Friday, June 3, 2005

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Absentee balloting begins on Coweta school tax

By JOHN THOMPSON
jthompson@TheCitizenNews.com

Coweta voters this week started casting absentee ballots on the extension of the school system’s one-cent sales tax.

The current one-cent Education Local Option Sales Tax approved by voters in 2002 is scheduled to end in June, 2007.

With a unanimous vote in April, the Coweta County Board of Education called for the election that could raise an additional $130 million over five years for the fast-growing school system and set the election for June 21.

Projects funded by the sales tax would include:

• Three elementary schools.

• Three ninth-grade campuses.

• One middle school.

• An addition at Eastside Elementary School in Senoia.

• Additional school technology.

• New buses.

• Renovations to existing facilities.

• Acquisition of land for future projects.

“I think it’s important that people realize that this is an extension of an existing tax, not an additional penny,” said board member Brian Roy.

If the measure passes, the board would also be able to sell $58 million in bonds to get many of the projects started immediately.

As more residents stream into the county, the school system has been looking for a way to keep pace with the growth. The extension of the ELOST offers the board a way to build the additions without having to raise property taxes.

Residents who will not be in town for the June 21 election should contact the county’s Board of Elections for an absentee ballot.