Hinesville City Council covered late property tax bills, appointments and business licenses at its meeting Thursday.

Maj. Gen. James Rainey, 3rd Infantry Division commanding general, spoke to Mayor Allen Brown and council at the beginning of the meeting about the relationship between the city and Fort Stewart and that he expects his soldiers and their families will be good citizens to the community. He also mentioned that Hinesville first responders had come to Fort Stewart’s aid in the aftermath of last week’s tornado.

Brown was appointed to the Hinesville Downtown Development Authority. According to the agenda, the sitting mayor has served on the board since its creation in 2004.

The Liberty County Armed Services YMCA requested 15 polycarts for the Liberty County Fall Festival on Oct. 29. The council approved and waived fees as requested by the Y Director Erin Chester.

After four prior discussions, the council finally approved the Hinesville Military Affairs Committee bylaws to allow any member of HMAC in good standing to be appointed by the mayor to be chairman of the committee. Previously, the bylaws stated it could only be an elected city official.

Retired Command Sgt. Maj. Jeff Ashmen, the military outreach coordinator with Savannah Technical College, was selected by HMAC to be the next chairman and was appointed by the mayor and approved by the council. He is currently an HMAC volunteer and secretary of the Veterans Memorial Walk Committee.

During Councilman Jason Floyd’s report, Yokesha Greene from the Business License Office reported that 15 new businesses sought business licenses and five had changes in ownership, for a total of 20 business applications in December.

For the December financial reports, Kimberly Ryon, Hinesville chief financial officer, said the due date for property tax bills had been extended to March 25 because a post office in Atlanta reportedly misplaced the original bills, causing a delay. She said bills may be trickling in to property owners. City Manager Billy Edwards pointed out that anyone can print and pay their tax bill online. The tax commissioner’s website is www.libertyga tax.com.