Friday March 29th, 2024 5:26AM

Banks County begins process to let residents vote on 1-cent roads and bridges tax

HOMER — The Banks County Commission voted Tuesday night to proceed with necessary steps to place a 1-cent Local Option Sales Tax only for roads and bridges on an upcoming ballot to be decided by county residents.

The commission acted on a formal request from the Development Authority of Banks County, whose members suggested the 1-cent sales tax would bring the county’s roads up to the level needed for sustained economic development and related residential growth.

Scott Ledford, chairman of the Development Authority of Banks County, told commissioners and those in the audience the proposed 1-cent tax would raise about $3 million per year over its five-year term.

If approved by the voters of Banks County, the current 7-cent sales tax would become 8 cents on each dollar purchased.

Ledford said the county currently budgets about $850,000 each year for its roads and bridges, about half of which is salaries for those charged with maintaining roads.

Spending $450,000 per year on roads will not bring them up to the level needed. To achieve the same results as the $3 million that would be collected each year under the Banks County Transportation LOST, property taxes would have to be raised by 6 mills based on the current 1-mill equivalent of $485,000, Ledford said. That’s not something most Banks County households could handle financially.

Banks County Commission Chairman Jimmy Hooper said he sees the advantages of allowing those from outside the county to help finance road and bridge work to take the burden off local taxpayers.

“The development authority brought before us a request that we explore a 1-cent local option sales tax for roads and bridges only,” Hooper said. “This would be a roads and bridges only project, which would generate somewhere between $15 million and $17 million [over its five-year term] for Banks County.”

Hooper said under current state legislation, a county can collect a 1-cent sales tax to be used only for transportation projects directly within that county.

“The good part of it is the vast majority of the sales tax comes from outsiders coming through spending money, so to me this is a plus and I hope the citizens of Banks County will see this,” Hooper said. “In fact, I believe if it is passed it might only be necessary for one five-year period, at which time I think we’d have magnificent roads in Banks County.”

Tuesday night’s decision was to begin the process of getting the 1-cent LOST on an upcoming ballot so the voters of Banks County can decide the issue. During that process, there will be an education and public input phase where residents will have the opportunity to learn specifics of the proposed tax, its impact on Banks County households and individuals, and how the proceeds would be used by the county.

  • Associated Categories: Homepage, Business News, Local/State News, Politics
  • Associated Tags: Banks County, Banks County Commission, Chairman Jimmy Hooper, transportation tax, Local Option Sales Tax
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