March 29, 2006-- The Georgia legislature has passed an immigration bill designed to help protect public benefits from illegal aliens, and requiring employers to verify the immigration status of their workers. State Representative Greg Morris of Vidalia was a member of the house-senate conference committee which hammered out agreement on the legislation. "I was chosen because the leadership wanted to be sure someone close to the agriculture community was involved in the process," Morris says.

Morris believes state lawmakers had to take the lead on the issue because the U.S. Congress has failed to provide any leadership in creating a viable guest worker program. One provision of the bill requires all state and local agencies toverify the legal status of any adult applying for taxpayer-provided benefits starting July 1, 2007. However, Morris and other lawmakers agree the lucrative trade in fake documentation will make it hard to enforce the law. Morris hopes the Congress will come up with a comprehensive immigration law by the time the state law takes effect. "Our employers need a system where they can obtain legal workers to come here and do the jobs they do and then return to their country of origin," he says.

Governor Perdue is expected to sign the new state immigration law.

March 28, 2006-- Toombs County commissioners passed two resolutions Tuesday aimed at improving accountability for tax dollars.

A resolution to improve the public's trust requires that any expenditure over $5,000 will come before the commissioners for approval. In January, Commission Chairman Charles Rustin admitted to authorizing construction projects in 2004 and 2005 without formal approval of the county commission, without advertising for competitive bid, and without contracts. The county paid the Bradford Company headed by longtime Rustin friend Hubert Sowell nearly $447,000 for construction work during the two years. The new resolution also requires written contracts and approval in the minutes of commission meetings.

A second resolution passed Tuesday requires receipts in order for county elected officials and employees to use a county credit card. The latest county audit reported receipts were not being obtained for all charges to county credit cards. And in January, all of the commissioners with the exception of the chairman turned in their cards after voting themselves a $150 monthly expense account. Tuesday's resolution also requires that commissioners furnish receipts in order to be reimbursed for expense account charges.

One county commissioner admits using the county credit card to make a personal purchase. Commissioner Roy Lee Williams said he used the card in December to buy a gift for his wife. Williams reimbursed the county in January and February, according to commission office manager Gail Widener. Credit Card records obtained under the Freedom of Information Act also show charges to William's county card last year for three magazine subscriptions, however, Williams denies ordering the publications and suggested someone may have used the card without his authorization. The county paid $20 for the magazine "Cooking Light," $20 for "Family Circle," and $50 for "The National Enquirer." Chairman Rustin says he didn't have time to check individual charges on credit cards and indicated this is one more reason the county needs to hire a county manager.

March 28, 2006-- The city of Vidalia will soon publish a water quality report in the Advance newspaper, however, city officials say there's nothing to be concerned about. The city is required to test 15 samples of water per month, and recently two samples showed up with unacceptable levels of bacteria. New tests were done and the water met standards. Still, in order to meet federal environmental regulations, the notice will be published as a matter of information.

March 27, 2006-- Local school superintendents are concerned about the economic impact of a new state law which mandates maximum class size in elementary and middle schools. While all agree smaller classes are better for students, they're concerned about increased local costs for teachers and classrooms to accommodate the change. The new law is an initiative of Governor Sonny Perdue and has been passed by the legislature.

In Vidalia City Schools, superintendent Dr. Tim Smith says its all depends on how many students are enrolled next school term, however, he believes it could mean hiring as many as eight more teachers.

Montgomery County school superintendent Dale Clark predicts they may have to hire as many as four new teachers because of the new law. And Treutlen superintendent Chuck Ellington says its too soon to say. Both Montgomery and Treutlen are already planning to build new schools.

Toombs County is also building a new elementary school, and school superintendent Dr. Kendall Brantley says even though Toombs schools already are in compliance with the new class size law, he's concerned about another provision of the law. Formerly schools were allowed to meet state standards by averaging class sizes throughout the system. The new law requires each individual class to meet the standard, and Dr. Brantley notes the arrival of one additional student during the school term would require schools to change the make-up of a class. "It's not sound educational policy to put students with another teacher in the middle of a school year just to meet class size mandates. We're going to end up hurting the students," he says. He hopes the state department of education will provide some leeway on this question when it issues instructions implementing the new law.

