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By Beau Evans Capitol Beat News Service and Mesha Wind The Cairo Messenger The Georgia Senate passed legislation Tuesday aimed at loosening training requirements for volunteer fire departments in the state, and local officials say they are pleased with this development. Senate Bill 342 would create a council tasked with establishing training and certification rules…

Qualifying for county offices up for election this year opens Monday, March 2 at 8:30 a.m. and will conclude at noon next Friday, March 6. Offices up for election this cycle include sheriff, probate judge, chief magistrate, clerk of court, tax commissioner, coroner, county commissioners for Districts 1, 3 and 4 as well as board…

The Grady County Republican party is hosting a BBQ rally this Saturday at Tired Creek Golf Club beginning at noon. Invited guests include Republican candidates Vivian Childs and Don Cole who are seeking the republican nomination for the Second Congressional District. Also invited to attend is Danny Brown, a candidate for the Georgia Public Service…

Cairo City Councilman Demario Byrden is asking the city council to reconsider its restriction on slabs over graves in Forest Lawn Cemetery. According to Byrden, some of the grave sites at Forest Lawn Cemetery, on 11th Avenue N.W., appear to be “sinking in” and “looks bad.” “Maybe we should revisit putting slabs out there,” Byrden…

The Grady County Commission is poised to enter into an agreement with Enterprise Fleet Management to oversee the maintenance and servicing of the county’s 62-vehicle fleet. Chelsea Karol of Enterprise Fleet Management, who previously presented a recommendation to the board last year, appeared before the county commission this week to discuss the service agreement. Under…

Grady County commissioners have completed their negotiations with the cities of Cairo and Whigham and voted unanimously to issue a call for a countywide referendum on a proposed new Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax on May 18, 2020. It will be the voters who have the final say, but the question of whether…

Grady County commissioners on Tuesday approved an agreement with Cairo and Whigham concerning the proposed Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, but not before hearing from a concerned citizen who pushed for a specific road project to be included in the ballot language. Gerald Goosby, 961 Metcalf-Beachton Road, appeared before the county commission Tuesday…

Grady County commissioners were asked Tuesday to adopt a resolution declaring Grady County as a second amendment sanctuary. The request was made by Richard Jordan, a Grady County resident and frequent critic of the county commission, who is promoting the efforts of It’s Our Right – Georgia Chapter Inc., a second amendment nonprofit organization based…

Gov. Brian Kemp unveiled legislation Tuesday that would reduce the number of standardized tests public school students must take in Georgia and untie the link between scores earned on those exams to their final grades. The changes figure into the governor’s push to roll back some standardized tests instituted over the past decade, both at…

After months of being closed, the Grady County Commission announced Tuesday that State Park Road and the State Park Road boat ramp at Tired Creek Lake are reopened to the public. According to Grady County Commission Chairman Keith Moye, State Park Road will remain open for public use whenever the weather is nice, but when…