FORT VALLEY, Ga. — Highway 96 travels throughout the state of Georgia. State House Bill 686 could take more than eight miles of it away from the city of Fort Valley and give it to Peach County.
Fort Valley Mayor Barbara Williams says passing this bill would not only take away land, but also revenue.
"The only thing that have we have to look forward to are our property taxes, our sales taxes, and economic development, the revenue gained from economic development," says Williams.
One of the state representatives disagrees. Republican Rep. Robert Dickey is pushing for passage, and says this bill will only affect the road itself, not the homes or businesses. "I don't believe the city of Fort Valley got any revenue out of it, besides writing speeding tickets on that road."
Neddrick Nichols, a political science major at Fort Valley State University, keeps up with local politics.
"I go to the city council meetings and they're just trying to find any way possible to get revenue for the city, any way possible to improve the city, and it's very difficult because we just have Blue Bird and the college -- they're the main two employers inside the city," says Nichols.
With the vote on Thursday, Mayor Williams says she hope the bill is vetoed.
"The lifeline of the city of Fort Valley and its citizens, committed citizens, hardworking citizens, in the city of Fort Valley really depend on that."
If the bill is passed, the new land boundaries go into effect on July 1st.