March 25, 2006-- Another class of potential leaders have completed the Leadership Toombs-Montgomery course. The eighteen members of the 2005-2006 class graduated Saturday following a two-day leadership development course conducted by Charles Lang of Dublin. The class started last August and included monthly trips and sessions focusing on community resources, needs and services. A new class is now forming and nomination forms are available at the Toombs-Montgomery Chamber of Commerce.

March 22, 2006-- A Vidalia woman is alleged to be part of an organization which the U.S. Attorney believes has been illegally selling guns and large quantities of drugs in the Atlanta and Savannah areas. Twenty-eight-year old Lora Moxley of Vidalia is charged with methamphetamine distribution. She and ten people from the Savannah area have been indicted by a federal grand jury as a result of an investigation which started in November, 2004.

March 22, 2006-- A ten-member panel of attorneys sanctioned by the American Bar Association is urging Georgia to impose a two-year moratorium on death penalty executions. Mercer law professor Timothy Floyd discussed the issue at Tuesday's meeting of the Vidalia Kiwanis Club. He says the panel believes three areas need examination before any more executions. "We want to be sure fair and accurate trials were given to those on death row, that racial factors were not involved in the sentences, and that those convicted had competent legal representation. A bill proposing a moratorium failed to pass in the Georgia senate this term, however, Floyd says they'll try again next term.

March 22, 2006-- Treutlen County voters have approved a five-year extension of the county's one percent special purpose local option sales tax. The vote was 332 for and 211 against. Officials expect the sales tax will generate an estimated $2.3 million to help the county pay for roof repairs to the courthouse and for a new county jail.

In Candler county, only 124 votes went to the polls with 118 voting yes and six voting no to continue a one cent tax for capital improvements in the school system.

March 21, 2006-- The operator of TV46 in Vidalia was arrested on felony charges Tuesday. Vidalia police say April McKinney is charged with deposit account fraud. According to officers, McKinney bought two cars from a local car dealer and gave a check for $96,512.34 which bounced at the bank. She was taken to the Toombs County jail.

March 21, 2006-- Former congressman Max Burns made a campaign swing through Toombs County over the weekend. Burns is trying to unseat Congressman John Barrow in the newly formed 12th congressional district. Burns says the race in the 12th has national implications because the Republican party needs to maintain control of the House of Representatives and key committees in the House. He's optimistic about his chances since much of Barrow's base of support in the Athens area is no longer a part of the district.

March 20, 2006-- Vidalia police responded to a burglary alarm early Monday and made an arrest less than 12 hours later. Police say 19-year-old David Bluitt is charged with a break-in at Mr. B's convenience store on Orange Street.

In another case, police are charging Jasmonte Smith and Danile Moore for the armed robbery of a citizen who was walking down a residential street last week. And in drug case, Bobby Anthony is charged with possession of marijuana and cocaine with intent to distribute.

March 20, 2006-- Georgia Senator Saxby Chambliss visited Toombs County Saturday and promised to help farmers with a new and improved guest worker program. Senator Chambliss says the U.S. Senate will debate his farm worker proposal as part of the overall debate on the nation's immigration policy. According to Chambliss, the current guest worker program is too expensive and cumbersome for farmers to administer. His proposal would insure "a supply of quality workers who would return home immediately after finishing their work in the U.S.," he says.

At a campaign fund-raiser for congressional candidate Max Burns, Chambliss also praised the 48th Brigade of the Georgia National Guard which he visited two weeks ago in Iraq. The brigade is due home in May.

March 17, 2006-- A man who killed his stepmother has been sentenced in Toombs County Superior Court. Murder charges were reduced to voluntary manslaughter in a plea agreement with 50-year-old Alonzo Mitchell of Lyons. Judge Kathy Palmer sentenced him to 20 years in jail. Mitchell was arrested in December, 2004 after his 82-year-old stepmother was found beaten and stabbed to death at her home at 152 Cobbtown Road. At the time, Lyons police said a microwave and TV were stolen from the woman's home and they thought Mitchell committed the crime to support a drug habit.

