HAMILTON -  The Marion County Commission has approved its 2020 budget and signed four resolutions that result in $264,751 to be cut from the General Fund for the 2020 Fiscal Year, effective Oct. 1, 2019, during a regular meeting on Monday, Sept. 30, in Hamilton.
In attendance during the meeting were Marion County Commissioners Bobby Burleson, Dale Holt, chairman Tim “Ears” Estes, Kenneth Cochran and Keith Nichols.

HAMILTON - Former Auburn University head football coach Tommy Tuberville will be in Hamilton on Saturday, Oct. 12, as a candidate for Alabama U.S. senator.
Tuberville will be speaking at the Marion County Republican Party’s monthly meeting at J&V Ole Smokehouse on the corner of Highway 17 and Steele Street.
Attendees will begin gathering around 8:30 a.m. for breakfast, which will be available for purchase. The meeting will begin at 9.

HAMILTON - Fred’s Xpress Pharmacy in Hamilton will be re-opened as Express Rx.
Fred’s Xpress, located at 1360 Military Street South, should not be confused with Fred’s Pharmacy, which is owned by Cole Sandlin and located at 797 Military Street South.
Fred’s Xpress pharmacy technician Merdith Dudley Jones of Hamilton announced the development via Facebook on Friday, Sept. 27, saying that the local pharmacy location will be an Express Rx beginning Nov. 1. The store will continue operating under the “Fred’s Xpress” branding until then.

MONTGOMERY - Beginning Saturday, Oct. 12, all local calls made within the Alabama 205 Area Code will have to be placed using the 10-digit telephone number (area code plus the seven-digit telephone number).
Calls that are currently local will continue to be local, even though 10-digit dialing will be required.
A six-month grace period began on April 13, 2019, to give consumers adequate time to adjust to the changes.
During that period, local calls were able to be made with either seven or 10 digits.

HAMILTON -  Hamilton Elementary School held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the opening of its new playground on Monday, Sept. 23.
The project to build the playground began in November 2018 with retired Hamilton Elementary principal Lynda Hall, HES Booster Club President Paula Wood, club member Melissa Hughey and Hamilton architect Andrea Harbison.
 Hall expressed her thanks to the many individuals involved, stating that the project was a community effort.

HAMILTON - Billy Wade Rollins, 93, and Austin Adkins, 76, both of Hamilton, two influential bankers and businessmen associated with First National Bank, have passed away within days of each other.
Adkins passed away on Saturday, Sept. 21, at Brookwood Baptist in Birmingham. Adkins worked as chief executive officer for First National Bank from 1988 to 2015.
Rollins died on Tuesday, Sept. 24, at North Mississippi Medical Center-Hamilton.

HAMILTON - The Marion County Board of Education has adopted the 2019-2020 school year county supplements.
At its Thursday, Sept. 12, meeting, the board of education approved $187,688 in supplements and fringe costs for coaches and directors across its five high schools in Bear Creek, Brilliant, Guin, Hackleburg and Hamilton.
Chief school financial officer Clint Green told the board new coaches in the Marion County School System will be given a one semester grace period to obtain a bus driver’s license.

HAMILTON - Marion County’s sales tax for education experienced one of its steepest year-comparison declines on record in August.

The following garbage pickup schedules have been announced in connection with the Columbus Day holiday on Monday, Oct. 14:
• Marion County Solid Waste will collect the Monday, Oct. 14, garbage  on Tuesday, Oct. 15.
• The Town of Brilliant will be unaffected.
• The Guin Street Department will be collecting the garbage one day behind during the week of Columbus Day, beginning Tuesday, Oct. 15. The regular garbage schedule will resume on Monday, Oct. 21.
• The Hamilton Street Department will be delaying its Monday, Oct. 14, garbage pickup until Tuesday, Oct. 15.