A new group met behind the Augusta Commission dais Thursday with a big task ahead.
The 11-member Charter Review Committee, selected by commissioners and the mayor, is charged with reviewing and revising Augusta’s charter. The nearly 30-year-old document laid out the framework for a consolidated Augusta-Richmond County government in 1996 but has seen little change since then.
The city has hired the Carl Vinson Institute of Government at the University of Georgia to help facilitate the charter review, while Interim General Counsel Jim Plunkett spent time Thursday introducing the committee to its bylaws.
At the committee’s first meeting, Vinson officials gave an introduction to the task. Researcher Macey Smith previewed the many aspects of the local government the committee could change. From taxes and fees to municipal courts and elections, a charter spells out numerous components of the government that aren’t governed by other laws.
The bylaws require seven members present to conduct business and seven votes to pass a measure, Plunkett said. They also call for the committee to elect a chair, vice-chair and secretary. The chairperson’s role includes presiding over meetings, setting meeting agendas, forming committees and meeting separately with other officials, he said.
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While they needed a chair to begin their work, several on the committee said they were reluctant to elect one Thursday.
Member Angela Bakos said she was “uncomfortable voting in people today” because she did not know any of her fellow members, and asked if there was a way they could get to know each other first. Member Lonnie Wimberly said he also wanted to wait. With the group having a March 2026 deadline to produce a final report, “I don’t see the rush right now,” he said.
Other questions posed by the committee included whether they could meet in a room more conducive to group discussions and whether they could discuss the committee’s work with elected officials and the public.
Plunkett said the commission chamber was set up for voting and had room for multiple public speakers if need be. The committee decides how and when it will garner public input, he said.
He said members could speak “to anyone that you want,” but suggested not communicating about the committee’s work on social media.
Plunkett also warned against committee members meeting privately or communicating about the charter via text message. The meetings may violate open meetings laws, while the texts could be subject to open records requests, he said.
The bylaws also state that a member may be replaced for being absent three times without cause, he said.
Only one committee member, District 10 appointee Steve Foushee, was absent Thursday.
Vinson and city officials compared calendars during a pause to attempt to set the group’s next meeting date, but did not finalize one Thursday.
Who’s on the charter review committee?
- District 1: Lester McCorn – president of Paine College
- District 2: Angela Bakos – founder of Resourced Augusta
- District 3: Marci Wilhelmi, aviation and civic activist
- District 4: Tanya Barnhill-Turnley, consultant
- District 5: Marvin Cole, retired Army first sergeant
- District 6: Virginia Cody, retired educator
- District 7: Lee Powell, activist and drone operator
- District 8: Charlie Coleman, retired firefighter
- District 9: Lonnie Wimberly, retired from Army and city government
- District 10: Steve Foushee, small business owner
- Mayor: Roderick Pearson, retired from government
