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Monday, October 1, 2007
School Taxes: How Would You Vote?
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
There’s been a lot of commentary recently about the sales-tax-for-property-tax swap that Georgia House Speaker Glenn Richardson has been pushing this year, including another editorial this weekend in the AJC.
As you know, advocates for public education have been on edge about the proposal since it was first floated, mainly because they say sales tax revenue — which is dependent on the highs and lows of consumer confidence — can’t produce reliable funding.
In fact, it wasn’t that long ago that officials in Gwinnett County Public Schools were projecting a $300 million shortfall in their construction budget because the Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax — an added 1 percent tax issued for new schools — wasn’t generating the money they hoped it would.
Tariffs are a serious issue for public education — which, in Georgia, is mainly funded by state and local taxes (property, sales or income). Any changes in tax rates can affect how much money winds up in the classroom.
Richardson and other state lawmakers seem determined to alter Georgia’s tax system in the upcoming session. So you tell me: Does tying school budgets solely to sales tax revenue make sense or not?
UPDATE: At the Atlanta Board of Education meeting Monday night, board members reviewed possible legislative priorities for the coming year. Not surprisingly, opposition to House Resolution 900 — Richardson’s tax plan — was near the top of the list.