Judge Palmer also handed down sentences in ten drug cases. Five who got jail time are Jermaine Brown, Corey Johnson, Warren Harris, Jr., James Newsome, and Nija Ransom. Brandon Adams was sentenced to a detention center followed by probation, and four others given probation for drugs are Damien Poole, Kenneth Beauchamp, Nathan Adams, and Tayniesha Smith.

March 17, 2006-- A Toombs County grand jury has indicted a Vidalia man for murder. Jimmy Jackson is accused in the strangulation death of his girlfriend Candish Brown last September in the house where the two lived together at 711 Stuart Street in Vidalia.

And a Lyons man, Bobby Wayne McDilda, is accused of making a terroristic threat by threatening to murder R.T. Stanley, Jr. of Toombs County last May.

March 17, 2006-- State labor department reports show that more people were working this past January than January a year ago in this area. Even so, most area county's unemployment rates were above the state rate of five percent unemployed. The Toombs County rate was six percent, Treutlen eight percent, Montgomery 5.6 percent, Wheeler 6.7 percent and Tattnall six percent. Emanuel with a rate of 4.8 percent and Candler at 4.5 percent are better than the state rate.

March 16, 2006-- Voters in Truetlen County go to the polls Tuesday to approve a special purpose local option sales tax. The SLPOST is expected to raise $2.3 million during a five-year period with proceeds used to build a new county jail and replace the roof on the county courthouse. County sheriff Tommy Corbin says he expects voters to approve the measure. According to the sheriff, the 86-year-old jail has insufficient room for male and female inmates and no workspace for his 10 deputies nor the soon-to-be installed 911 operations center. He would like the county to provide a 42-cell facility either by renovating the old jail or by building a new building.

March 16, 2006-- Louisville, GA-- A delegation of local leaders met with Governor Sonny Perdue to accept a One-Georgia grant check for $250,000. The money is for infrastructure work at the Toombs Corporate Center on U.S. One north of Lyons. The group traveled to Louisville last Friday to meet the governor who was attending a board meeting of the One-Georgia Fund.

March 15, 2006-- The chairman of the holding board at Meadows Regional Medical Center died Wednesday morning. Sixty-nine-year old John McNames of Vidalia suffered a heart attack while waiting for a plane at Savannah International Airport. He was en route to St. Louis on a business trip. Funeral arrangements are incomplete and will be announced by Ronnie L. Stewart Family Funeral Service of Vidalia.

March 15, 2006-- The Red Cross office serving Toombs and Montgomery counties is asking local citizens to help prepare for disaster by stockpiling a local emergency shelter. On Wednesday, you're asked to bring non-perishable supplies to Southeastern Tech in Vidalia, according to Donna Pearson of the Red Cross. Items needed for the shelter include bottled water, toiletry items, bed linens, blankets, pillows, towels, baby food and canned food, baby items, cleaning supplies and trash bags. Monetary contributions will also be accepted, but no clothing. If you need info, call 526-3150.

March 14, 2006-- Longtime area football coach John Glanton has been hired by the Vidalia school board to run the newly-started driver education program at Vidalia High School. The driver's-ed program is funded by the state and is the only one to be offered in this area, according to superintendent Dr. Tim Smith.

Coach Glanton, who previously coached at both Metter High School and Tattnall County High School, will also coach quarterbacks for the Vidalia Indians. Head coach Jason McBride says Coach Glanton brings experience to the Indian offense.

In other actions at its March meeting, the school board accepted the resignation of deputy school superintendent Charles Cook who is retiring the end of this school year.

The board also approved purchase of a thousand bleacher seats for the football field at J.R.Trippe Middle School. The cost is $156,225 dollars to be funded by the special purpose local option sales tax.

