There is absolutely nothing wrong with presenting the Voters of Gwinnett and the municipalities therein the option of paying for Capital improvements by the assessment of a 1% sales tax. The S.P.L.O.S.T. is by far the most efficient and transparent method to fund improvements and by making it a ballot referendum, provides the people most affected by implementation the opportunity to decide for themselves the merits of the proposed improvements. The underlying goal of any S.P.L.O.S.T. is to provide essential money to provide infrastructure that is not easily funded through the general tax digest nor feasible for budgeting from general funds in the County or municipalities.
To the point… S.P.L.O.S.T funds do not provide for operations, salaries, pensions or any of the day to day expenditures of government. It has nothing to do about the services you receive from government. So the devil is in the details, which require you do your homework.
So whether your analysis of the proposed sales tax leads you to conclude to vote for or against, that is for you to decide. However, do not think that taxes are going to go away or that there are not consequences to the quality of life in your community when funds are unavailable for the projects proposed.
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Debate is a good thing. It does however, require effort on your part as a voter. You can vote no, but there will be consequences. You can vote yes, but that not mean our elected officials should not be accountable for our tax dollars for all the other elements that make up government.
Capital improvements can lead to additional overhead and burdens in the future. So you must understand how each improvement can affect the need for additional taxes in the future. You must be an informed voter and above all you must participate in governing.
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Your votes should not be a referendum of our elected officials, it should be a considered decision on your part about the things you value in your community.
I do have a few questions I hope to find some answers to before I vote, chief among them is an analysis of tax revenues with and without the 1% tax. From a tax perspective would a lower sales tax not increase sales? Say I live in Gwinnett County and need a new car, would I not like to save $300.00 on $30,000 purchase? Would that incentive not have a positive effect, increasing sales and thus overall collections? A second and equally important question is just how much foreign consumption is there within Gwinnett County, people who do not live in Gwinnett? Would the lower rate not encourage more sales in Gwinnett and greater tax revenues? Short of this analysis it is difficult to understand the net effect of the tax.
Voting matters, so I urge you to early vote or go to the polls on Tuesday, November 5th
I urge you to do your homework and I have provided some links below to help you make a more informed decision.