About Engage Gwinnett

Engage Gwinnett: Citizens Committee for the Future of Gwinnett County is a citizen-led initiative where committee members spent approximately six months looking at the community’s needs for current and future government services and proposed funding strategies to pay for those services over the next five years. 

Engage Gwinnett strategically involved the community in the process of making informed recommendations to the Board of Commissioners about future service levels, funding needs, and revenue resources. The committee of representatives from 30 community stakeholder groups and 10 self-selected citizen leaders sought common ground, workable solutions, and compromises when necessary. The initiative was kicked off with a public meeting on September 9, 2009. 

July 2011 Update: Actions taken by Gwinnett County as a result of Engage Gwinnett and Excellence Through Innovation Task Force recommendations

Gwinnett County has documented actions taken to date in response to the Engage Gwinnett committee’s recommendations that were presented in April 2010. Five work groups made a total of 73 recommendations for a “status quo” scenario in which economic conditions stay as they were; 40 “declining digest” scenario recommendations for use if the tax digest declines dramatically over several years; and nine general recommendations. Gwinnett County has considered all the recommendations, and at this time, 63 have been completed and 40 are currently being acted upon. These actions are updated quarterly and were most recently updated in July 2011.

Gwinnett County has also taken actions in response to recommendations presented by the Excellence Through Innovation Task Force in May 2011. A follow up effort to Engage Gwinnett, the task force was implemented in fall 2010 to explore how technology improvements can create efficiencies, increase productivity, expand partnerships, and/or create costs savings in the local government. At this time, 43 recommendations are currently being acted upon and six have been completed. The actions taken in response to these recommendation also will be updated quarterly.

To read the full reports, please click here.

2012 budget review team meetings get underway

Gwinnett County Commission Chairman Charlotte Nash has appointed five Gwinnett residents to serve on the County’s budget review team. The group will work with Nash and County staff to set priorities and make recommendations for the 2012 budget.

The committee members are Herman Pennamon (Southern Company), David Crews (Viewpoint Health), Lois Love (Gwinnett County retiree), Laurie McClain (McClain & Company, PC), and Norwood Davis (12Stone Church). Pennamon and McClain, both veterans of last year’s budget review committee, served alongside Davis on Engage Gwinnett.

County departments and agencies will present their business plans including needed financial resources to Nash and the review committee on September 6, 7 and 12 at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center. The presentations will be videotaped and aired later on TVgwinnett and on demand at the County’s website.

The Chairman’s Proposed 2012 Budget is tentatively set to be presented to commissioners on November 15 and will be made available to the public and the media at the same time. A public hearing will be held in December. By County ordinance, the Board of Commissioners must adopt the annual budget during its first meeting in January.

For more information about the 2012 budget process, read the Gwinnett County news release.

Moody’s reaffirms Gwinnett credit

On December 7, Moody’s Investors Services notified Gwinnett County that it had revised the County’s Aaa credit rating to a stable outlook, upgraded from a negative outlook assigned in August. Confirmation of the U.S. government’s Aaa rating and assignment of a negative outlook due to the national debt ceiling dispute last summer caused Moody’s to place 161 local governments, including Gwinnett, on a watch list for a possible credit rating downgrade.

Since the August announcement, Moody’s has had discussions with each of the credit issuers and conducted additional studies to further gauge their indirect linkages to the U.S. government. According to the rating agency, approximately 4 percent of all Moody’s-rated state and local governments are rated Aaa with a stable outlook.

Gwinnett County has maintained the highest bond rating – Aaa from Moody’s and AAA from Standard & Poor's and Fitch Ratings – since 1997. Officials attribute this achievement to the organization’s conservative fiscal policies and management, multi-year financial planning, and ample reserves.

Learn more about Gwinnett County’s financial planning.

County Launches New Web Tool: Where Your Property Taxes Go

Gwinnett County Government has launched an interactive web page that lets property owners see the value they get in county services for the property taxes they pay. The page is titled Where Your Property Taxes Go and can be accessed from the Your Money buttonon the home page of the County's website, www.gwinnettcounty.com.

