Chamber to promote SPLOST vote
The Jackson County Area Chamber of Commerce signaled its intentions Friday of taking a lead role in promoting extension of the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) in a vote later this year.
By the time the current tax expires June 30, 2011, it will have brought in as much as $55 million to city and county governments. To keep the funds flowing, voters will have to renew the tax in a referendum July 20 or Nov. 2.
The directors voted unanimously to support the effort. President Shane Short indicated that he will have a resolution to that effect to be voted on at the March meeting of the directors.
Five years ago, the chamber was the conduit through which funds to promote the referendum could be gathered for advertising and public relations. Local governments are prohibited by law from spending public funds to promote — or oppose — ballot issues.
“SPLOST is important not only for our county, but also for many of our municipalities,” Short told his board. “A lot of the county’s debt service is based on SPLOST.”
Hunter Bicknell, chairman of the Jackson County Board of Commissioners, confirmed Short’s comments.
“It is important,” he said. “We all realize it is going to be very important to communicate to our citizens the worthiness of our projects.”
For the county, most of its share would go to pay down debt. Bicknell said the county hopes to use about $12.6 million to make payments on its new jail, and it would like to use SPLOST proceeds instead of General Fund revenue to make the county’s annual debt payment on the Bear Creek Reservoir and water treatment plant.
To do the latter, Bicknell said the SPLOST proceeds allocated in this round of SPLOST to the Jackson County Water and Sewerage Authority for capital projects would go to Jackson County for debt service in the new round.
“They (water and sewerage authority officials) have indicated they could eliminate any further plans and just depend on developers (to build new lines),” Bicknell said.
A portion of the SPLOST would also go to parks and recreation and roads.
“We need it very seriously,” Bicknell
The directors voted unanimously to support the effort. President Shane Short indicated that he will have a resolution to that effect to be voted on at the March meeting of the directors.
Five years ago, the chamber was the conduit through which funds to promote the referendum could be gathered for advertising and public relations. Local governments are prohibited by law from spending public funds to promote — or oppose — ballot issues.
“SPLOST is important not only for our county, but also for many of our municipalities,” Short told his board. “A lot of the county’s debt service is based on SPLOST.”
Hunter Bicknell, chairman of the Jackson County Board of Commissioners, confirmed Short’s comments.
“It is important,” he said. “We all realize it is going to be very important to communicate to our citizens the worthiness of our projects.”
For the county, most of its share would go to pay down debt. Bicknell said the county hopes to use about $12.6 million to make payments on its new jail, and it would like to use SPLOST proceeds instead of General Fund revenue to make the county’s annual debt payment on the Bear Creek Reservoir and water treatment plant.
To do the latter, Bicknell said the SPLOST proceeds allocated in this round of SPLOST to the Jackson County Water and Sewerage Authority for capital projects would go to Jackson County for debt service in the new round.
“They (water and sewerage authority officials) have indicated they could eliminate any further plans and just depend on developers (to build new lines),” Bicknell said.
A portion of the SPLOST would also go to parks and recreation and roads.
“We need it very seriously,” Bicknell
Start spending less and cutting taxes. This is not your money it is ours.
Shame on the Chamber for supporting anythoing that has to do with taxes. Enough of the tax and spend group.
We live in a society. We pool our resources together to pave roads, provide fire and police protection, sewer and water service, parks & recreation, and more. The way we pool our resources is through tax collection.
Hate taxes? Move out of the United States.
A county so far in dept that it has to use splost money to make it's payments wow.
And I love that old liberal spin "move out of the U.S.
I'm just saying...............