Renewal to special sales tax for capital improvements on the ballot this midterm for Cobb County voters

Cobb County voters will decide whether to renew a special sales tax that goes toward capital improvements throughout the county.

The sales tax on the ballot, known as SPLOST, is a voter-approved 1-cent sales tax used for community improvement projects.

Cobb County resident Bob Hovey went to a recent SPLOST information session hosted by the county.

"I want to see if the projects I want to see done are on the list," Hovey said.

Hovey said one project on his list wasn't on the county's. Despite this, he supports the SPLOST renewal.

"SPLOST is a big thing, and there's a lot of things in there, and anything that's big you can find something you don't like and a lot of things that you do," Hovey said.

SPLOST has been used in Cobb County since 1995. According to the county, some of the projects funded by SPLOST include the new Milford Recreation Center, a new public safety training academy, and additional sidewalks.

"I remember the 2005 SPLOST vividly and the work that was done to educate citizens about it" Cobb County Commission Chairwoman Lisa Cupid said. "And since that time frame, I believe every SPLOST has passed, and we've been able to see tremendous growth in our county's amenities to match the tremendous growth in population."

If passed, the SPLOST renewal would not be a new or additional tax. Instead, the same tax would just stay in place.

Cupid said they've received positive feedback about the SPLOST, but she understands the economic strain many voters are facing.

"Does this displace the fact that people are hurting economically? It doesn't," Cupid said. "But we want people to know is that this program has been continuing to add to the quality of life of residents here in Cobb at a sales tax rate which still is arguably one of the lowest sales tax rates across the state, which is 6 percent."

As for Hovey, he's considering the county's track record.

"I think the county has a good history of managing them," Hovey said. "We can dispute over one intersection or another, but by and large we've had what, two rounds or three rounds of this now? Twenty years, I think — so I think we've shown it works okay."

Cobb County approved a potential list of projects if the 2028 SPLOST renewal passes. Some of those projects include a new state court building, a new library in East Cobb, and various improvements at intersections throughout the county.