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Citizen tax group seeks changes to Georgia’s sales tax lawFri, 01/19/2007 - 5:35pm
By: The Citizen
Douglas County, Ga., Jan. 18, 2007 — The Douglas County Taxpayer’s Coalition (DCTC) is seeking sponsors to a bill that will restrict the way Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) referendums are conducted. (Georgia Code 48-8-111) James Bell, director of DCTC met with the Douglas County legislative delegation, Wednesday at the Douglas County Courthouse to discuss the proposed legislation. “The bill is pretty simple and straight foreword,” said Bell. “We want to restrict placement of SPLOST ballot referendums to November general ballots only and require the ballot language be specific and list “level one” projects, which can consume 100% of the tax, first with the proposed amount of each project to follow.” Bell said his group helped to defeat a $145 million SPLOST tax last year and learned counties use carefully drafted ballot language to disguise the true impact of the referendum. For instance, the 2006 Douglas County SPLOST referendum, for $145 million, listed the controversial “new jail”, a “level one” project worth $87 million, on the last line of a 27 line ballot question while listing the more “popular” issues first. Bell said there is a need to restrict SPLOST votes to general ballots only, to allow the maximum number of voters to participate in tax matters that affect them. “The government officials know special elections draw fewer voters and that increases the chances the tax proposal will pass,” Bell said. Bell points to a straw poll placed on the 2006 primary ballot where 82% of Cobb County Republican voters support this issue. “This is a matter of fairness,” said Bell. “It is unacceptable to confuse and mislead the voters about tax matters. Tax issues should be decided by the greatest number of voters and the ballot language should be made clear,” he continued. Bell feels that voters are being fatigued by tax referendums and the additional cost of holding these special elections are unnecessary. The SPLOST proposal was well received by the delegation and DCTC will be sending the proposal to all legislators in an effort to garner support. ### Douglas County Taxpayer’s Coalition January 17, 2007 To: The Douglas County Georgia Legislative Delegation Dear Legislators, The Douglas County Taxpayers Coalition is seeking your help in sponsoring a bill to amend Georgia Code 48-8-111 relating to Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST); • To provide that SPLOST referendums shall only be places on general ballots in November so as to allow the maximum number of voters to participate in the tax decision making process; • To provide that “level one” projects shall first be listed first in the ballot language; • To provide that the amount of estimated revenue of each project shall be listed after each project; Why is this change needed? First of all, last year three straw polls were placed on the ballot concerning this issue in Georgia. In Cobb County the Republican Party placed the question on the July ballot and received overwhelming support. 82% of GOP voters approved the measure to allow placement of SPLOST on general election ballots only. We can only assume Democrats, Libertarians and Independents favor this measure also. SPLOST can serve as a valuable tool to raise needed revenue for capitol improvements of a county. However, last year in Douglas County, officials choose to draft the ballot language in a manner that many voters found to be misleading, confusing, and did not reflect the true nature of the impact SPLOST will have. This confusion may have contributed to the defeat of the tax by the voters. Since “Level One” Projects shall by law be funded first before other projects can be funded, the proposed projects should be listed on the ballot according to the appropriate designated level of that project and the amount of funds proposed for each project. Example: The County is requesting the approval of a SPLOST for $150 million dollars. Of which, $100 million is proposed for single “Level One” project such as a “criminal justice center”. However on the ballot, the officials listed the “Level Two” projects first, projects such as – bike paths – sidewalks – equestrian venue. Then the level one project was listed at the bottom of the ballot language as “and a new jail”. This is clearly an attempt by public officials to hide the more “controversial” issues last while listing the “popular” and less costly issues first. Requiring counties to list “level one” projects first and listing the corresponding revenues, voters will be better informed as to the true meaning of the ballot question. We feel this reform measure will benefit all stakeholders and give the voters of this state a more accurate description of the SPLOST ballot question. It should noted that local governments are advised by resource materials that it is in their best interest to place SPLOST votes on special ballots so that the minimum number of voters participate, usually around 5-8% of voters. We believe it should be the roll of the government to place important tax issue on a ballot where the maximum number of voters participate or about 35-60% of voters. The citizens need your help in this matter and your support is much appreciated. If you have any questions, please contact me. Thank you for your service to people of Douglas County and the State of Georgia. Respectfully Submitted, James Bell 
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