Category Archives: SPLOST

SPLOST VII referendum 2013

If you live in Lowndes County outside the cities, the only thing you have to vote on today is the SPLOST referendum. (If you live in one of the five cities, you also get to vote on SPLOST.) See Where’s your polling place in Lowndes County? for where to vote. Here is the SPLOST referendum as worded by the Lowndes County Commission and appearing on the ballot today, according to the Georgia Secretary of State My Voter Page:

Lowndes County SPLOST Referendum
(Vote for One)

Shall a special one (1) percent sales and use tax be imposed in the special district of Lowndes County for a period of time not to exceed six years and for the raising of an estimated amount of $150,000,000 to be used and expended:

by Lowndes County for purposes of capital outlay projects, including major permanent, long-lived improvements or betterments and major capital equipment, consisting of: acquisition of right-of-way for, construction of, improvements to, and maintenance of road, street, and bridge facilities; major capital equipment, including vehicles, for construction of, improvements to, and maintenance of road, street, and bridge facilities; construction of, improvements to, and major capital equipment for water and sewer facilities; major capital equipment for law enforcement purposes, including law enforcement vehicles, and improvements to law enforcement facilities, including evidence storage facilities; major capital equipment for firefighting purposes, including firefighting vehicles, and improvements to firefighting facilities, including training facilities; improvements to 9-1-1 call answering facilities, including upgraded 9-1-1 security system and new computer aided dispatch system; improvements to and major capital equipment for public safety radio system purposes; acquisition of property for, construction of, and improvements to parks and recreation facilities, including new soccer facility, Naylor Community Center, boat ramp on Alapaha River, basketball courts at Freedom Park, and baseball field for special needs persons; improvements and additions to animal welfare facilities; improvements to civic center facility; improvements to historic courthouse facility; improvements to and major capital equipment for library facilities; improvements to airport runway, taxiway, and beacon tower facilities;

by the City of Valdosta for the purposes of capital outlay projects, including major permanent, long-lived improvements or betterments and major capital equipment, consisting of: construction of and improvements to road, street, and bridge facilities to include sidewalks, piping of ditches, land acquisition, design, traffic signals, intersection improvements, resurfacing, street repairs and materials, traffic management center improvements, technology improvements, and other transportation systems and equipment; construction of and improvements to drainage infrastructure, systems, facilities, equipment, and capital materials to include the purchase of land, property, capital equipment for the maintenance of drainage facilities and infrastructure, and necessary studies, plans, aerials, mapping, design documents, and surveys to support such projects; construction of, improvements to, and capital equipment for police facilities and operations to include technology, building renovations, and equipment purchases to include technology and operational equipment; construction of, improvements to, and capital equipment for fire department services, firefighting, training, fire station facilities, fire vehicles, facility renovations, additions, equipment, technology, and other equipment; construction of, improvements to, and capital equipment for parks and recreation facilities; construction of, improvements to, and equipment for water and sewer facilities including but not limited to design, land acquisition, equipment, repairs, renovations, replacement and new construction of facilities, plants, equipment, infrastructure, materials, and capital equipment; construction of, improvements to, and capital equipment for public works facilities to include sanitation vehicles, public works vehicles and equipment, facility and equipment improvements, replacements and renovations; construction of, improvements to, and replacement of a jointly owned public safety radio system to include equipment and technology improvements; repairs, renovations, and capital equipment for administrative facilities to include buildings, Mathis Auditorium, and computer hardware and software; property and land acquisition, capital equipment, and improvements to include design and construction of capital improvement projects as identified in the downtown Valdosta strategic master plan;

by the City of Hahira for purposes of capital outlay projects, including major permanent, long-lived improvements or betterments and major capital equipment, consisting of: construction of, improvements to, and major capital equipment for road, street and bridge facilities, sidewalks, bicycle and cart paths and trails, including acquisition of rights of way, improvement of surface-water drainage, widening, resurfacing, leveling, and other repairs for preservation of road, street, and bridge facilities; construction of, improvements to, and major capital equipment for water and sewer facilities; construction of, improvements to, and major capital equipment for public safety facilities, including police and firefighting and rescue equipment, computer equipment, communications equipment, police and fire department vehicles, and acquisition of property; construction of, improvements to, and major capital equipment for administrative facilities, including city hall, computer equipment and technology upgrades; construction of, improvements to, and capital equipment for city parks and recreation facilities, including acquisition of property and construction of parks;

