Students at Mercer’s Reg Murphy Center for Collaborative Journalism reviewed nine local agencies on their compliance with state law as well as any extras they provided in making their work as transparent and accessible to the public as possible. You can read about the other agencies and see their rankings here.
The Macon-Bibb County Commission website is https://www.maconbibb.us/commissioners
Does website list out its key staff, governing board or other leadership and how to contact them? The website does list its key staff and how to contact all of the commissioners. The top person is Mayor Lester Miller and his email is [email protected].
Does the agency have a public information officer? If so, is the name and contact information listed? The agency’s public information officer is Chris Floore and his contact information is under Communications as [email protected] or (478) 751-7170.
Does the website have information on meeting announcements/meeting dates & times? If so, where is this posted. The Commission meets at 6 p.m. every 1st and 3rd Tuesday of the month, and also meets as a Committee of the Whole meets every 2nd Tuesday starting at 9 a.m.. This information is posted on the website.
Does the website have meeting agendas? The website does include agendas as well as all of the supporting documents: https://maconbibbcoga.portal.civicclerk.com/.
Does website have approved meeting minutes? The website also includes past minutes in the same place: https://maconbibbcoga.portal.civicclerk.com/.
Does the agency provide a way for the public to watch its meetings virtually as they happen? And/or does agency have recordings of its meetings on the website or linked from the website? You can view the agenda and watch their meetings virtually on YouTube. They don’t have recordings linked to their website but you can view them on the Macon-Bibb YouTube channel.
Does the agency have social media platforms and if so, which ones? The agency uses Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and Twitter under @Macon-Bibb County and on TikTok @MaconBibb. They use these platforms to promote events and projects in Macon-Bibb County.
Does the agency provide a way for the public to make open records requests? You can make an open records request at https://www.maconbibb.us/open-records/.
Please note any other information you found on the website that would be helpful to members of the public who would want to keep up with this agency’s business. One thing that is helpful to the members of the public is that they have a list of all the county commissioners and their contact information. Another thing that is helpful is that they have a calendar with all important events for people to view.
Transparency grading: We’d give this agency an Excellent grade. The agency has contact information, an interactive and consistently updated calendar, and a place to make an open records request.
Online Accessibility Grading: We’d give this agency a Superior grade. This website provided contact information for all the commissioners and other staff, links to recordings of the meetings, and active social media.
