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Joint Ocilla–Irwin County SPLOST renewal placed on November ballot, project lists deferred
Summary
Referendums from Ocilla and the Irwin County Commission to renew a joint city-county SPLOST were received for the November ballot; the renewal is projected to raise $5.5 million over six years with a 40/60 city–county split and would take effect July 1, 2025 if passed.
The Irwin County Board of Elections & Registrations confirmed on July 30 that the City Council of Ocilla and the Irwin County Commission submitted referendums for a joint city-county Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (SPLOST) renewal, placing the question on the November general-election ballot.
Board members noted the current SPLOST expired July 1, 2024. The proposed renewal would take effect July 1, 2025 if approved, meaning the 1% sales-tax break would remain in place until that date. The board recorded an estimate that the joint SPLOST is expected to raise $5,500,000 over six years, with 40% allocated to Ocilla and 60% to Irwin County; uses listed in the submission include retirement of indebtedness on current capital projects, roads, city sanitation, acquiring public safety vehicles for the city, landfill maintenance, and maintenance or improvement of city property.
Supervisor Ethan Compton explained that due to the tight timeframe to meet ballot deadlines, the city and county passed resolutions and formed an intergovernmental agreement so the referendum could be added this year; detailed project lists were not compiled in time. He said the allocation figure was calculated using 2022 U.S. Census Bureau population figures for Ocilla and Irwin County. The board noted that if any county entity seeks SPLOST funding for a project during the upcoming period, the county commission will need to meet and approve debt acquisition for that project prior to the SPLOST’s effective date.
The board also confirmed outreach steps: a Call for Special Election was placed in the Ocilla Star and notices with the full text of the referendum were scheduled to run four consecutive weeks prior to the election, with the first publication stated in the record as planned for July 17. The transcript does not include the exact election date or a finalized project list; the board treated the item as an administrative placement of the referendum on the ballot.