by the City of Remerton for purposes of capital outlay projects, including major permanent, long-lived improvements or betterments and major capital equipment, consisting of: construction of and improvements to road, street, and sidewalk facilities, and acquisition of equipment related thereto; construction of and improvements to water, sewer, and public works facilities, including, but not limited to acquisition of equipment and payment for services rendered in connection therewith; purchase of equipment for public safety including, but not limited to, public safety vehicles; construction of, improvements and renovations to, or the purchase of property for municipal facilities, and purchase of furniture, fixtures, and equipment related thereto;

by the City of Dasher for purposes of capital outlay projects, including major permanent, long-lived improvements or betterments and major capital equipment, consisting of: construction of and improvements to community culture, history, digital information center, museum, library, and technological equipment and software; construction of and improvements to streets, walks and bicycle paths, roads, and bridges; construction of and improvements to parks and recreation facilities including land development, capital equipment, and infrastructure; development of plans for, construction of, and improvements to sewage and water distribution systems; and

by the City of Lake Park for purposes of capital outlay projects, including major permanent, long-lived improvements or betterments and major capital equipment, consisting of: construction of and improvements to road, street, and bridge facilities, sidewalks, bicycle and cart paths and trails, including acquisition of rights of way, improvement of surface-water drainage, widening, resurfacing, leveling, and other repairs for preservation of road, street, and bridge facilities; construction of and improvements to water and sewer facilities; construction of and major capital equipment for public works facilities, including maintenance building facilities, service vehicles and maintenance equipment, and acquisition of property for construction of a maintenance building; improvements to and major capital equipment for public safety facilities, including police and firefighting and rescue equipment, computer equipment, communications equipment, and police and fire department vehicles; improvements to and major capital equipment for administrative facilities, including improvements to city hall, computer equipment, and technology upgrades; improvements to and capital equipment for city parks and recreation facilities, including acquisition of property, construction of parks, and renovation and restoration of civic center and other historic structures.

YES

NO

-jsq

Where’s your polling place in Lowndes County? 2013-11-05

“When did they change our polling place?” said the neighbor on the phone. The same time they do every time: before the next election. Why do they do this? Supposedly to reduce costs, now that so many people vote early, and all early voting is at the Board of Elections, they keep reducing the number of precincts, this time down from 12 last year to 9 this year. Another effect is to confuse everybody, and that has the result that some people just won’t vote. Quick version: go to My Voter Page by the Georgia Secretary of State.

According to the Lowndes County Board of Elections, Lowndes County Polling Places: Continue reading →

Videos of Candidates and Mayor Gayle about SPLOST @ LCDP 2013-09-09

In which we discover one candidate works for the City of Valdosta and opposes SPLOST. Candidates took questions directly from the audience and answered them, unlike at later candidate forums. Candidates from the smaller cities started their tradition of not showing up for forums outside their cities. Here’s the list of qualified candidates. See also the videos of the 30 Club forum 2013-10-21 and the videos of the AAUW forum 2013-10-15.

Opening

Call to Order, Moment of Silence for Congress, Pledge, Approval of Minutes, Treasurer’s Report.

SPLOST VII

30 Club Candidate Forum @ 30Club 2013-10-21

The candidates were almost unanimous on SPLOST VII and how to prevent JK situations, but more varied on other questions. Roy Copeland, billed as “Valdosta attorney” (but perhaps known better to LAKE readers as VLCIA board member and former Chairman) was the moderator, assisted by Valdosta Fire Chief and Thirty Club member J.D. Rice. They took questions from the audience and recognized their host, Pastor Floyd Rose of Serenity Church. You may wonder as I do why city council candidates were answering about graduation rates.

Matthew Woody wrote for the VDT 21 October 2013, ‘Let the games begin’. Here’s the list of qualified candidates. As usual, nobody showed up from the smaller cities, although at least one Valdosta candidate, Richard Miller, spoke up for the smaller cities about SPLOST.

Valdosta City Council District 2

Continue reading →

The SPLOST Debate –Tim Carroll

Received 27 October 2013. -jsq

I have had a number of folks contact me about the upcoming SPLOST VII referendum and inquiring about a MOST. Trying to talk about all of this in as few a words as I can is not easy. But to give you some perspective—the city’s general fund budget is $32M. $5.9M of the revenue for this fund comes from property taxes. Based on the city tax digest a mill is worth $1.5M. The experts say 50.2% of the sales tax is paid by out of towners. In the opinion of some folks, it is closer to 30%. Pick the experts or local guesses ….it still is a significant amount. It clearly is very beneficial to the citizens of Valdosta and Lowndes County.

By now many have heard about a MOST or Municipal Option Sales Tax.

