Our office is located in Camilla, situated in the heart of our 14 counties. Our address is 181 East Broad Street, with a mailing address of P. O. Box 346, Camilla, GA 31730. Our office is open from 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m., Monday through Friday. Our phone number is (229) 522-3552 and the fax number is (229) 522-3558. 

Baker, Calhoun, Colquitt, Decatur, Dougherty, Early, Grady, Lee, Miller, Mitchell, Seminole, Terrell, Thomas and Worth.

The Council meets the LAST Thursday of the month. Keep in mind that some months have five Thursdays in them. If a Council member would like to spotlight their community, the RC welcomes the opportunity to move the meeting within the region versus always having the meeting at the Camilla office. You will receive notice of the meeting and its location seven days prior to the meeting. Also enclosed in the packet will be a meeting agenda with all necessary documentation you need to be completely informed. If at any time, you have questions on information you received, you may call the Executive Director, Suzanne Angell at 229.522.3552 x103 for clarification.

There are 53 members on the RC Council representing each of the 14 counties and cities as follows:

A. The County Commission Chair or designee if the Chair cannot serve.  The term is concurrent with the elected officials’ term of office. 

B. One elected municipal (city)official from each member county, selected by the municipal governments, if more than one, acting in concert. Each city in the County will have a hand in selecting the elected official to represent those cities in that County.  The term is concurrent with the elected officials’ term of office.

C. At least one private sector individual from each member county, selected by the county and municipal government(s) of the member county, acting in concert. The term of office is for one year or until a successor is duly appointed. 

D. Member counties with population exceeding 25,000 residents or more, but with fewer than 50,000 residents, according to the latest census, would be entitled, but not required, to appoint one additional Council member from the private sector. (This applies to Colquitt, Decatur, Lee and Thomas Counties.) The term of office is for one year or until a successor is duly appointed. 

E. Member counties with population exceeding 50,000 residents or more, according to the latest census would be entitled, but not required, to appoint two additional Council members from the private sector. (This applies to Dougherty County.) The term of office is for one year or until a successor is duly appointed. 

F. In selecting the additional Council members provided in (D) and (E) above, the county government and the municipal government(s) of the affected member counties should concur on the appointments.

G. Gubernatorial Appointments: The Governor is to appoint three additional members from the private sector, one of which must be an elected member of a school district board or a school superintendent.  The term of office is for two years or until a successor is duly appointed.

H. Lieutenant Governor and Speaker’s Appointment. The Lieutenant Governor and the Speaker of the House (Georgia) are to appoint one member each to the Council. The term of office is for two years or until a successor is duly appointed.

Currently, there are 12 in Georgia.

No, RCs serve their local governments. They depend on a variety of funding sources and have no taxing, legislative, or regulatory authority.

RCs are funded by per capita dues from member local governments, state and federal grants and/or contracts, and special project fees.

Member local governments drive the RC programs, but the RC is mandated to carry out certain efforts in order to receive federal and state funds.  The RC Council determines the final program of work by approving a slate of projects and programs that include locally requested projects as well as state and federal programs.  The Annual Work Program is adopted by the RC’s Council in concert with the annual budget.

A primary function of the RC is to create partnerships with state and federal agencies for funds that benefit the member local governments.  The following are a few examples of some existing partnerships:

• Georgia Department of Community Affairs – Planning

• Georgia Department of Natural Resources – Historic Preservation Planning

• Georgia Department of Transportation – Transportation Planning, Transit Programs

• Economic Development Administration – Economic Development Planning / Revolving Loan Fund

• Federal Emergency Management Agency – Pre-Hazard Mitigation Planning

Yes, according to the National Association of Development Organizations, there are more than 500 regional planning and development organizations operating under a variety of different names in 47 states.