By CAROLYN CARY
ccary@TheCitizen.com

If you haven’t gone to the website of Fayette County Administration office lately (www.fayettecountyga.gov), you are in for a treat.

No matter what question you might have, there’s a 99 percent chance the answer is there.

Just got back from vacation and realize your water bill is past due? No problem, just encode www.fayettecountyga.gov into your browser, go to “Utility Services,” click on Water System, and you can pay your bill instantly with a credit card.
Need to find an employment opportunity for your nephew? Go to “About Fayette County” and click on Employment Opportunities.
Did you know that the Fayette County Stormwater Management Department recently improved The National Flood Insurance Program’s rating system from a 7 to a 6 for Fayette County? It’s right there on page one of the county’s website.
There are 12 different headings available with 77 individual links under those headings. If you printed out every one of these links, you would have printed over 1,000 pages.

Peggy Butler, administrative assistant to County Manager, Jack Krakeel, looks after the website and keeps in contact with the web designer. Information is frequently updated and it is all designed to be very user friendly.

She is most proud of the latest availability of county commission meetings - not only can you get a transcription within a 24 hour period, you can now pull up actual audio portions of the meeting.
Have you finally decided to let the children get a pet? Just click on “Frequently Requested Links” and click on Animal Control and Pet Adoption, and you can get a list of the pets available at this time. It’s easier than going to the Animal Center and taking the chance the children will want to adopt half of the pets they see.

The first website for the Fayette County Administration office, was in1994. It listed the commissioners and when the next meeting would take place, and that was just about all.

In 2009 any form you need is available on-line, you can fill most of them out on-line, and just send it back. There’s no need to take time out of your busy day to drive to Stonewall Village to get one.
There are over 700 county employees, and they are pleased with the Personnel website available to them. Paychecks are automatically deposited to their bank, and the pay stuff is available on line. They can print it out if they wish. This saves the county many dollars by not cutting 700 pay checks. The employee can keep up with their vacation time, or keep up with their retirement benefits.

All in all, this website should be one of your most important bookmarks.