FORSYTH COUNTY -- A sales tax approved by nearly 70 percent of local voters Feb. 5 is now in question following a recent court decision preventing the county from collecting the funds.
Superior Court Judge Hugh W. Stone's April 30 decision could affect numerous county projects and the collection of the sales tax scheduled to begin July 1. Stone ruled the county should have listed every project on the ballot.
Cumming had identified $50 million in projects it wanted to accomplish through the SPLOST. But the county had allotted the city 4.29 percent of the sales tax revenue (about $11.8 million). That figure is the per capita share of the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) based on the 2000 Census.
Forsyth County Commission Chairman Charles Laughinghouse said he believed the ruling was an "error."
"I believe the judges ruling is in error," he said, "but the Board of Commissioners will abide by the decision until the Board can determine an appropriate course of action."
The county has not appealed the April 30 decision. If such a decision is made, County Attorney Ken Jarrard said it could happen as early as this week.
The ruling was a victory for those in the city of Cumming campaigning against the passing of the SPLOST. Mayor Ford Gravitt said it's also a victory for both the people of Cumming and Forsyth County.
"We're very happy with it and hopefully we can get back with the county and start negotiating real soon," he said.
Through the negotiation process, Gravitt said they are hoping to identify the SPLOST projects.
"We would like to negotiate and get back working on it very quickly," said Gravitt.
But he said that depends on the commissioners.
If the county appeals, Gravitt said the city is ready to go to court to see if the judge's decision is upheld.
Commissioner David Richard said the ruling has prevented the collection of sales tax in the county for "at least a quarter." The sales tax would have started collecting July 1.
But Richard said the county prevailed with the ruling on several other issues such as legality of the population split.
"The bottom line is that there will be a period of time in this county that we will not be able to collect," Richard said. "Thank you, city council and mayor."
Richard said listing the city's requested projects when $11.8 million would not cover the $50 million bill would have been "confusing" to voters.
"There is no legal basis for listing all the projects," he said.
If the county decides to appeal, Richard said the county could "arguably overturn a bad law" affecting county's across the state.
"No longer will cities hold hostage the counties where they are," he said.
The seven-member Forsyth County Citizens Transportation Projects Selection Committee completed Jan. 2 a list of project priorities SPLOST. Jim Boff, chairman of the committee, said the April 30 ruling was regrettable.
"I remain proud of the good sense of the vast majority of voters," he said, "and proud of all of the good work from the seven member SPLOST VI committee. It pains me to see the will of the people delayed by outside forces especially since this critically affects public safety."
Charles I. Smith, who also served on the committee, said he was disappointed.
"It is regrettable that the citizens of our county might be deprived of much needed road improvements," he said, "and other SPLOST VI projects that may be significantly delayed due to this litigation."
Some citizens asked the local government to move forward.
"I urge this board to move forward," said District 4 resident Bebe Miles, "and go beyond the pettiness and the Internet blogs to move forward in the spirit of teamwork to benefit the county as a whole."
But Miles said she was saddened by the situation.
"I'm disappointed," she said. "This is a sad moment in Forsyth County history."
Gravitt rejected a possible 10 percent city portion in October, 2007. The commissioners voted 3-2 that same month to offer the city a five-year SPLOST.
Cumming filed suit against the county in November and the case was dismissed Dec. 17, 2007.
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The SPLOST debate
• Oct. 16, 2007 Commissioners meet to discuss SPLOST proceeds. No intergovernmental agreement between city and county was reached. Mayor H. Ford Gravitt said the city would not accept a discussed split of 10 percent to Cumming and 90 percent to Forsyth County.
• Oct. 16, 2007 At a city council meeting, Gravitt said the 90-10 split was unacceptable considering the SPLOST V split was 85-15 and the city planned $50 million in projects from future SPLOST proceeds.
• Oct. 18, 2007 Commissioners continue SPLOST discussion. A 10 percent offer to the city failed with a 3-2 vote (at least a 4-1 vote was needed to support the purposed agreement). Commissioner Jim Harrell made the motion to offer an 8 percent portion to the city, which was seconded by Commission Chairman Charles Laughinghouse. The motion failed to pass.
Commissioners then decided 3-2 to accept a five-year SPLOST with the city's portion based on the 2000 Census, or 4.29 percent.
• Oct. 23, 2007 Commissioner Brian Tam announces he will ask for a reconsideration of the SPLOST vote and seek a 91-9 split with the city.
• Oct. 30, 2007 Commissioners vote 3-2 against revisiting the SPLOST decision.
• Nov. 6, 2007 Cumming files suit against Forsyth County
• Dec. 17, 2007 Cumming's case is dismissed in court.
• Feb. 5, 2008 More than 69 percent of Forsyth County voters approve SPLOST.
• April 30, 2008 Judge Stone prevents county from collecting SPLOST dollars.
Labels: Forsyth County Schools, SPLOST
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Brian Vanderhoff @ 9:02 AM