March 14, 2006-- Governor Sonny Perdue has appointed the mayor of Metter to a state board. Mayor Billy Trapnell has been named to represent municipalities to the Georgia Probation Advisory Council.

March 14, 2006-- Toombs County commissioners have approved the $40,000 purchase of a new ambulance to support the county ambulance service. In other actions at its March meeting, commissioners okayed a $14,000 annual contract for the Clerk of Court's office to computerize court record-keeping for the next four years. In the past, the service has been provided free by the state, however, budget reductions have shifted the job to the local level, according to Clerk of Court Chess Fountain. Icon Software Company of Suwanee, GA will receive the Toombs County contract.

Chief tax appraiser Angela Waldron reports she expects to have a draft proposal on a county building permit system by April, and commissioner Louis Powell reports the county is waiting on state inspectors before it can open the new expansion to the county landfill.

March 13, 2006-- Vidalia police are reporting increased drug enforcement activity in the past two weeks. Most recently, police assisted federal drug agents and the East Central Georgia Drug Task Force in apprehending Edwin Mincey of Lyons and Jeffery Lewis of Vidalia on drug charges.

In early March, officers found marijuana and crack cocaine in street sweeps of Montgomery Alley and Savannah Street. Before that, in late February, police had hit Montgomery Alley, Crooms Street and Montgomery Extension with confiscation of marijuana and cash money. They say arrest warrants are pending as a result of the sweeps.

March 13, 2006-- Retail sales continue to grow in Vidalia. Sales tax collections in the city are off to a strong start in the first quarter of 2006. Financial reports at the Tuesday night city council meeting show an increase of three percent in special purpose local option sales tax collections, and an increase of over ten percent in local option sales tax collections. Tax collections are also running ahead of last year on the sale of alcohol and on hotel/motel rooms.

The city is planning on holding a public hearing on a proposal to rename Thompson Street Extension "Fuller Street." Citizen Warren Reed has a petition which he says endorses naming the street in honor of the late Coach Ray Fuller. The date for the hearing has yet to be announced.

In other actions, the council agreed to add portions of Martin Luther King Avenue and Morris Street to the city's paving program. It also gave the go-ahead to explore providing city sewage on Highway 280 West to accommodate the future home of the Tabernacle Baptist Church as well as businesses in the vicinity.

Council members agreed to help Sullivan Environmental with cost-sharing for an April 1st community clean-up day. They were also briefed that the police department's "Are You OK" program has 23 senior citizens currently enrolled in the program. Officers made visits to 14 homes in February to check on the welfare of senior citizens.

March 10, 2006-- A small group of Republicans turned out Friday morning for breakfast with Lieutenant-Gubernatorial candidate Ralph Reed at Chatter's Restaurant in Lyons. Reed is confident he can defeat state Senator Casey Cagle in the July 18th Republican primary election. He promised to oppose any tax increases on Georgia, but did say he favors an increase in the gas tax to capture tourist dollars. He would like an offset in the state income tax to avoid a net increase. Reed also favors immigration reform and no amnesty for illegal immigrants already in the country. He says his election will give Governor Perdue the support he needs to continue reforms in state government.

March 10, 2006-- Eleven teams of three "rednecks" each took part in the Vidalia Educational Foundation's first-ever "Redneck Spelling Bee" Thursday night at Vidalia High School. The Vidalia Kiwanis Club "Speller Fellers" won first place in a contest where "close" counted almost as much as correct spelling. Second place went to the "Dar-Bees." Jo Hamilton, who organized the event for the foundation, says it netted $3,500 which will finance "mini-grants" for classroom instruction in Vidalia City Schools.

March 9, 2006-- Funeral services for a young Soperton businessman killed last week in Florida are Friday in Soperton. Thirty-nine-year old Jody Driggers was killed in Daytona Beach last Friday morning when his motorcycle was hit from the rear by a SUV. His wife, Alicia, was on the back of the Harley-Davidson motorcycle and suffered broken legs and a broken wrist. She was released from Halifax Medical Center in Daytona earlier this week, according to the Soperton News. Driggers was owner-operator of Soperton Redi-Mix Concrete and Driggers Backhoe Service.

