When the General Primary Election comes along on July 31st you'll also be voting on a one percent sales tax increase strictly for transportation projects otherwise known as TSPLOST. For the TSPLOST to go into effect, it has to pass by popular vote by region. Muscogee County along with 15 other counties make up the River Valley Region.
Columbus city officials want to make sure that if they support it, Muscogee County will reap in the benefits.
“I wouldn't want to tax the citizens of this county unless it was absolutely necessary in addition to what they already pay, so I’m sure it's going to be a hard sell. That’s why you see all the elected officials proceeding so carefully,” said Columbus Mayor Teresa Tomlinson.
Mayor Tomlinson said there are eight transportation projects on the regional list for Muscogee County that would get funding through the TSPLOST but she's been getting different estimates on the return of our possible tax investment.
“I've heard everything from Muscogee County would contribute 65 to maybe 70 percent of that money and only get back 52 percent of it so there is the possibility there is a wide disparity that money we collected here was not staying here,” said Mayor Tomlinson.
According to the Georgia Department of Transportation the River Valley Region would raise around $594 million over a ten year period with the penny sales tax.
The GDOT Director of Planning said that money will come back to local communities.
“The regional pot of money will be a list of products that was decided on by local officials in the region. The local share pot is money that we sent back to the communities within the region by formula and the individual city councils and counties will actually decide how that money is spent,” said GDOT Dir. of Planning Todd Long.
Columbus city councilman Mike Baker said city government will make sure folks know where the money is going.
“All the projects will be made public they'll all be walked through the cost and the projections,” said Baker.
Mayor Tomlinson said the eight regional projects have been on the books a long time and without the TSPLOST passing it might take longer for those projects to come to fruition.
“One of them is the Buena Vista Road spider web finding a way to get over the railroad tracks there which is something I think a lot of people have been wanting for a long time,” said Mayor Tomlinson.
If you want to check out the potential regional transportation projects for Muscogee County click here: http://www.it3.ga.gov/Documents/FinalReport/Southern-finalinvestmentlistreport.pdf
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