A court-appointed

mediator may be juggling his first hot potato soon after he opens discussion

of a tax equity dispute between Fayette County and its cities.

County and

city leaders are on opposite sides and equally adamant in their views

concerning discussing city use of the County Jail as part of the overall

tax equity discussion.

In a letter

to the cities last week, the county says it will begin Jan. 1 charging

the cities $43.70 per prisoner per day to house municipal prisoners.

A 1993 agreement

allows municipal court prisoners to be housed in the county jail at no

charge, but that agreement expires at the end of this month. City leaders

have asked the county to extend that agreement for 180 days so the issue

can be discussed during the tax equity discussions.

"We're

not going to extend it or discuss it in the tax equity debate," said

County Commission Chairman Greg Dunn this week.

"It will

be included" in the discussions, Fayetteville Mayor Kenneth Steele

countered.

The overall

discussion revolves around how much residents of Fayetteville, Peachtree

City and Tyrone pay in taxes for various county services like the county

library, the Sheriff's Department and Public Works and whether they receive

as much in services as they are paying in taxes.

City leaders

contend that their residents pay about $2 million a year for services

that go to residents of the unincorporated areas of the county, something

that's forbidden by state law. County leaders say city residents receive

everything they pay for and more.

At the close

of last year, the County Commission informed the cities that it would

nullify the 1993 agreement concerning the jail.

During talks

last month, Fayetteville and the county appeared to be close to reaching

a new compromise agreement, but after consulting with leaders in Peachtree

City and Tyrone, Fayetteville decided the matter should be part of the

tax equity talks.

"The jail

is a county-wide service as acknowledged in the service delivery strategy,"

said Steele. The service delivery strategy is a cooperative agreement

between the county and cities for delivery of services to local residents.

It's required by state law and approved by the state Department of Community

Affairs.

Dunn said the

per diem fees the county wants to charge would be covered by fines and

court fees, not by taxes. "We don't get tax money from them to do

this," he said.

"The taxpayers

pay for the services," argued Steele. "We would have to raise

property taxes about three quarters of a mill to pay for [the fees],"

he added. That would be a 30 percent increase.

Both men said

they are hopeful that, despite the sharp disagreements, the mediation

will result in solutions that all can live with.

"We're

going to discuss all legitimate concerns that need to be discussed, and

I hope they'll be resolved," said Steele.