Help Decide How Your Sales Tax Money Will Be Spent

LAWRENCEVILLE, GA — Want to help decide how money from Gwinnett County's next special-purpose, local option sales tax is spent?

The county is forming a volunteer committee that could let you do just that.

Gwinnett residents are invited to a meeting on Monday, August 15, to form an all-volunteer Citizens Project Selection Committee to review transportation projects for 2017 SPLOST funding.

The committee also will recommend funding priorities to county officials.

Gwinnett County's sales tax renewal is up for a countywide vote on November 8.

Monday's meeting will be from 6:30-9 p.m. in the auditorium of the Gwinnett Justice and Administration Center, at 75 Langley Dr. in Lawrenceville.

"Our goal is to select members and alternates to represent 11 major interest groups on the committee," Alan Chapman, Gwinnett's transportation director, said in a news release.

Four members, one from each county commission district, will represent homeowners and one from each will represent business leaders, environmental stakeholders, schools, civic organizations, the freight and manufacturing industry, seniors and young people.

Participants will select representatives among themselves. To serve on the committee, a participant must be a Gwinnett County resident and provide photo ID.

"In addition to making decisions on projects and funding levels, these volunteers help maintain an open line of communication between county government and the public to maximize the benefits of the sales tax proceeds," Chapman said.

Serving on the committee requires a significant time commitment. Approximately three meetings will be held prior to the November referendum to determine how much of the proposed transportation funding would be allocated to various projects.

Should the referendum pass, the committee would then meet 10 to 12 times over a six-month period to prioritize projects to be recommended to county commissioners for final approval.

If approved by voters, the transportation portion of the new SPLOST program could raise an estimated $486 million for Gwinnett’s transportation needs, such as roads, bridges, intersection improvements and sidewalks.

It would be in effect for six years after the current SPLOST expires on March 31, 2017.

For more, visit www.gwinnettSPLOST.com or call the Gwinnett Department of Transportation at (770) 822-7400.