BOE finalizes millage rate

The Houston County Board of Education officially set its millage rate Thursday during a Called Meeting.

It will be 13.34, which is where it stood “tentatively” a few weeks back as the group waited for the tax digest to come in. The tax digest actually showed a decrease from the previous year enabling them to keep the prevent an increase in the millage rate, in fact keeping it where it was the year prior.

The BOE’s budget, as approved back in late June, is $298,843,861. That is the largest in history, said Superintendent Mark Scott, who added the system would also be serving its largest student population at approximately 28,000.

The BOE also voted Thursday to approve a change order for Langston Road and to revise its policy regarding background checks.

The Langston Road change was for $42,444 for, according to the board’s summary sheet, “adding asphalt to slope the road properly for drainage to the new curb and gutter added.” The costs, also according to the summary, will be reimbursed by the Houston County Board of Commissioners.

The background check policy adds O.C.G.A. 35-3-34.2 and the statement: “Criminal record check information shall be used by the school district, its officials and employees only for the purpose of determining whether to grant regular employment, and in any administrative or judicial proceeding calling such employment into question. Such information shall be stored, restricted, and disposed of in such manner as may be required by federal and state authorities. A breach of confidentiality or the inappropriate use of criminal background check information may constitute a workplace violation and may be grounds for disciplinary action including, but not limited to, termination and/or reporting to the Professional Standards Commission.”

In that regard, Board Member Fred Wilson had a follow-up question: “What happens if we discover something that’s not appropriate?”

Scott said those would be on a case-by-case basis and added the BOE had not had many issues turn up in the past. He also said the Georgia Bureau of Investigation performs an audit each year – Aug. 13 is the date this year, he said – to ensure they are following the correct procedures.

“This policy makes it clear that we will only use that information as necessary for employment purposes,” he said. “That we won’t share it with anyone else that doesn’t have the need-to-know basis.”

HHJ News