Melissa Carter Ray recently completed development authority training, provided by the University of Georgia’s Carl Vinson Institute of Government, for local leaders who have been appointed or reappointed to an authority.
Ray is a member of the Liberty County Development Authority in Hinesville.
Participants in the daylong training course learn about their responsibilities as members of development authority boards and the role that development authorities serve in the local economic development process.
Topics included development-authority operations, financing and incentives, and bonds.
In addition, participants learn about legal issues, ethics, conflicts of interest and open-records and open-meetings requirements.
“Development authorities are a key tool in every county’s economic development process, and our training offers valuable resources for board members as they implement development plans,” said course instructor Dennis Epps, the institute’s deputy director and an economic-development specialist.
“These courses help authority members strengthen their practical knowledge about economic development projects. The better they understand their roles, the more impact they can have on their community’s growth,” Institute of Government Director Laura Meadows said.
For more information about Development Authority Training, which the Institute of Government hosts several times a year at locations throughout the state, email Epps at wdepps@uga.edu or go to vinsoninstitute.org /dat.