subprime mortgages ndash; home loans given to those with low credit scores or high debt ratios That coupled with the fact that many borrowers are faced with home mortgages higher than the current market value has caused a ldquo;national financial crisisrdquo; according to reports from The New York Times and Wall Street JournalWhat the crisis means on the local level is that community banks are more careful than they were a year or two ago about granting loans said Joe M Haskins chairman and chief executive officer of CapitalBank in Fort Oglethorpeldquo;It is becoming harder to get a home loan because credits are being scrutinized more and they are requiring bigger downpaymentsrdquo; he saidOn the WebBauerFinancialcomwwwfdicgov While most community banks donrsquo;t deal in subprime mortgages they do sometimes make loans that are then handed off to larger corporations The loan itself may trade hands three or more times and in some cases can end up with large conglomerates like Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac which were recently bailed out of financial crises with government interventionWes Smith chairman and chief executive officer at Northwest Georgia Bank said most of the financial institutions that have had problems are in a different category of banking one concerned primarily with taking on investments and turning over a high profit with lending that is often riskier and at higher interest ratesldquo;Most of the bailed out institutions are whatrsquo;s been referred to as investment banksrdquo; he said ldquo;In doing so they generally take a lot more risks than a commercial bank would takerdquo;Even if the community banksrsquo; standards for granting loans donrsquo;t change they must pass down the criteria of the larger institutions that will eventually hold the mortgages Smith said However local bankers also said they more closely scrutinized their potential borrowers before granting loans than did most national banksAnother result of the crisis is that fewer individuals and companies are asking for loans The housing market in Northwest Georgia has exploded over the last few years but recently stagnated Now local real estate agents say there are more homes than they can sell in a reasonable timeldquo;Builders to their credit have also started selling less and letting their inventory catch uprdquo; said Jeff A Bridgman a senior credit officer at GatewayDid you knowLocal bankers say that despite many news reports to the contrary there are several ways to insure more than 100000 under FDIC regulations Some restrictions apply Haskins said that in addition to construction being down in recent months people are also being laid off and the economy in general is struggling The secondgeneration owner of the bank said hersquo;s noticed a trend over his life in which the country experiences financial troubles then bounces backldquo;It seems like almost every decade therersquo;s been a downturnrdquo; he saidLately though bad news from Wall Street is making many of the nationrsquo;s biggest headlinesInsurance company American International Group Inc as of Friday Sept 19 was the latest in a series of companies leaning on government loans for help AIG secured an 85 billion twoyear loan from the Federal Reserve on Tuesday Sept 16 Lehman Brothers a global investment bank attempted to get similar bailout assistance The government refused and the company filed for bankruptcy on Monday Sept 15 On the national financial scene Merrill Lynch was recently sold to Bank of America after struggling financially The government bailed out Bear Sterns in March and did the same for Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac earlier this monthThose who support the government bailouts say the moves rescue the already fragile economy from growing worse and buy the companies time to sell off some assets and pay back debtHaskins said that although he doesnrsquo;t have enough information to assess whether the government made the best choices in loaning taxpayer money he does believe the banks should in some way be held accountable for their lending practicesWhile national financial institutions are struggling he said community banks are in a different boat altogetherldquo;I think what distinguishes us as community banks we did not do any subprime lendingrdquo; he said ldquo;What we have seen is just strictly a slowing of the economyrdquo;Carpenter said there are resources online that concerned customers can turn to for more information BauerFinancialcom provides quarterly reports on every bank in the United States and the FDIC Web site wwwfdicgov has several databases and information on insuring accountsCarpenter said customers who are concerned about the financial crisis should contact their banks for more informationCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/f34ddcef723104b2cb26e63c4cca5c4f.html The mediation period for the Catoosa County Board of Commissioners and Fort Oglethorpe officials to work on a fire protection plan will likely be extended againThatrsquo;s according to Ron Goulart Fort Oglethorpersquo;s attorney and interim city manager Attempts to reach County Attorney Clifton ldquo;Skiprdquo; Patty were unsuccessfulFort Oglethorpe is suing the county over what city officials have said is an attempt to duplicate existing fire services County officials want to move toward a consolidate countywide fire department and had originally planned to cut off funding to Fort Oglethorpe Fire Rescue and Post Volunteer Fire DepartmentSuperior Court Judge Ralph Hill first ordered