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County staff seek direction on whether to include a "level 1" SPLOST project as referendum deadline nears
Summary
Deputy COO Landry Murchison told the board the county must decide whether to include a countywide "level 1" SPLOST project, which would be paid off the top of collections, and finalized project lists must be ready for the August referendum call.
At the Clayton County Board of Commissioners meeting on May 20, Deputy Chief Operating Officer Landry Murchison asked the board to decide whether the county will include a countywide "level 1" project in the planned 2026 special-purpose local-option sales tax (SPLOST) referendum and outlined compressed timing for calling a referendum.
Murchison told commissioners the SPLOST team is preparing a project list with municipal partners and is using an escalation factor of roughly 3 to 4 percent based on recent SPLOST collections. She explained a level 1 project is a countywide facility limited to certain categories: "it can be a courthouse, an administrative building for elected officials or constitutional officers, a county or regional jail, correction institution, or detention facility, a county health department facility, or any combination of the foregoing," she said.
Why it matters: funds for any approved level 1 project come off the top of projected SPLOST collections, potentially reducing the amount available for city and other county projects. Murchison said the dollar value of a level 1 project "can take a substantial portion if not all of the SPLOST depending on what that is," and the board needs to confirm the board's will to include such a project before staff finalizes the call for projects.
Murchison outlined a compressed timeline. Staff must provide an approved project list to the board by the Aug. 5 meeting so the county elections authority can call the referendum in line with statutory meeting requirements; she also said the county must notify municipal partners by mid-June. In previous SPLOST cycles the board used a citizens' committee or resolution-based approaches to vet project lists, but recent cycles allowed more lead time. Murchison asked whether the board prefers to place a staff-prepared list on a work session or board meeting for open discussion or recreate a citizens' committee under a tighter schedule.
Board members asked clarifying questions about what qualifies as a county health department facility; Murchison said that designation depends on county decisions because the county and Clayton Health District have different facility and funding relationships. Commissioner questions also focused on timing and whether SPLOST planning would conflict with budget hearings.
Next steps: Murchison said staff would move forward promptly when the board provides direction on level 1 projects and committee structure. Municipal partners have provided points of contact and project lists, and staff said they will return with a proposed project list and recommended process after the board decides how to proceed.
Ending: Murchison urged fast action from the board, saying, "The sooner the better because we are really behind" in the schedule to meet the August call-for-referendum timeline.
