Stephens County, Toccoa and other cities haggle over SPLOST split; no final vote

At a Stephens County Commission meeting, county commissioners and representatives of the cities of Toccoa, Avalon and Martin continued negotiations over how to split proceeds from the next SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) cycle, discussing allocations ranging from about 77% county / 23% cities to a compromise near 73.5% county / 26.5% cities. No formal vote on a final allocation was taken; the commission recessed to allow further discussion.

The allocation under debate will determine how roughly $29 million to $43 million in projected SPLOST revenue would be distributed for county and municipal “level 1” projects, including jail and judicial building work and government facilities. ‘‘We have 1 item tonight under new business and that is, our second, well, third and final meeting on this last 8 projects and expenditures, with our local municipalities,’’ said Speaker 1 (Stephens County commissioner). ‘‘And hopefully, we can come to a consensus tonight.’’

Why it matters: the split will change how much cash each jurisdiction receives for capital projects and whether the county or cities must issue bonds. County…