The property tax calculator details how property taxes are allocated among various functional areas of county government such as public safety, sheriff and judicial, public works and transportation, and recreation. The tool also provides specific examples of the many services provided to county residents.

For more information on the property tax calculator, please read the Gwinnett County press release by clicking here.

To use the property tax calculator, click here.

County Website Gets New Look

On August 15, Gwinnett County announced the launch of its updated website with a fresh design and user-friendly experience for new and returning visitors to the site.

The website features more photos and specialty pages tailored to residents, visitors, and businesses as well as a direct link to the County's online services. The newly redesigned Services section offers comprehensive information about the services that Gwinnett County Government and its partner organizations provide to residents.

In addition, a Your Money webpage highlights the County's finances and shows residents the value of the services they receive for the property taxes they pay.

The homepage will continue to feature the latest County news stories, but now includes a section that puts feature stories at the top of the page. The new design allows visitors to quickly find information from the County's homepage and the main landing pages.



Gwinnett Bonds Get AAA Rating

Gwinnett County will soon refinance debt from 2003 to take advantage of today’s lower interest rates. All three bond-rating agencies gave the $166 million bond refunding their top-tier, AAA credit ratings. The move could save the County, and the respective water and sewer customers, as much as $7.5 million when it refinances the bonds in late June in a negotiated sale.

The three agencies also reaffirmed their AAA ratings on other Gwinnett County debt, including $63.4 million in general obligation bonds for the Pre-Trial Detention Center, $1.02 billion in water and sewer bonds and $96.4 million in Development Authority bonds for the Gwinnett Center.

To read more about the County’s AAA rating, please view the Gwinnett County press release by clicking here.

Gwinnett Improves Financial Position

Gwinnett commissioners amended the 2011 budget on Tuesday, July 19, implementing a full cost allocation plan for central services. This action accompanies other milestones reached during the year that have effectively reduced a financial deficit in the fiscal year 2011 budget.

To find out more about the amended 2011 budget, please read the Gwinnett County press release by clicking here or visiting www.gwinnettcounty.com.

Commission Approves New Land Buying Policy

On Tuesday, July 19, Gwinnett County commissioners adopted a new policy that sets out strict procedures for acquiring land. Board Chairman Charlotte Nash said, “Adopting this new policy is the right thing to do. It clearly outlines the process for making good decisions about land acquisitions and holds the Board of Commissioners and County staff accountable for our actions.”

The new eight-page policy covers ethics requirements and duties of staff and commissioners and spells out a process calling for a 17-point written report on proposed land acquisitions.

To find out more about the new Land Acquisition Policy, please read the Gwinnett County press release by clicking here or visiting www.gwinnettcounty.com.

To read the Gwinnett County Land Acquisition Resolution and Policy, please click here.

Engage Gwinnett Final Presentation

The Engage Gwinnett Committee presented its final recommendations to the Board of Commissioners on Tuesday, April 27 at the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center.

To read the Final Report, please click here

Engage Gwinnett Process Overview: Video

Engage Gwinnett Resolution to the Board of Commissioners

At its final approval meeting on April 23, Engage Gwinnett members unanimously approved a resolution to the Board of Commissioners recommending that the Engage Gwinnett process be used in future important community decisions:

We the members of the Engage Gwinnett Committee on the Future of Gwinnett County, do hereby recommend to the Gwinnett County Board of Commissioners that Gwinnett County continue to inform, educate, and involve its citizens through the Engage Gwinnett process. The purpose is and shall continue to be to involve the community to assist County elected officials and staff in making decisions as they seek common ground, workable solutions, and compromises as necessary to offer recommendations for the greater good of the community.

To view the full video summary of the final report presentation on April 27, please click here.

To view the media briefing from April 27, please click here.

To view the full video summaries from the Community Meetings, please click here.

All previous Engage Gwinnett meeting videos are available on the Meeting Summaries page.