the county to continue paying for Fort Oglethorpe and the Post to provide services inside the city limits and on the west side of the county on May 15 Since then the departments and city and county officials have participated in one formal mediation session and exchanged other communicationThey were scheduled to be in court again when the mediation period ended on Oct 8 but Goulart said there was a scheduling mixup and Hill was not in court that weekldquo;Wersquo;ve agreed just to continue on as we have been and then have Judge Hill sign off on it when he gets backrdquo; Goulart saidPost receives 216000 a year in county funding and Fort Oglethorpe receives 175000 The two departments operate as one and together have an ISO rating of three Lower ratings translate to lower insurance rates for property ownersCounty officials have said they donrsquo;t plan to take over fire protection in west Catoosa County until they can provide at least the same level of service as property owners have nowCatoosa volunteers hold off on suitVolunteers from the RinggoldCatoosa County Fire Department had discussed filing a lawsuit similar to that of Fort Oglethorpe and the Post but on Friday Oct 10 their attorney said that isnrsquo;t likelyThe Catoosa County Board of Commissioners voted Sept 16 to progress toward a consolidated unified fire service called Catoosa County Fire Department form its own volunteer department and file paperwork with the Georgia Firefighters Standards and Training Councilldquo;The volunteers are very disappointed because we may not be able to file suit at all because we understand the county is prepared to spend 200000 or whatever it takes to run out the volunteersrdquo; said attorney HK Sawyer ldquo;The county has virtually unlimited funds to fight any legal battlerdquo;County officials have said volunteers are still welcome and wanted They also say the new county department will provide better service in the longrun since it will also be staffed with dozens of fulltime professional firefighters in addition to volunteers However county officials are requiring the volunteers to apply for their volunteer jobs all over again and meet county standards a move that several veterans said they found insultingSawyer said the matter has him frustrated but itrsquo;s unlikely at this point that there will even be a lawsuit filed After all he said where would the volunteers find 200000 to fight county governmentCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/67ec8bc748653dae17d5f546209b4b02.html The shutdown of the Mohawk Industries synthetic carpet yarn plant in Fort Oglethorpe will result in 235 layoffs and will cost the city some lost tax revenue officials saidThe plant announced today that it will close its doors at 365 Patterson Ave by Nov 28 Calls to the office were not immediately returned and officials at Mohawkrsquo;s corporate headquarters declined to comment outside of a written statementHowever Fort Oglethorpe Mayor Ronnie Cobb said the sluggish housing market is to blame for the shutdown Fewer houses are being built so less carpet is needed he saidldquo;I guess it surprised me in a way but the way the economy is going it wasnrsquo;t that big of a surpriserdquo; he said ldquo;Itrsquo;s not going to get betterrdquo;According to the companyrsquo;s statement Mohawk will also shut down a plant in South Carolina that employs 137 peopleldquo;These plant closings are a classic example of how changing consumer preferences impact a manufacturing company during a prolonged economic downturnrdquo; said Jerry Hendrix senior human resources director for Mohawkrsquo;s flooring division ldquo;Companies have no choice other than to respond to these changes My heart goes out to the men and women at both of these locations and to all of the American employees facing similar situationsrdquo;Cobb said he met with a local Mohawk official yesterday to discuss the situation The city has offered to try to recruit new industry to the building Cobb said but no official plan of action has been agreed uponAlthough figures were not immediately available Cobb said Mohawkrsquo;s departure would affect the cityrsquo;s tax base as the City Council works on its budget for 2009In a press release State Labor Commissioner Michael Thurmond said today that the Georgia Department of Labor will provide assistance to employees who are expected to lose their jobsldquo;The layoff at Mohawk Industries in Fort Oglethorpe will create an unfortunate situation for the workers and their familiesrdquo; said Thurmond ldquo;Georgia Department of Labor staff will meet with them as soon as possible to explain the services available to help them get back to work as quickly as possiblerdquo;The labor department provides a wide range of transitional services to laidoff workers The department also conducts job search workshops career counseling and provides resource centers in each office Some job seekers may also be eligible for occupationalskills training onthejob training General Education Development GED preparation and testing and supportive services such as childcare assistance transportation assistance and meals while enrolled in fulltime trainingCatoosa County is served by the departmentrsquo;s Northwest Georgia Career Center at 96 Stuart Road in Fort Oglethorpe Call 706 8611990 for informationCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/849028b9c5ea6d2283d6b6cd25368452.html Insurance and Safety Fire Commissioner John Oxendine stressed the importance of fire safety during his visit to Battlefield Elementary School Thursday Oct 2 to kick off National Fire and Prevention Monthldquo;By having the kids learn about fire safety it will cause them to tell their parents lsquo;we need a plan in case of a firersquo;rdquo; said Oxendine ldquo;We have fire drills at my house at night; to make them more realistic having to avoid obstacles in the darkrdquo;In addition to Oxendine members of Fort Oglethorpe Fire and Rescue were on scene including Fire Chief Bruce Ballew On scene were two Fire Safety Houses that the students used to learn the importence of staying calm and low to the ground in case of a home fireldquo;Kids donrsquo;t die in school fires; they die at home firesrdquo; said Oxendine ldquo;This is why we need to have home drillsrdquo;In efforts to promote safety Oxendine deputized each student in the third grade classes giving them Junior Fire Marshals titles and each received fire helmets He explained to the students why it is important not to play with fire and why arson is dangerous and illegalldquo;Do you get your toys when you hear the smoke alarm How about finding your dog or cat What about your parentsrdquo; Oxendine asked The students gleefully cheered that they should just quickly and calmly get out of their home and make sure to stay low so that the smoke would not affect them ldquo;Your parents and pets will be able to get themselves outrdquo; Oxendine told themOxendine also mentioned that it should be the studentsrsquo; jobs to get themselves out of the home safely Following the predesignated plan would help their parents know where they are to meet he told them Oxendine used as an example a story of a family who had dealt with a fire and described how one of the children went behind the house rather then the front This caused the father to go back in to search for the child and he ended up being injured ldquo;This is why itrsquo;s so important to stick to the planrdquo; Oxendine saidStudents seemed to enjoy the activities and time out of class; they ended the fire prevention events with a fire drill ensuring all of the students and teachers knew the schoolrsquo;s plan to get out safelyldquo;It was really awesome it felt like we were talking to the President of Georgia It was really funrdquo; said third grader Kendal Tnally after listening to a speech from OxendineFire prevention and protection tips: Change your batteries on the smoke alarms twice a year ldquo;Just change it every Halloween and Easterrdquo; said Oxendine Stay low during a fire as itrsquo;s the smoke that does the damage first Place your hand on any closed door if itrsquo;s hot there is likely fire behind it Make a family fire safety plan Once outside stay outside of the fire stay thereFor more tips and information go to wwwfiresafetygovCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/24b61438a220294baa303ee2ce22e590.html Fuel production in the Gulf of Mexico is still not up to optimal processing speeds according to a press release from Gov Sonny Perdue On Sept 29 Perdue sent out a release to help Georgianrsquo;s better understand why fuel has become a scarce commodity at this point in timeldquo;The US Department of Energy reports 574 percent of crude oil production capacity in the Gulf of Mexico is out This is a slight improvement from Friday Sept 26 when 593 percent of capacity was out On Monday September 22 892 percent of capacity was outrdquo; stated PerdueCurrently only two of the 33 oil refineries in the Gulf Coast remain fully closed while three more have been reported as fully operational since Friday Sept 26 At the bottom of this article you may find an interactive map that readers may place points where fuel may be currently foundldquo;On Sept 27 the Department of Energy DOE announced that it is delivering 500000 barrels of emergency exchange oil to Marathonrsquo;s Midwest refineries via the Caplinerdquo; Although the extra oil is being delivered to the Southeast the amount of time it takes for the extra oil to flow through the pipeline will not be apparent for a few days because of the distancePerdue has also reported that as a result of consumers rushing to the pumps and topping off their cars has caused a much larger need for fuel At this point in the year fuel is already being stretched as the transition from summer fuel types to winter is beginning to come in to the gas stations ldquo;Cities affected by the shortages include: Atlanta Athens Dalton Gainesville and rural areas of North and Northeast Georgia Charlotte North Carolina other parts of western North Carolina including Asheville Chattanooga Tennessee Greenville Spartanburg South Carolina I20 from Georgia to Anniston Oxford Alabama near Talladega where there will be a NASCAR race next weekendrdquo; stated Don Lindsey Director of Public Affairs for AAA East Tennessee Knoxville ldquo;AAA is asking motorists that reside in the above mentioned areas to conserve fuel avoid topping off their gas tanks and not hoard gasolinerdquo;Some practical fuel efficiency tips for drivers include:Drive sensibly: Speeding rapid acceleration jackrabbit starts and rapid braking lowers gas mileage Choose the right vehicle: If you own more than one vehicle drive the one that gets better gas mileage whenever possible Decrease speed: Gas mileage decreases rapidly when driving more than 60 milesperhour Avoid idling: Idling gets zero miles per gallon Cars with larger engines typically waste more gas while idling than cars with smaller engines Commute alternatives are also a useful way to conserve fuel including telework carpool and transit options and flexible work schedules More information is available about commute alternatives at wwwCleanAirCampaigncomTo view the letter from Sonny Perdue to President Bush click hereFind out local gas prices hereClick on View Larger Mapto go to the Catoosa County News Google map where readers can place points of interest gas stations that have fuel and their prices You will need a Gmail account to place points but guests are able to view the mapView Larger Map Takes you to a custom Google MapCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage http://www.axtora.com/homesites/us/georgia/tunnel-hill/content/29783ed04925d57f01c554186b2141f8.html The questions were posed and the answers timed just like any other political debate but some have said the Oct 2 candidate debate hosted by the Catoosa County Chamber of Commerce at the Colonnade was not completely free of biasBruce Coker a Democrat and a challenger for the 53rd District seat in the state senate said upon his return from the debate that he believed the Chamber and the Republican Party were working in conjunction Coker is running against state Sen Jeff Mullis R Chickamaugaldquo;I have never in my entire life seen such partisan maneuveringrdquo; he said ldquo;To give you an example Jeff Scott showed up at the event and Nathan Deal did not Obviously we all are in agreement that Mr Dealrsquo;s place right now is in Washington working on the mess that our country is inldquo;What was so shocking is that they allowed Nathan Deal to have a representative to read a public statement then hammered Jeff Scott with partisan questions carefully constructed without the possibility of a response from Nathan Deal on the same questionsrdquo; he saidMullis was on a trip to Europe with Governor Sonny Perdue and he was unable to participate in the debate Coker said since Mullis was not there the moderator could not crossexamine himldquo;I must note that I wasn't ever given a breakdown from the Catoosa County Chamber about the specifics of the basic rules regarding the operations other than who it would be moderated byrdquo; Coker said ldquo;I was shocked when they allowed Jay Neal who is running unopposed for the State House to debate me on behalf of Jeff Mullis ldquo;This was the most politically divisive thing they could have done after all I am not running for state house nor am I running against Jay Nealrdquo; he said ldquo;I am 48 years old and I have seen many political debates but I have never seen one where a colleague was allowed to do such a thing as thisCoker added when he had a conflict and was unable to attend the primary debate the Chamber did not offer the same courtesy of allowing him to have a substituteldquo;This was the most obvious political maneuvering to compromise fairness that I have ever witnessedrdquo; Coker said ldquo;I think fairness should always be exercised when debating issues that are important to the lives of every citizen and must not be manipulatedrdquo; Chris Scott Catoosa County Democratic Party chairman pointed out a discrepancy in representation between the Republican and Democratic candidates He said four absent Republican candidates had representatives at the most recent debate including a Chamber officer to speak on their behalf ldquo;Only two Democratic candidates were absent but had no one to speakrdquo; he said ldquo;The most despicable action took place when the Chamber blindsided Senate candidate Bruce Coker Coker took the stage thinking he would answer questions from the moderator since his opponent Jeff Mullis was vacationing in Spain with Governor Perdue Instead Republican State Rep Jay Neal was allowed to return to the stage and debate Coker on Mullisrsquo; behalfrdquo;ldquo;This was the lowest form of partisan politics that could have been displayed by a lsquo;nonpartisanrsquo; Catoosa County Chamber of Commercerdquo; he saidScott substituted for Democrat Ralph Noble at the Catoosa County primary debate event earlier in the year reading a statement on his behalf However he fielded no debate questions in his absence because Noble was unopposed at that timeCatoosa County Chamber President Martha Eaker denies the debate was partisan in any wayldquo;I am very proud of the fact that the Chamber conducted these debates as a way to educate and inform the public and I stand by the fact that is exactly what we didrdquo; she said Monday Oct 6Eaker said if candidates requested someone to represent them the Chamber allowed itldquo;Every candidate received an invitation to attendrdquo; she said ldquo;If someone called me and could not attend for some reason and ask about sending someone to represent them I said that was acceptable ldquo;If they did not ask I certainly did not suggest anyone sending a reprdquo; she said ldquo;The Chamber of Commerce conducted this in a fair and non partisan format going so far as to have moderators from the Georgia Chamber of Commerce to assure the debate was unbiasedrdquo;Sen Jeff Mullis said Oct 6 he accepted the invitation from Gov Sonny Perdue for the European trip long before the debate was scheduledldquo;I thought it was important for me to go to this trade and transportation meeting for Northwest Georgiardquo; he said ldquo;My way was not paid for by taxpayerrsquo;s dollarsrdquo;Mullis said as new industry opportunities come into Northwest Georgia establishing strong relationships will be the key to competing with surrounding areas for businesses and new jobsCLICK ON THESE LINKSFEEDBACK: Send a letter to the editorSUBSCRIBE: Get The Catoosa County News each WednesdayGO BACK:Return to our homepage