COBB COUNTY - There will be a final hearing and possible vote at Tuesday's Board of Commissioners meeting regarding a proposed code amendment that would require Cobb landlords to obtain business licenses.

The amendment would require landlords to pay approximately $90 a year for a business license. Currently, landlords are exempted from business license rules and regulations.

Community Development Director Rob Hosack said there has been some dissention among board members concerning the item.

County spokesman Robert Quigley said the board could pull the item or hold off on voting and move it to another meeting; however, Chairman Sam Olens said some sort of action will be taken Tuesday morning.

"I think we're going to do something, but it's fluid as to what we're going to do. Earlier, I thought we were close to something, but this morning I think we got further away," Olens said.

Residents have attended board meetings since the issue was first raised in February, arguing that the change would be unfair and confusing. Hosack said the amendment was brought forth because some board members received e-mails from residents saying it is unfair that landlords can make a profit from renting out homes but are exempted from business license requirements.

Also Tuesday, commissioners are expected to approve a change to the board operation code. That proposed change is in anticipation for Olens' expected resignation at the end of this month to focus on his run for the state's attorney general, and Commissioner Tim Lee's subsequent resignation to focus on his run for the then-vacant county chairman position.

A special election is expected to be conducted in July for the chairman's seat and Lee's open seat, so the board will operate with only three members for around three months. Currently, the Rules of Procedure for the Cobb County Commission states that certain actions can be taken only by a vote of at least four commissioners. Olens has already appointed Commissioner Woody Thompson to serve as interim chairman until the seat is filled. Commissioners Bob Ott and Helen Goreham will also remain on the board.

The board is also expected to approve a request that would allow the Cobb County Police Department to apply for a Department of Justice grant. The grant would give the department $110,000 to fund outside assistance with violent crime investigations by sending evidence to other labs across the country for testing, which Public Safety Director Mickey Lloyd said would result in a quicker turnaround of results.

Lloyd said the county currently sends most of its evidence to the Georgia Bureau of Investigation for testing, but investigations are often stalled due to the backlog of work the GBI has to perform.

"The state has closed several of its crime labs due to budgetary restraints," Lloyd said. "With some cases, we need the results back quickly, and with the tremendous backlog the GBI has, I don't see how they've stayed afloat like they have. We have sent some DNA to other places for faster turnaround, and in cold cases and homicide investigations, we need the results of DNA evidence fairly quickly, and sometimes that doesn't happen when everyone in the state is sending what they need to one place."

Lloyd said he and County Manager David Hankerson have discussed creating a county crime lab, but that could not happen in the current economy.

"It would cut down on a lot of time and costs, as sometimes we have to send people either by car or plane with the evidence while it is being tested, and it takes a lot of time in some cases for the results to come in. It won't happen now, but the economy won't be this way forever," Lloyd said. "DNA is one of the best things that has come about as far as proving guilt or innocence, and DNA results are often vital to a case."