March 8, 2006-- The Lyons city council is considering banning pit bulls from the city. A draft city ordinance was distributed to council members at Tuesday night's council meeting which would outlaw anyone from keeping a pit bulldog in the city. The law would also prohibit citizens from keeping more than four dogs and cats, or any combination thereof, unless they are running a licensed kennel.

The law was drafted after council learned last month of one yard in the city which contained up to 22 chained pit bulls. Police say they have no evidence but they believe the dogs are used for fighting which is against state law. Some of the dogs have since been removed, according to city officials.

However, one Lyons couple says it not fair to penalize them for the actions of a few. Tommy and Amy O'Neal own four pit bulls at their home on McDilda Drive and say their dogs are not a danger to anyone. Amy says the city should enforce laws already on the books which require a fenced yard for pit bulls. If the new law passes, the O'Neals say they will move out of Lyons.

Lyons Mayor John Moore says he understands the O'Neals concerns and a compromise may be to require pit bull owners to obtain a $100,000 liability policy for each dog they own. The council is expected to vote on the new city law at its meeting in April.

March 7, 2006-- Two area counties need new jails. In Treutlen County, voters go to the polls March 21 to vote on extending a special purpose local option sales tax with most of the money to be used for a new county jail. In Montgomery County, the county is paying big bucks to house prisoners in the jail in Irwin County. The county grand jury has recommended construction of a new jail to save money. At Tuesday's Montgomery County commissioners' meeting, the commission voted to seek a meeting with the commissioners in Treutlen County following the March 21st vote. Chairman Charles Truett says a joint jail may be a non-starter, but it's worth discussing because of the huge cost associated with building and operating a jail.

Commissioner Dr. Ronnie Smith says he's not sure where the money will come from for a new jail, and the commission approved a measure to develop a short term and long term county plan which would match county needs against county revenue.

In other actions, the commission accepted an apparent low bid of $588,000 to pave the Green Thigpen Road. Everett Dykes Grassing won the contract which is funded with $420,000 in state funds and $168,000 in local option sales tax collections.

Montgomery County plans to start recruiting for a county Emergency Management Agency director. A starting salary in the low to middle $30's is being considered.

And the commissioners plan a trip to Atlanta this month to meet with the State Reapportionment Office. Due to population changes in the county, some of the commissioner's seats are no longer in compliance with the one man-one vote principle mandated by the Voting Rights Act. The commission is seeking guidance on redrawing the district boundaries to comply with the law.

March 6, 2006-- A Vidalia woman was killed Sunday afternoon in a two-car collision on the Vidalia-Cedar Crossing Road. Toombs County Sheriff Junior Kight 77-year-old Lois Allmond died instantly in the crash. A passenger in her car, John Ridgdill of Vidalia, was slightly injured. However, the driver of the second car, Kelsey Alford of Vidalia, suffered head injuries and was air-lifted to a Macon hospital. Her 17-month-old baby boy, strapped in a child safety seat in the backseat, was not injured. The accident happened about 4:30 p.m. Sunday near Poplar Springs Church. The Georgia State Patrol is investigating.

March 6, 2006-- Two men who traded cocaine for sex have been sentenced in Toombs County Superior Court. Calvin Gassett of Vidalia, with three prior felony convictions, will spend 30 years in jail without parole. His partner, Tony Gillis of Lyons, got a five-year sentence. Judge Walter McMillan sentenced the pair after a after a Toombs County jury found them guilty last week.

According to Assistant District Attorney Tony May, police found 120 bags of cocaine in Gassett's room at Shoney's Inn in Vidalia in a raid in December, 2004. One of the two women involved in the deal, Kim Joyner of Vidalia, has been sentenced under the first offender law to at least 20 months in a detention center. The other woman, Victoria Mead Oliver, has entered a guilty plea and is awaiting sentence. Court officials said both women were addicted to crack cocaine.

