White County voters will decide whether to approve a new Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax referendum this November.
On July 16, county commissioners approved a resolution calling for the referendum. SPLOST VI would finance capital outlay projects for the county and Cleveland and Helen city governments if approved.
Representatives from all three governments met on December 18, 2023, to discuss the projects to be funded. They initially tried to get the referendum on the May primary ballot, but due to possible discrepancies in the advertising for that vote, the county decided to postpone it until November.
Since then, each party has re-approved an Intergovernmental Agreement (IGA) outlining how the funds will be distributed. The IGA calls for the county to receive 60 percent of the expected revenue, with Cleveland and Helen each receiving 20 percent.
The county projects it will collect $56.7 million from the multi-year SPLOST. White County’s sales tax would be reduced by one percent if the penny-on-the-dollar tax is not approved.
The proposed projects are outlined as follows:
