MEAG possible consolidation roadblack?

ALBANY — Dougherty County Commission Chairman Chris Cohilas’ recent revelation that that board intends to discuss the dormant Albany/Dougherty County consolidation issue sparked a response from a group that offers support to the state’s county governments.

Officials with the Association County Commissioners of Georgia, including that group’s executive director, Ross King, reached out to The Albany Herald after reading a recent article about renewed interest in consolidation by the Dougherty Commission. The ACCG’s message was clear: Don’t discount the importance of the city of Albany’s relationship with the Municipal Electric Authority of Georgia in this process.

Citing the 2010 attempt of the tiny Ellaville community to consolidate with Schley County, ACCG officials warned that actions threatened by attorneys representing MEAG bondholders during that ill-fated attempt at unification could prove to be a hindrance to any similar Albany/Dougherty County action.

Internal MEAG and ACCG communications provided to The Herald show that the electric authority, which is a collective of 48 Georgia cities’ and counties’ utilities authorities, is not amenable to consolidation charters that would alter the geographic boundaries of existing members of the collective.

One MEAG memo states: “… (C)ovenants (in place) prohibit changes to the power sales contracts if they might adversely affect the bondholder. It creates both a costly and time-consuming process that we simply cannot avoid.”

Approval for moving forward with the consolidation process might, the memo went on to say, necessitate a declaratory judgment (that would assure bondholders’ interests) which could take 30-45 days or an appellate court ruling that might take as long as a year. The court costs, according to an ACCG memo, were expected to exceed $100,000, a sum that would have placed considerable financial hardship on the city of Ellaville.

A comment attributed to MEAG’s Scott Jones offered a succinct summary of the collective’s mindset: “We are not going to grease the skids of consolidation because it is not in our interest to do so.”

King, who lived in Americus before moving to Atlanta, said in a phone interview with The Herald Wednesday that he knows of no reason why MEAG officials wouldn’t take a similar position if Albany and Dougherty County get deep into consolidation discussions.

“I think it’s apparent that, if Albany and Dougherty County officials did not get the bond issue addressed, didn’t unravel the bond restrictions, there might likely be similar action taken by MEAG to protect their interests,” King said. “There are a lot of pieces on this chessboard, and you have to address them all. It takes time, effort and focus. And, frankly, I don’t know that a discussion of MEAG has been part of the dialog.

“I think the MEAG issue became a mountain so high with Ellaville and Schley County that they just let it pass. I’m not aware of it coming up since then. That’s why I think it’s important for Dougherty County — or any other Georgia county considering consolidation — to be aware of this issue. It’s the chicken-egg thing, but if the city and county did vote to consolidate their governments, I’m quite certain they would have to actualize this issue.”

After looking over copies of the MEAG and ACCG communications, Albany City Attorney Nathan Davis said he would have to conduct further research before counseling the city on the matter should consolidation discussions be taken up by the City Commission.

“I really don’t understand why (MEAG officials) would think they need a court ruling to determine whether a consolidated government that included one of their members was bound to adhere to existing bond covenants in place,” Davis said. “In fact, I intend to call a bond attorney and ask him that question.

“If this was a major concern for MEAG, and there was serious talk of consolidation here, I can’t imagine that they wouldn’t reach out to us. In fact, I’m surprised that this issue didn’t surface in ‘09 and ‘10 when consolidation was a big issue here.”

King, though, said he would be surprised if MEAG officials did reach out to Albany and Dougherty County officials at the early stages of any consolidation discussion.

“I’m not certain it’s MEAG’s responsibility to speak about governance unless they’re approached by one of their members,” the ACCG executive director said. “I would also think that any requirements for bond covenants are too specific for generalizations. There just aren’t any compelling reasons for MEAG to reach out to its members in a situation like this.”

A MEAG official contacted by The Herald said both legal counsel Pete Degnan and collective President Jim Fuller were unavailable at the time. A message was left with Fuller, however, seeking comment.

Americus attorney Jimmy Skipper, who provides legal counsel for a number of Georgia governmental agencies, including the Lee County Commission, represented Ellaville during its consolidation discussions in 2010. He said Wednesday he’s not familiar with any specific Albany/Dougherty County consolidation discussions but that he wouldn’t expect MEAG’s reaction to be any different than it was to the Ellaville/Schley talks.

“The thing that I remember from that process is that the city of Ellaville — like other MEAG members — signed an agreement to pay for bonds that secured electric service to benefit the residents of that community,” Skipper said. “No one really knew how consolidation would impact that process, and that made the bond lawyers nervous. They wanted legal assurances that their status would not change should Ellaville’s physical boundaries change.

“Even a resolution discussed by Ellaville officials didn’t satisfy their concerns. When the talk turned to a court ruling, the folks in Ellaville and Schley County just pulled away and (consolidation talks) faded out.”

Cohilas said he’s not quite certain why there is this sudden concern about consolidation talks in the county. The process, he points out, hasn’t even started yet.

“This is kind of a cart-before-the-horse thing,” the County Commission chairman, himself an attorney, said. “All the commission has done is agree to evaluate consolidation. We’re not even into the information-gathering phase yet. In order to eventually present a plan, there are all kinds of nuances that would have to be vetted. This (MEAG discussion) is just one of the things that would enter the discussion.

“I don’t know why any potential legal issue would interfere with the vetting process. That’s why governmental bodies hire lawyers. This is just premature for where we are in this discussion.”

King said that even if the current consolidation discussion in Albany and Dougherty County goes nowhere, it is still valuable.

“Sometimes, leaders have to put issues like this on the table,” the ACCG head said. “Sometimes they need to discuss these issues, have them on the record as a part of a community’s history. If, at some future time, the issue comes up again, there is this past discussion that will be a vital part of the dialog.”