Georgia General Assembly · Full text

SB 629: Town of Braswell; transfer of duties and obligations to Paulding and Polk counties; provide

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Senate Bill 629

By: Senator Anavitarte of the 31st

AS PASSED SENATE

A BILL TO BE ENTITLED

AN ACT

To repeal an Act incorporating the town of Braswell, approved December 13, 1895, (Ga. L. 1895, p. 142), as amended; to provide for transfer of duties and obligations to Paulding and Polk counties; to provide for transfer of all legal rights, privileges, and assets to Paulding and Polk counties; to establish special tax and service districts for outstanding bonded indebtedness and other obligations; to provide for transfer of all federal and state permits and licenses; to provide for the transfer of ongoing judicial actions; to provide for the continuation of zoning and land use regulations; to provide for future proceeds of special and regular local option sales taxes; to provide for the designation of the Community of Braswell; to provide for related matters; to provide an effective date; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:

SECTION 1.

An Act incorporating the town of Braswell, approved December 13, 1895, (Ga. L. 1895, p. 142), as amended, is hereby repealed in its entirety.

SECTION 2.

Paulding County, Georgia, and Polk County, Georgia, shall be vested with full authority to provide all governmental services within that area comprising the former jurisdictional boundary of the town of Braswell, also known as the City of Braswell, which lies within the respective boundaries of each county. All ordinances, rules, and regulations of Paulding and Polk counties shall apply within such area as they do in other unincorporated areas of each county, and the appropriate courts of Paulding and Polk counties shall have jurisdiction to enforce such ordinances; provided, however, that this transition shall not impact any vested rights accrued prior to the effective date of this Act.

SECTION 3.

Upon the effective date of this Act, the existence of any local authority created by or for the town of Braswell shall likewise terminate on the same date; provided, however, that any joint authority of which the town of Braswell was a part shall be modified by operation of law to remove the town of Braswell, and that authority shall continue in existence with its remaining members. The assets and liabilities of any authority terminated pursuant to this section shall be treated in the same manner as assets and liabilities of the town of Braswell under this Act.

SECTION 4.

(a) There is hereby created a special tax and service district to be known as the Braswell-Paulding Services District which shall correspond to and be coterminous with the corporate limits of the town of Braswell as those corporate limits existed on the effective date of this Act and which lie within Paulding County. Upon the completion of the purposes provided in this Act for such district, the tax and service district may be abolished by a resolution of the governing authority of Paulding County.

(b) There is hereby created a special tax and service district to be known as the Braswell-Polk Services District which shall correspond to and be coterminous with the corporate limits of the town of Braswell as those corporate limits existed on the effective date of this Act and which lie within Polk County. Upon the completion of the purposes provided in this Act for such district, the tax and service district may be abolished by a resolution of the governing authority of Polk County.

SECTION 5.

(a)(1) Except as provided in this Act, all legal rights, privileges, and assets of the town of Braswell and all records of such assets shall pass to Paulding and Polk counties in accordance with the provisions of this section without the necessity or formality of a deed, bill of sale, or other instrument of transfer.

(2) The following assets and records of such assets shall transfer to Paulding County:

(A) All real property assets of the town of Braswell of any nature, including, without limitation, freehold estates, easements, life estates, future interests, and co-owned interests which are located within Paulding County;

(B) All tangible and intangible personal property assets of the town of Braswell of any nature, including, without limitation, vehicles, heavy equipment, office equipment, and software which are associated with real property located in or services provided exclusively in Paulding County;

(C) All accounts receivable, rights to payment under contracts fully performed by the town of Braswell, and similar financial assets of the town of Braswell of any nature; and

(D) All digital and electronic papers and records of the town of Braswell; provided, however, that copies of all such papers and records shall be provided to Polk County.

(3) The following assets and records of such assets shall transfer to Polk County:

(4) All assets and records of such assets of the town of Braswell not provided for in paragraphs (2) and (3) of this subsection and not expressly excluded from the provisions of this section shall pass to Paulding County; provided, however, that Paulding County shall be authorized to transfer such assets and records of such assets to Polk County by a joint resolution of the governing authorities of Paulding and Polk counties.

(b) Expressly excluded from this section are any rights or assets that derive from executory contracts of the town of Braswell addressed in Section 6 of this Act.

(c) Those amounts in any general fund for the town of Braswell shall be divided between Paulding and Polk counties in shares equal to the percentage of the town's population that resides in each county. Such funds shall be immediately transferred to the general funds of Paulding and Polk counties and segregated by such counties for the provision of services within the Braswell-Paulding Services District and the Braswell-Polk Services District, respectively.

(d) Those amounts in any special fund for the town of Braswell shall immediately be transferred to a special fund of Paulding County and segregated by Paulding County for their designated special purpose; provided, however, that Paulding County shall transfer to a special fund of Polk County the portion of such amounts designated for use in Polk County.

SECTION 6.

