Putnam County citizen Don Sadler has formally asked county commissioners to investigate legal fees associated with drafting bylaws for a now-dissolved advisory committee. However, District 2 Commissioner Richard Garrett said in an email to Sadler that information he obtained from the county attorney puts the cost far below the nearly $17,000 cited in Sadler’s request.
Sadler has asked the Board to direct Interim County Manager Byron Lombard to review what Sadler believes was approximately $16,940 billed by Putnam County Attorney Adam Nelson for drafting and revising bylaws for the Jimmy Davis Park Partnership Advisory Committee (JDPPAC), created in 2024 by the county. Sadler said records he reviewed did not show the Board authorized the work or expenditure. He called on county officials to determine who requested the work, who approved payment, and what authority supported it.
“Nearly $17,000 in taxpayer funds was therefore spent on a document that, based on the records I have reviewed, was never requested or authorized by the Commission Chair, approved by the Board, or ultimately adopted,” Sadler wrote.
Garrett, however, wrote in his response that Sadler reached that figure from collective legal invoices that included several unrelated matters also handled by Nelson.
“You were not sent disaggregated invoices,” Garrett stated.
Garrett explained in his message that for several years, the Board has directed its attorney to collectively bill for services, instead of providing requestby- request or item-by-item descriptions. He also said some details are exempt from disclosure under Georgia’s Open Records Act due to attorney-client privilege or attorney work-product protections.
According to Garrett, invoices supplied in response to Sadler’s open-records request include the matters Sadler was researching, along with “many unrelated items.”
Garrett said he has contacted Nelson for specific billing information, and based on information Garrett said he obtained from Nelson, work concerning JDPPAC bylaws totaled $192.50 for 1.1 hours. For context, Garrett added that legal work to date on three county technology ordinances involving data centers, battery energy storage systems, and solar farms has reached $9,115 for 55 hours.
“The figures you shared by email and on social media are many times more than actual spending on these two items,” Garrett emailed to Sadler. “But I understand how you arrived at the wrong conclusions based on the aggregated information provided to you.”
While Garrett’s response challenged the amount at the center of Sadler’s original request, the broader concern remained over who had authority to request the bylaws.
The Putnam County Board created the JDPPAC in 2024. In his request, Sadler said volunteer chairperson Janie Reid asked Nelson to prepare bylaws; however, Sadler said he’s been unable to locate a motion, vote, purchase order, contract, or other recorded action showing the county commission authorized that request.
Sadler cited language in the draft bylaws stating the committee “shall be advisory in nature only and shall have no authority to obligate or bind Putnam County or the Putnam County Commissioners in any manner.”
However, the bylaws were not adopted before the committee was dissolved in November 2025, Sadler acknowledged.
“You are correct that the county attorney does not undertake work without a request from a commissioner, the county manager, or a constitutional officer,” Garrett confirmed via email. “Any atypical or substantial legal work is only approved by a BOC vote, often in executive session.”
In his request to the county, Sadler said he wants Lombard to examine invoices, purchase orders or contracts, budget authorizations, communications concerning the bylaws, and records identifying who requested the work and approved payment. He also asked for written findings to be presented at a public meeting.
Garrett said he has requested an item to be placed on the next regular BOC agenda (Oct. 2, 10 a.m. at the county administration building), addressing what he called the “misnaming” of the Jimmy Davis Park Partnership Advisory Committee and the confusion it caused.
The dispute now centers on two questions: how much legal work on the bylaws actually cost and whether it was properly authorized. Garrett said information he received from Nelson places the cost at $192.50, while Sadler continues to seek a formal review of the authorization process.
“This issue is larger than $16,940,” Sadler wrote. “It concerns whether Putnam County has meaningful safeguards over public money.”