Appling County schedules talks with city leaders as L.O.S.T. request prompts ongoing budget work sessions

Interim County Manager Mike Deal told the board the City of Baxley has requested a 39% share of Local Option Sales Tax (L.O.S.T.) revenue; county officials said Appling County currently receives 30 percent. Commissioners said no agreement has been reached and agreed to hold a joint meeting with the mayors of Baxley, Surrency and Graham to discuss the request.

The board repeatedly reviewed the draft 2023 budget across called meetings on June 16, June 21 and June 28. On June 16 Commissioner Doug Harris moved and Commissioner Charlie Leggett seconded a motion to table a budget work session until June 21 because of timing constraints; the motion passed unanimously. On June 21 commissioners reviewed department-by-department budget pages and asked staff to make changes for another review. On June 28 the board reviewed corrections and again recorded that no changes to L.O.S.T. distributions would be made at that time.

Why it matters: L.O.S.T. allocations affect how sales-tax revenue is split between municipal governments and the county, which in turn influences budget planning for public services. The board’s decision to hold a joint meeting with municipal leaders signals intent to negotiate rather than unilaterally change allocations.

Next steps: The county manager and commissioners will meet with municipal leaders to discuss the request and continue budget work sessions; no final allocation or ordinance change was recorded in the June meetings.