(a) Except as specifically provided in this Act, neither Paulding County, Polk County, nor the State of Georgia nor any political subdivision of the State of Georgia shall bear any responsibility or liability for obligations, amounts, claims, debts, causes of action, judgments, or liabilities that have accrued to the town of Braswell or its local public authorities, up to and including the effective date of this Act. Nothing in this Act shall in any manner obligate Paulding County or Polk County to provide continued employment for any employee of the town of Braswell or any local public authority of the city.

(b) Any bonded indebtedness of the town of Braswell shall become the debt and obligation of the special tax and service districts established pursuant to Section 4 of this Act in shares equal to the percentage of the town's population that resides in each special tax and service district. Paulding and Polk counties shall be the successor to the town of Braswell for all purposes relating to such bonded indebtedness, including the enforcement of rights and remedies of bondholders. Each county, by resolution, shall be authorized but not required to levy a special district tax, fee, or assessment within the Braswell-Paulding Services District and the Braswell-Polk Services District, respectively, for the purpose of paying the amounts due on such bonded debt.

(c) Other than those bonded debts provided for in subsection (b) of this section and Section 11 of this Act, Paulding and Polk counties shall be authorized but not required to assume the rights and duties of any executory contract of the town of Braswell in effect as of the effective date of this Act. If assumed, any rights and obligations of such contracts that by their nature are personal to the city shall be deemed to apply to the personnel, services, and assets formerly belonging to the city so as to reasonably fulfill the basic purpose and bargain of the original contract. Paulding and Polk counties, by resolution, shall be authorized but not required to levy a special district tax, fee, or assessment within the Braswell-Paulding Services District and Braswell-Polk Services District, respectively, for the purpose of paying the amounts due under such assumed contracts, to the extent that the financial obligations under such contract cannot be fully funded by funds and assets devolved to the county from the town of Braswell.

(d) Financial assets and property devolved to Paulding County or Polk County that are deemed by the county to be excess for purposes of serving the Braswell-Paulding Services District and Braswell-Polk Services District, respectively, shall be used to satisfy any obligations and retire any indebtedness of the town of Braswell.

SECTION 7.

To the maximum extent permitted by law, all federal and state permits and licenses issued to the town of Braswell or its local authorities shall be transferred by operation of law to Paulding County. Paulding and Polk counties shall be authorized to adopt a joint resolution to transfer such permits and licenses to Polk County as appropriate.

SECTION 8.

Notwithstanding any provisions of this Act to the contrary, on the effective date of this Act, if any person is held in the custody of the town of Braswell, such person may be transferred over to the custody of the Paulding County Sheriff's Office, Polk County Sheriff's Office, or other appropriate law enforcement agency.

SECTION 9.

All cases pending in the Municipal Court of the town of Braswell shall be automatically transferred to the magistrate court of the county in which the violation giving rise to the pending case occurred, or the appropriate court of competent jurisdiction in Paulding County or Polk County if jurisdiction does not lie in magistrate court. Any transfer of law enforcement jurisdiction to Paulding County or Polk County shall not in and of itself abate any pending prosecution of any violation of any ordinance of the town of Braswell, and each county shall be entitled to enforce such city ordinance if a violation occurred in that county while the city ordinances were in effect. As for any other lawsuits involving the town of Braswell in the Georgia judicial system, the city shall cease to exist and therefore shall no longer be a proper party to any legal action.

SECTION 10.

The zoning and land use regulations of the town of Braswell shall be deemed Paulding County and Polk County ordinances and shall apply only within the Braswell-Paulding Services District and Braswell-Polk Services District, respectively, which lie within each county, unless and until Paulding and Polk counties adopt zoning and land use regulations covering the properties within the Braswell-Paulding Services District and Braswell-Polk Services District, respectively.

SECTION 11.

Paulding and Polk counties shall be entitled to receive the town of Braswell's share of proceeds of any special purpose local option sales tax imposed pursuant to Article 3 of Chapter 8 of Title 48 of the O.C.G.A. in their respective county and shall use those proceeds to complete the city projects authorized by the applicable referendum or otherwise abandon the projects in accordance with general law. To the extent that any intergovernmental agreement has been approved between Paulding County and its qualified municipalities or Polk County and its qualified municipalities in connection with such special purpose local option sales tax, each county shall have the power to act in place of the city for purposes of that agreement.

SECTION 12.

Paulding and Polk counties and their respective qualified municipalities shall divide the town of Braswell's share of proceeds of any local option sales tax collected in their respective county in accordance with the provisions of Code Section 48-8-89.2 of the O.C.G.A.

SECTION 13.

There is hereby designated a Community of Braswell which shall correspond to and be coterminous with the corporate limits of the town of Braswell as those corporate limits existed on the effective date of this Act. Paulding and Polk counties are authorized to provide appropriate signage so as to mark the boundaries of such community.

SECTION 14.

This Act shall become effective on August 1, 2026.

SECTION 15.

All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.