NATCHEZ

&045;&045; County spending and bringing in new jobs &045;&045; and negotiation of the county’s garbage contract &045;&045; are the hot topics in District 5’s county supervisor race.

Lynwood Easterling

County spending must be cut as much as possible with the least impact on services, and Lynwood Easterling said that is what he’ll continue to vote for if re-elected as District 5 supervisor.

&uot;You’ve got to tighten as much as you can without hindering the operation of the county … and the health and welfare&uot; of residents and without added taxes, he said.

Easterling said he is proud that, for example, he worked to make the county mailroom more efficient and trim the purchasing of equipment during his term.

Cutting garbage service to one pickup a week is also &uot;a tremendous savings&uot; for the county and has reduced the tax burden on county residents, he said. And Easterling said he favors consolidating city and county functions where possible.

Easterling said that, to spur economic development, he would pass the names of any potential prospects to the Economic Development Authority.

Supervisors can also vote for tax incentives and work with surrounding counties to develop a &uot;supersite&uot; location to attract industries, he said. &uot;And we’re doing that,&uot; he said. He said two manufacturers now have Adams County as their number one and number two choices for a location.

Spanky Felter

District 5 supervisor candidate Spanky Felter’s plan for economic development would start with a simple list.

&uot;What I want to address most of all is jobs,&uot; Felter said. &uot;I would go back 20 years and see how many … industries wanted to move into Adams County and write down why they didn’t locate here.&uot;

Felter said he would then work with the public to find solutions to those problems. &uot;If it’s leadership, highways, schools &045;&045; whatever it is, we’re going to address it,&uot; he said. &uot;I won’t seek reelection if I can’t get jobs here.&uot;

To &uot;cut out all the wasteful spending,&uot; Felter said he would vote to cut out equipment expenditures except when the use would justify its purchase.

Felter said he favors making such cuts instead of raising taxes. He said he would also not use a county vehicle and would vote to cut his salary, &uot;and I’m really the only candidate who’ll come out and say that.&uot;

Felter added that, if elected, he would vote to renegotiate the county’s garbage contract back to two pickup days a week, at least in the hottest months of the year, and to pick up only garbage, not limbs.

Jeff Webb

Jeff Webb, candidate for supervisor in District 5, said that if he is elected, he will aggressively pursue new industry and represent Adams County well.

Webb, who described himself as &uot;young, energetic and aggressive,&uot; said that owning a business for 10 years has required him to deal &uot;in circles from Ph.D’s to country boys. … We need someone who can represent us all the way from the country road to the boardroom.&uot;

It’s important for supervisors to make the contacts needed to attract new industry and to work in &uot;a unified front&uot; with other local and regional officials to attract industries, Webb said. &uot;Our economic situation is the hot topic on everybody’s agenda,&uot; he said.

Webb said his education and &uot;real world experience&uot; in making ends meet with his own business has given him the tools he would need to take care of county business.

If elected, Webb said he would comb the county’s budget to find waste to cut and would vote to use existing personnel instead of contracting out services when possible. He said he would also favor selling surplus property

Webb said he would also vote to renegotiate the county’s garbage contract to twice-a-week pickup.