Now that 10 public input meetings are in the books, Forsyth County commissioners are ready to talk to county residents about continuing the penny sales tax for upcoming county projects.
The Board of Commissioners has scheduled a town hall meeting for Thursday, April 12 at 6 p.m. at the Forsyth County Administration Building at 110 E. Main Street in Cumming to talk about moving forward with the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) for an eighth time.
SPLOST has been in place in the county since 1987, when it was first approved by Forsyth County voters. The one percent voter-approved sales and use tax remains in place for a specified period of time (up to six years) and raises an estimated amount of revenue for designated programs or named capital items.
Since the vote on the first SPLOST, Forsyth County voters have approved six referendums continuing the program. Previous SPLOST programs have funded road improvement projects, parks, fire stations and apparatus, libraries and the county’s new courthouse, jail and parking facilities, according to a press release from the county. An eighth referendum could appear on the November 2018 ballot.
Commissioners said the town hall meeting on Thursday will give them the opportunity to hear from the public regarding SPLOST VIII and to review potential projects being considered for funding by the proposed continuation of the SPLOST program. A list of projects under consideration for SPLOST funding was collected from residents through the 10 public input meetings held earlier this year and via an online survey.
