• Sixty-five percent of the respondents believe the General Assembly should pass a law that caps growth in property assessments by local government.
• 78% of respondents believe the General Assembly should pass a law that requires any local government that wishes to enact a PILOT (Payment in Lieu of Taxes) as an incentive to induce development to first obtain the approval of every other local jurisdiction whose tax revenue will be pledged or abated in the transaction.
• Tracking recent statewide polls, 66% of respondents favor a law that would establish a voucher system that allows a taxpayer to use a portion of existing education dollars normally allocated for that pupil to offset tuition for an alternative education, such as private school.
• Chamber members oppose, however, a law mandating employers to offer up to eight hours per year for employees to participate in and attend school functions (known as the “Time for Schools Act”).

   The responses will be shared with the Cobb legislative delegation. View survey questions here.

Senate Advances Transportation Bill

   The State House and Senate seem to be at odds over which funding mechanism is best for meeting Georgia’s transportation needs. The Senate dropped its version last week in Senate Bill 39 sponsored by Senator Jeff Mullis. The Mullis bill allows counties that make up metropolitan area planning and development commissions, such as the ten counties that make up the Atlanta Regional Commission, to determine whether to levy a tax to go toward transportation projects in the area. The proceeds raised would not be subject to Congressional rebalancing. Transportation leaders in the House are said to be working on a statewide sales tax option; however, speculation is that there may be a local component to it that would allocate funding based on where it was generated.
   While the Cobb Chamber supports any progress made towards funding needed transportation infrastructure, the preferred measure would be one that allows regions the opportunity, as needed, to place a referendum on the ballot for a penny tax that would be spent on projects in that area. Such an approach would avoid congressional rebalancing of the proceeds and avoid a statewide direct tax question on the ballot.

Governor Issues Proposed Budget

   Governor Sonny Perdue issued his proposed budget for fiscal year 2010 and outlined its details in the state of the state address. Included in that budget is $1.2 billion in construction borrowing for economic stimulus. Included in that proposed $1.2 billion budget is $3.6 million for equipment for the Engineering Technology Center at Southern Polytechnic State University and $17.8 million for the design and construction of the Laboratory Addition to the Science Building at Kennesaw State University.