Questions answered by Lamar Paris, County Commissioner
Q. How many counties are there in the USA?
A. There are 3,141 counties in the USA, 159 of which are in Georgia. Keep in mind that some states do not call them “counties”, but have parishes, boroughs, townships, etc., used to divide the states into different governmental districts.
This is from the usgs.gov (U.S. Geological Survey) website: There are 3,141 counties and county equivalents in the 50 States and the District of Columbia. They are categorized as follows:
3,007 entities named “County”
16 Boroughs in Alaska
11 Census Area in Alaska (for areas not organized into Boroughs by the State)
64 Parishes in Louisiana
42 Independent Cities (1 in Maryland, 1 in Missouri, 1 in Nevada, and the remainder in Virginia)
1 District – the Federal District or District of Columbia.
This does not include Commonwealths and territories with what are generally county equivalents, which are as follows:
Puerto Rico-78 Municipios
U.S. Virgin Islands – 2 Districts
Guam- 19 Election Districts
Northern Mariana Islands – 17 Districts
American Samoa – 5 Districts
Q. Who maintains all of the county vehicles?
A. The Road Dept. shop and vehicle maintenance facility staff consists of the shop foreman (lead mechanic), mechanics (2-full time), and 2-part time mechanics. The maintenance shop performs maintenance on all county vehicles (including Sheriff, Road, Recreation, Fire, Transportation), and equipment as well as the maintenance on the Union County Development Authority vehicle. The maintenance services provided cover all types of repairs from oil changes to tune-ups to replacement of power train components (transmissions, engines, etc.).
From 1/1/09 to the current date, the shop has processed 810 work order requests requiring 1,655 man hours. 364 work orders were for preventative maintenance (oil changes, etc.).
Labor and material cost for the 810 work orders amounted to $66,091.01
Material cost presented here includes only inventory items such as batteries, brakes, windshield wipers, etc. and do not reflect other materials purchased on an as needed basis from local auto supply dealers.
Q. Who maintains the county grounds?
A. The county contracts for 5 separate crews of supervised state probationers. These crews help maintain the Butternut Creek Golf Course, Meeks Park, Poteete Creek Campground, Courthouses, both historic and new, and several other facilities. In addition they work on many special projects such as the remodeling of the Civic Center and other building projects. They will assist in the building of the Farmers Market buildings along with local contractors. The total tab for these 5 crews is $ 31,600 per crew. So, for less than the price of an employee with benefits, we get an entire crew. What they do would cost the county in excess of well over a half million dollars if done in house or privatized, plus it allows us to do many things we could not afford otherwise. We really appreciate the staff of the Carlton Colwell Detention Center and the detainees for the great job they perform for Union County.
Q. Do the state probationers maintain all of the county grounds and equipment?
A. No, you have A/C, plumbing, heat, electricity, computers, and much more to take care of. Some of that work is done in house, but much of it is done by local contractors.
Q. Is the final 2009 report in for the animal shelter?
A. Kent Wall from Animal Control reports the following numbers for 2009:
Animal Control calls – 339
Animals adopted out – 42
Animals Euthanized – 72
Animals reclaimed by owner – 27
Bite Cases - 22
The Humane Society Mountain Shelter had the following figures for 2009:
Animal Intake for 2009
Cats- 324
Dogs- 653
Rabbits-1
Total – 978
Animal Outcome – 2009
Adopted-563
Missing-4
Died-14
Euthanized-23*
Return to Owner-10
Transferred-365
*The euthanized animals were 22 for medical reasons and 1 for aggression.
In addition, Castaway Critters reports that they took in 278 dogs and 76 cats in 2009. They transport dogs to Connecticut and New Jersey in addition to adopting out at Petsmart in Alpharetta, locally and over the internet at Petfinder.com.
Q. Do we know what the return rate is for Census forms being sent back in?
A. As of the date of this writing (April 13) the return rate for Union County is 63%, the State of Georgia 63% and nationally, 67%. We have exceeded the 2000 return rate of 56%. Thanks to everyone for sending your forms in and it is still not too late to get them in. Please continue to send in your forms and if you still do not have a form, simply come by the Courthouse to pick one up.