In the first part of this year—the city of Valdosta was faced with Continue reading →

Videos, AAUW Candidates’ Forum @ AAUW 2013-10-15

Water was a popular topic, as you can see in these videos of the Candidates’s Forum by AAUW. Same location (VSU Continuing Education Building) as the one Chamber held, but this time the audience got to ask questions. Yes, Virginia, they do all live in their districts, and some of them have widely divergent views about what cities or school boards should do.

Local AAUW President Diane Holliman gave a welcome, and then Dr. Luke Fowler moderated. Here’s the list of qualified candidates. Here’s Matthew Woody’s writeup in the VDT.

Valdosta City Council District 2

John Hogan and Calvin Graham Sr. were present; Sandra J. Tooley was not.

John Hogan pointed out that a road issue could really be a drainage issue, so it’s necessary to look at context.

Calvin Graham Sr. said he was retired military, lived in the district, and had been spending a lot of time volunteering. He indicated the Continue reading →

County lost LOST; now has 120 days to negotiate with cities

So all our tax money the county spent on the alleged county attorney arguing before the state Supreme Court was wasted. The remaining law seems to say by 120 days from Monday the cities and the county need to come to an agreement.

Kay Harris wrote for the VDT yesterday, Lowndes LOST in limbo: Supreme Court tosses key amendment,

In a ruling issued Monday, Oct. 7, the Supreme Court of Georgia declared a 2010 amendment to the Local Option Sales Tax Act unconstitutional, reasoning that the amendment would delegate a legislative function of allocating tax proceeds to the judicial branch of government, a violation of the Separation of Powers clause of the Georgia Constitution.

For Lowndes County, the ruling effectively renders the lawsuit moot that was filed by the five cities against the county in September 2012.

The Supreme Court’s ruling came in the case of Turner County vs. the City of Ashburn over a dispute in splitting the proceeds from the one cent sales tax, the same issue in the Lowndes lawsuit. By declaring the portion unconstitutional that would allow a judge to decide how to allocate the tax dollars between the entities, the issue is now in limbo for several counties in Georgia.

You may recall that former Chairman Ashley Paulk wasn’t interested in discussing proposals from the cities, and said from before the LOST negotiations began that he expected it to go to arbitration.

This was the same Chairman Ashley Paulk who put SPLOST VII on the ballot a year early and lost it. I wonder how much input County Manager Joe Pritchard had into these two losing decisions?

At least SPLOST VI hasn’t expired yet and there’s time for the voters to go again on SPLOST VII in November.

What happens now with LOST? Continue reading →

Videos: SPLOST VII Resolution, child proclamation, and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-10

They voted to put the SPLOST VII Resolution on the ballot in November, “to reimpose the tax”, with not even a hint of those town halls that never happened. They reappointed Mac McCall to ZBOA. The Proclamation was for a boy who called 911 to help an old neighbor who was trapped under a refrigerator (nope, not for South Georgia Pride). And we learned that nobody has to fear arrest or threat and everybody can speak their mind in the Commission chambers; nevermind recent history to the contrary.

Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes. See also videos of the previous morning’s Work Session.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

Videos: SPLOST VII Resolution and mystery proclamation and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-09

Charlie Clark The big surprise in the eleven-minute meeting was they called up former County Engineer Charlie Clark to explain the Utility Director’s comment about making a profit on wastewater to Lake Park Elementary School. Yes, the SPLOST VII Resolution is to put it on the ballot in November, “to reimpose the tax”. So much for those town halls that never happened. Yep, it’s Mac McCall for reappointment to ZBOA. No Proclamation this morning, so it could still be for South Georgia Pride like Valdosta Mayor John Gayle refused to proclaim last year. And they vote tomorrow night at 5:30 PM.

Here’s the agenda, with links to the videos and a few notes.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →

SPLOST VII Resolution and mystery proclamation and appointment @ LCC 2013-09-09

Presumably the SPLOST VII Resolution is to put it on the ballot in November. So much for those town halls that never happened. I’m guessing the ZBOA appointment is for the finally-expired term of Dave Kirk; they appointed John “Mac” McCall last December to the unexpired part of Kirk’s term, so McCall would be the odds-on reappointment. Maybe the Proclamation is for South Georgia Pride like Valdosta Mayor John Gayle refused to proclaim last year. Why do we have to guess what all those items are for, anyway? Why don’t they just make the agenda items descriptive, or, even better, link the board packet items in with the agenda? The two For Consideration items are more intelligible, but would still make more sense with those board packet materials.

Here’s the agenda.

LOWNDES COUNTY BOARD OF COMMISSIONERS
PROPOSED AGENDA
WORK SESSION, MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 9, 2013, 8:30 a.m.
REGULAR SESSION, TUESDAY, SEPTEMBER 10, 2013, 5:30 p.m.
327 N. Ashley Street – 2nd Floor
Continue reading →