Macon-Bibb officials turn off street lights fee

The street light fees that some Bibb County residents pay will be history after June.

On Tuesday, the County Commission unanimously approved eliminating the fee now paid by some residents within the former unincorporated Bibb County.

The move, county officials said, is another way to make sure that services are being paid for equally by all residents since the January 2014 consolidation.

"That's what (residents) expected us to do when we combined these two governments," Commissioner Ed DeFore said before Tuesday's vote.

In Commissioner Scotty Shepherd's district, which spans south Bibb County, there are some households that pay the street light fee.

"It's a good (move), since the people within the former city don't pay and now it'll be free to everyone," Shepherd said.

The fee, which nearly 6,000 households pay, will end at the start of the new fiscal year, which begins July 1.

The fee was expected to generate about $330,000 in revenue during the current fiscal year, with the majority of that going to power companies, officials said.

Residents within the former city limits have street lights covered through the general fund.

Among the other services that have been equalized countywide since consolidation are the property tax rate and garbage and recycling fees.

CITY AUDITORIUM GETS $150K FOR REPAIRS

The Macon City Auditorium will receive $150,000 for various upgrades while commissioners look into funding options to help cover an estimated $15 million worth of repairs to the downtown facility.

Mayor Robert Reichert said most of the $150,000 will come from the current special purpose local options sales tax fund.

The auditorium, built in the 1920s, has a range of issues, from a leaky roof to carpet that needs replacing.

To contact writer Stanley Dunlap, call 744-4623 or find him on Twitter@stan_telegraph.

This story was originally published March 1, 2016 at 7:17 PM with the headline "Macon-Bibb officials turn off street lights fee ."