Small Number of Voters Likely to Decide on Big Spending Projects for Oconee County Schools

Only a relatively small percentage of Oconee County’s 22,765 registered voters is likely to decide whether the current sales tax of one cent on a dollar for educational projects, which expires at the end of 2012, will be extended through the end of 2017.

Early voting began on Monday, and by late afternoon today only 21 had voted.

In November of 2003, the last time the county had a tax issue on a November ballot in an off election year, only 10.2 percent of the registered voters cast a ballot.

Then, as this year, nothing else was on the ballot to bring voters to the polls.

None of the 11 sales tax initiatives in the county going back to December of 1982 has faced serious voter opposition, and 78.6 percent of the voters in July of 2006 voted in favor of the current education tax.

If the tax is approved on Nov. 8, persons making purchases in Oconee County would continue to pay an extra 1 percent on the purchase price, with the revenues going to the Oconee County school system. The sale of food and beverages is included in the tax.

The Board of Education for the tax. Total estimated cost for the four is $19.5 million.

In fact, voters will be voting on two linked issues. The first is a bond issue, and the second is the tax itself.

For more information on the bonds, the tax and what the School District proposes to do with the revenue the two produce, go to Oconee County Observations.