March 6, 2006-- Quick reaction by Vidalia firemen saved a house at 410 Martin Luther King Avenue Monday afternoon. A garage and shed in the backyard caught fire and wind moved flames to the rear of the house. Chief Buddy Coleman says the back porch was damaged, but the house remains "livable." An automobile parked in the garage was destroyed. Firemen found an electrical short in the garage which they think caused the fire. There were no injuries, however, an elderly woman who lived in the house was taken to the hospital for a checkup as a precaution.

March 6, 2006-- The Toombs County Development Authority is receiving a state grant to help pay for construction in the Toombs Corporate Center on U.S. One north of Lyons. Local officials will be in Louisville Friday to accept a One Georgia grant of $250,000 from Governor Sonny Perdue. The money is for infrastructure improvements made at the park for Simonton Windows, according to Bill Mitchell of the Development Authority.

March 4, 2006-- A national healthcare information company has named Meadows Regional Medical Center in Vidalia as one of the nation's Top 100 hospitals in the small community category. Meadows officials called a news conference Friday to announce the selection by Solucient of Evanston, Illinois. Each year the company ranks hospitals based on data in the areas of quality of care, efficiency, financial performance and adaptation to the environment.

Meadows CEO Alan Kent says, "This is truly an honor. Our staff works hard to provide quality care to all of our patients and are good stewards of the hospital's resources." Operating board chairman Ronnie Stewart thanked the nurses and staff "because they are the ones who provide the quality of patient care which has earned this recognition."

According to Kent, "This is one more reason why people in Toombs and Montgomery counties don't have to leave home to get quality medical care. It's right here."

March 4, 2006-- Top students and teachers have been named in the annual Star Student ceremonies hosted locally by the Vidalia Kiwanis Club. At Vidalia High School, the Star student is UGA-bound Henry Oddi who chose Spanish teacher Jan Barfield as his Star teacher. The Star student at Toombs County High School is Thomas Horne with his favorite teacher, Vicki Moore, a chemistry teacher for 33 years. The Montgomery County High School Star student is Katy Galbreath with Star teacher Rose Dixon. At Robert Toombs Christian Academy, Star student Canaan Banks selected math teacher Amy Rowe as his Star teacher.

March 2, 2006-- Simonton Windows is wasting no time expanding its newly opened plant in the Toombs Corporate Center on U.S. 1 north of Lyons. Ground was broken Monday, February 27th for the new 120,000 square foot addition. At the corporate headquarters in Parkersburg, West Virginia, company spokesperson Kathy Ziprik says the company is more than doubling the size of its Lyons plant due to demand for its hurricane-proof high impact windows. According to Ziprik, the expansion should be completed by September and produce a workforce of 200 employees.

Bill Mitchell of the Toombs County Development Authority says its agreement with the company provided for an additional 13 acres of land for the plant addition. He also reports the company has found a ready labor market in the Toombs County area.

March 1, 2006-- The Toombs County Development Authority has started the ball rolling to build a second "speculative" building in the Toombs Industrial Park on U.S. 1 north of Lyons. Members of the authority have voted to use JMA Architecture Planning of Perry to design the 100,000 square foot building even though the company's bid exceeded the apparent low bidder by $20,000. JMA designed the authority's first building the park which is now the home of Simonton Windows. A St. Simon's architect, Larry Bryson, submitted the low bid on the project, however, authority chairman Rick Berry said the board decided to stick with JMA in order to get a new building in the park in the shortest possible time. "Our phone stops ringing until we have a building to show," Berry says.

March 1, 2006-- State Representative Greg Morris of Vidalia says he's supporting a bill in the Georgia legislature to allow hunters to shoot deer over bait. The Georgia Outdoor Federation testified against the bill before Morris' Game, Fish and Parks Committee. Morris says large landowners are allowed to hunt deer around large patches of vegetation, and he believes the bait bill levels the "hunting field" for the average deer hunter. A similar bill was defeated in the legislature in 2002.