ATLANTA - A year-end rush for cities and counties to divide revenue they share from 1-cent local option sales taxes is over. <br>
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The local governments had until midnight Monday to tell the state how to split up the revenue. By the close of business, all but Turner County in south-central Georgia, had complied, said Terry Sears of the Revenue Department's sales tax division. <br>
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More than half the 147 counties that charge the tax simply kept the same split they negotiated in 1995. Among the others, the changes were generally small despite population shifts that changed development patterns and service responsibilities in growing communities. <br>
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Taxpayers who live in the communities that lost revenue could experience property tax increases. But the cost probably will be small enough to be offset by delays in spending, said Clint Mueller of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia. <br>
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``Most places, there wasn't much of a shift, just a few percentage points,'' Mueller said. ``If the economy picks up, they will hardly notice that.'' <br>
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About a quarter of counties statewide had gains averaging less than 5 percent. Gains among cities averaged less than 3 percent, according to the Georgia Municipal Association. <br>
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Local government leaders across Georgia complained that the state law authorizing the tax does not give them enough guidance to achieve a fair split. Although the law offers eight criteria, including population, how governments provide services and where sales occur, nothing requires negotiators to incorporate those factors into their agreements. <br>
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Both the association of county commissioners and the Municipal Association have suggested a task force to consider changes in the law before the next round of negotiations in 2012.
