When the Hall County Commission meets Thursday night, commissioners will be asked to approve two resolutions that will allow a referendum for the extension of the county's Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax, more commonly known as SPLOST, to be placed on the Nov. 5, 2019 ballot.
Hall County Financial Services Director Zachary Propes outlined the two resolutions for the board at a Monday afternoon work session, noting that SPLOST VIII will provide $216.96 million over a six-year time frame for capital projects for the county and nine municipalities that operate within the county.
The first resolution would authorize the county to enter into intergovernmental agreements (IGAs) with Gainesville, Clermont, Flowery Branch, Gillsville, Lula, Oakwood, Braselton, Buford and Rest Haven so that those municipalities can share proceeds from SPLOST VIII. The second resolution calls for the referendum to be placed on the Nov. 5 ballot. Both items have been placed on the consent agenda, and there will be no discussion on the resolutions.
While a comprehensive list of projects has not been made public yet, Propes discussed financial basics with the commission.
Of the $216.96 million that would be generated by SPLOST VIII, $54.77 million would be allocated to the nine municipalities for their projects, $35.87 million would be allocated for Tier II projects that benefit the entire county and its municipalities, and the remaining $126.32 would be set aside specifically for Hall County capital projects.
The bulk of SPLOST VIII proceeds would go to road improvement projects.
Propes said in his presentation that SPLOST VIII would be a six-year initiative. SPLOST VII, a five-year tax, ends in June 2020.
Hall County voters first approved SPLOST in 1985 and have continued to approve the penny sales tax since that time.
