Dear Editor,

I am unable to attend the June 18 Liberty County Board of Commissioners meeting. I believe the board will vote on and pass the FY 2027 budget of more than $71 million at this meeting. Based on last year’s experience, this vote will likely be completed with less than 10 minutes of public discussion. However, state law requires that a public hearing be held.

I am truly sorry that I will miss the opportunity to address my concerns directly to Chairman Lovette. If I were able to attend, I would make the following comments: Chairman Lovette, now that I understand this is not a “Q&A session” and that you feel no responsibility or desire to answer questions from the citizens you were elected to represent, I will simply make the following observations.

With the passage of a budget exceeding $71 million tonight, you will place the county on a trajectory to surpass a $100 million budget within the next five to six years. I realize this may not be surprising to you, given your more than 15 years on this board and your role in overseeing a spending increase of more than $39 million in just seven years. During that same period, Liberty County residents experienced a household income increase of only about 30%, or approximately $15,000.

Additionally, the United Way reported last year that Georgia reduced the percentage of households living below the ALICE (Asset Limited Income Constrained Employed) survival threshold from 48% to 45%. Liberty County, however, moved in the opposite direction, increasing from 45% to 54%. More than half of the county’s households now struggle below the survival threshold established by United Way. Meanwhile, the county’s poverty rate remains stagnant at approximately 15% to 16%.

Do these facts cause anyone in this room to ask whether we are headed in the right direction?

I have regularly attended county board meetings for more than a year. At no time have I heard the board address issues such as median household income or the poverty rate. There has been little discussion about improving residents’ financial stability or creating greater opportunities for economic advancement.

Instead, the Commission appears more focused on growing the county than on improving the well-being of the people it represents.

This is evident in the fact that Liberty County ranks second among Georgia’s 159 counties in property tax rates and remains among the highest-taxed counties in the state and in the top 35% nationally. To the Board’s credit, it has acknowledged the financial constraints facing Liberty County, including the impact of Fort Stewart, veterans’ property tax exemptions, and other factors that limit the county’s ability to generate tax revenue.

Yet year after year, the board has failed to budget and operate within those realities. Rather than adapting to known constraints and pursuing policies that stimulate economic growth and broaden the tax base, the county has continued down a path that places an increasingly heavy burden on property owners. The result is the crushing property taxes that Liberty County residents are forced to shoulder today. Perhaps if the board focused more on the economic well-being and growth of its constituents and less on where the next tax dollar will come from, the county would be in a better position. The fact is that there is not a single major economic indicator suggesting that county residents are prospering.

I will close with these points: Six of the seven board members have served for more than 15 years and are responsible for the increases in county spending and taxation. They also share responsibility for the lack of meaningful economic progress experienced by many residents. It is not only time for a change in commissioners; it is time for a change in direction.

I do not believe that anyone with a sound understanding of economics and government would conclude that Liberty County’s current trajectory of taxation and spending is sustainable.

Lastly, spending other people’s money can become an addiction. Unfortunately, like all addictions, it is a difficult habit to break, and it almost always ends in disaster.

Glenn Burch