State Rep. Matt Dollar, a Republican who is the chief sponsor of the East Cobb Cityhood bill that just passed the House, is resigning his seat in the Georgia legislature, effective today.
Dollar, who has represented District 45 since 2003, said in a release that he is leaving to become the deputy commissioner of economic development for the Technical College System of Georgia.
“Having been born and raised in Marietta, it has been the greatest honor of my life to serve the citizens of House District 45 in the Georgia House of Representatives,” Dollar said in a statement. “I want to thank the people of East Cobb for putting their trust in me, as well as Speaker David Ralston for the confidence he has shown in me during my time as a member of the Georgia House. I look forward to my new role at TCSG and to continue helping Georgia companies grow and succeed.”
Tuesday was the ninth of the 40-day Georgia legislative session, which is scheduled to run into early April.
He initially announced his resignation during a floor speech after the East Cobb Cityhood bill was sent to the Senate for consideration.
There will be a special election for a successor to serve the rest of Dollar’s term; previously he had announced he wouldn’t be seeking re-election in November.
Gov. Brian Kemp has 10 days to call for the special election, which will take place within the next 30 to 60 days.
Dollar and State Rep. Sharon Cooper, an East Cobb Republican who represents District 43, were drawn into the same legislative seat during reapportionment in November.
Cooper and Dollar co-sponsored the East Cobb Cityhood bill that passed the House on Thursday.
However, another Cobb lawmaker, Democratic Rep. David Wilkerson, asked for a notice to reconsider, which meant it could have been voted again by the House.
But on the House floor Tuesday, Wilkerson’s motion to reconsider the bill was rejected by a vote of 97-68.
After that, Dollar moved to transmit the East Cobb Cityhood bill to the Georgia Senate, and that was approved by a vote of 100-63.
The bill, if passed by the legislature, would call for a May referendum by voters within the boundaries of the proposed City of East Cobb.
If that referendum should pass, voters in the city would then choose a mayor and six city council members in November, with the City of East Cobb beginning operations in early 2023.
“People are really seeing the value of not increasing the size of government, but shifting important services to a more local level. I want to thank my colleagues for their bi-partisan support of this effort,” Dollar said.
Shortly after Dollar announced his resignation, the Committee for East Cobb Cityhood sent out a message congratulating and thanking him for his cityhood efforts.
“We would like to thank Rep. Matt Dollar for sponsoring HB841, which in large part, has been made possible by his commitment to listening closely to what residents want out of their community’s future plans,” the cityhood group’s message said. “In partnership with the support of East Cobbers, Cityhood will incorporate our great community into one cohesive whole by preserving the character of our community not just now but down the line as well. We appreciate Rep. Dollar’s perseverance and commitment to this goal and wish him the very best in his next endeavor.”
The statement was signed individually by the group’s 13 committee members.
Dollar, a realtor and graduate of Pope High School, was the chairman of the House Creative Arts and Entertainment Committee. In 2020 he sponsored a bill to update the state’s film tax credit.
He also served on House committees on Appropriations, Economic Development, Transportation, Insurance, Motor Vehicles, Energy, Utilities & Telecommunications and Interstate Cooperation during his legislative tenure.
Related content:
- East Cobb Cityhood bill passes Georgia House
- East Cobb Cityhood bill goes to House floor
- Revised East Cobb Cityhood bill would move up referendum to May
- East Cobb Cityhood group presses for ‘right’ to referendum
- East Cobb Cityhood bill approved by House committee
- East Cobb residents sound of on cityhood bill at hearing
- East Cobb Cityhood bill to get first legislative hearing
- Cityhood, reapportionment top 2022 Cobb legislative agenda
- East Cobb News Cityhood page
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