Officials in Cedartown, Rockmart and Polk County are expected to sign an intergovernmental agreement for the Polk County Drug Task Force in July. Intergovernmental committee members have met for the past several months to hammer out details of the document. A proposed copy was recently reviewed during a meeting in Aragon. Attending this session were Polk County Manager Matt Denton and Assistant Manager David McElwee, Aragon Mayor Ken Suffridge, Rockmart Mayor Steve Miller and Manager Jeff Ellis, Cedartown City Commission Chair Dale Tuck and Manager Bill Fann. The initial intergovernmental agreement for the drug task force would be for one year. It would automatically be renewed on an annual basis. Each entity could withdraw by giving a 30-day written notice prior to the effective date of the agreement. Tentative details are that all operational and management policies will be established and unanimously approved by a control board comprised of the Polk County sheriff and chiefs of the police departments in Cedartown and Rockmart. This board would meet quarterly, record and maintain meeting summaries. The agreement also states that all personnel assigned to the task force should possess or exceed the minimum qualifications established by the Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, education, training and/or experience equivalencies might be interchanged in meeting the minimum qualifications. The command structure of the new task force would include a commander, deputy commander, investigator/agent and administrative staff. County and city departments would provide funding with the sheriff providing office space and related equipment. The official operational date for the unit is set for Aug. 1, 2013. However, local law enforcement agencies have been working together in drug busts during the past several weeks. Meanwhile, officials from Polk and its cities have not agreed to consolidate information technology (IT) departments. An initial organizational chart shows that work orders would be generated in Polk and its cities and sent to IT, which would be staffed with thee full time county employees. IT technicians would have the responsibility of hardware/software trouble shooting, installation and network infrastructure support. The cities would budget for the cost of hardware/software purchases, technician salary and benefits and one-year termination notice. The county would coordinate and prioritize work orders. Denton said the county is scheduled to roll out a new software platform in July and Cedartown is expected to continue discussion of the proposal. McElwee said the county police chief and sheriff have met to develop standardized police training, one of the goals initially mention as part of consolidation efforts. He said Polk’s public safety director is also meeting with county fire departments to discuss the idea. Denton also suggested the committee begin discussions of municipal inmate housing costs at the Polk County Jail at the August meeting.

Today's forecast from the National Weather Service calls for a 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Patchy fog before 10am. Otherwise, partly sunny, with a high near 86. Calm wind becoming northeast around 5 mph in the afternoon. Tonight A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 11pm. Partly cloudy, with a low around 63. Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm. Thursday A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms after 2pm. Mostly sunny, with a high near 88. Light east wind increasing to 5 to 10 mph in the morning. Winds could gust as high as 15 mph. Thursday Night A 10 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms before 8pm. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 67. Northeast wind around 5 mph becoming calm in the evening. Friday A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 86. East wind around 5 mph. Friday Night A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 64. Saturday A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 86. Saturday Night A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 66. Sunday A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 86. Sunday Night A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 67. Monday A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 87. Monday Night A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Mostly cloudy, with a low around 68. Tuesday A 20 percent chance of showers and thunderstorms. Partly sunny, with a high near 88.