Powers and Duties

Article II. Board of Commissioners

Sec. 2-10. Powers and Duties

1. The board shall have exclusive jurisdiction and control of the following matters:
   1. To direct and control all of the property of the county;
   2. To levy taxes in accordance with the laws of this state;
   3. To establish, change, or abolish roads, bridges, and ferries according to law;
   4. To supervise the tax commissioner’s books and allow the insolvent list of the County of Clayton;
   5. To settle all claims, charges, and demands against the County of Clayton;
   6. To examine and audit all claims and accounts of officers against the County of Clayton;
   7. To examine and audit all claims and accounts of officers having the care, keeping, and collecting or disbursing of any money belonging to Clayton County or appropriated for its use or benefit and to bring all such officers to settlement;
   8. To elect or appoint all minor officers of said county, where an election is not otherwise provided by law or the provisions of this Act;
   9. To have and exercise control and management over the inmates of said county according to the laws of this state February 3, 2010 4:10 PM r any portion of the premiums on a group life insurance and on a hospitalization plan or program for county employees, as may now exist or be implemented in the future, provided the employees have agreed to be covered under a group insurance plan;
   10. To pay actual and itemized expenses for travel, food, and lodging for county officials or permanent county employees while attending an institution of learning or schooling that is so closely connected to the employment that the county and its citizens will benefit from the attendance of such an institute or school of learning, which expenses shall be paid from revenue derived from sources other than ad valorem taxation;
   11. To regulate land use by the adoption of a comprehensive development plan or by the adoption of planning and zoning ordinances which relate reasonably to the public health, safety, morality, and general welfare of the county and its citizens;
   12. To call elections for the voting of bonds;
   13. To exercise all of the power and authority vested by law in the judge of the probate court when sitting for county purposes;
   14. To exercise all powers now or hereafter vested in county governing authorities by the constitution and general laws of this state;
   15. To fix, levy, and assess license fees, charges, or taxes on all persons, firms, and corporations engaging in or offering to engage in any trade, business, calling, avocation, or profession within the bounds of Clayton County, outside the incorporated limits of municipalities situated therein, as otherwise allowed, authorized, or permitted by law. The board shall be further authorized to adopt ordinances and resolutions to govern and regulate all such trades, businesses, callings, avocations, or professions, not contrary to regulations prescribed by general law, for the purpose of protecting and preserving the health, safety, welfare, and morals of the citizens of said county. Such license fees, charges, or taxes shall be in addition to all other taxes or assessments heretofore or hereafter levied by said county, and all funds received from same shall be paid into the county depository as general funds of said county;
   16. To adopt rules regulating the operation of the board;
   17. To prescribe penalties and punishment for the violation of zoning ordinances, building codes, including electrical, plumbing, heating, and air-conditioning regulations, and all other lawful ordinances adopted by the board pursuant to this or any other law in force in said county;
   18. To provide ordinances for the preservation and protection of county property and equipment and the administration and use of county facilities, such as parks, playgrounds, and swimming pools, by the public, and to prescribe penalties and punishment for violations thereof;
   19. To prescribe fire safety regulations not inconsistent with general law, relating to both fire prevention and detection and to fire fighting, and to prescribe penalties and punishment for violation thereof;
   20. To prohibit or regulate and control the erection and maintenance of signs, billboards, trees, shrubs, fences, buildings, and any and all other structures or obstructions upon or adjacent to the rights of way of streets and roads within the unincorporated area of said county, and to prescribe penalties and punishment for violation of such ordinances;
   21. To adopt ordinances and regulations for the prevention of idleness, loitering, vagrancy, disorderly conduct, public drunkenness, and disturbing the peace in the unincorporated area of said county and to prohibit the playing of lotteries therein, and to prohibit or regulate such other conduct and activities within said area of Clayton County which, while not constituting an offense against the general laws of this state, is deemed by the board to be detrimental and offensive to the peace, good order, and dignity of Clayton County and to the welfare and morals of the citizens thereof;
   22. To have the authority to furnish transportation to county officials and employees while conducting official county business, and the board of commissioners may, by resolution, establish a mode and means of providing such transportation. Any and all county owned vehicles provided for such official county use shall be used only for official Clayton County governmental purposes; however, in no instance, when a county employee utilizes a private vehicle for county business, shall the reimbursement for the cost of the transportation exceed the amount established by the State of Georgia on a mileage basis for state employees utilizing private vehicles while engaged in state business. The cost of furnishing transportation to county employees pursuant to this section shall be paid from county funds. All county owned vehicles shall be appropriately marked with easily discernible decals, except special vehicles designated by the sheriff and the chief of police for detective and investigative activities and assignments. The board shall have the authority to prescribe, by resolution, the requirements for reimbursement for all travel done on behalf of the county;
   23. To have the authority to pass resolutions for the control of domestic animals in the unincorporated areas of the county and to provide penalties for the violation of such resolutions not inconsistent with state laws; and
   24. To exercise such other powers as are granted by law or are indispensable to the carrying out of the provisions of this Act.
2. The enumeration of powers and duties in subsection (a) of this section shall not be construed as a limitation of the powers of the board to such powers expressly enumerated. The board is expressly given complete power, authority, and control relative to all county matters of Clayton County, and this power, authority, and control is cumulative and supplemental to any and all laws presently existing or future laws that may be enacted concerning the subject matter.(Ga. Laws 1955, p. 2064, § 10; Ga. Laws 1966, p. 3138, § 2; Ga. Laws 1971, p. 3208, § 5; Ga. Laws 1972, p. 2585, § 1; Ga. Laws 1983, p. 4503, § 3)

For more information on the Board of Commissioners, visit the Official Code of Clayton County online.