Voters would decide whether or not the county should have the power to create tax allocation districts.

By MICHAEL PEARSON
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 05/06/08

The Gwinnett County Commission on Tuesday formally requested a July 15 referendum on giving the county power to create tax allocation districts.

The Georgia General Assembly passed legislation this year allowing the county to hold the vote, despite voters’ rejection of an identical measure last year and a Georgia Supreme Court ruling that severely diminishes the ability of the taxing districts to generate revenue for redevelopment projects.

Supporters of tax allocation districts said voters did not understand what they were being asked when the issue last came before them. Supporters also note voters in several Gwinnett cities later approved such districts in those cities after intensive public education efforts.

Tax allocation districts work by freezing the amount of property tax revenues collected by governments and directing revenues generated by rising property values into a fund used to pay for redevelopment projects. In February, the state Supreme Court ruled that the state constitution forbids the use of school funds for anything but education, taking away nearly half of the revenue available to TADs.

In addition to the Gwinnett voting bill, the General Assembly passed legislation to allow voters statewide to decide whether they want to reverse that opinion.

The TAD referendum will be the only non-partisan issue on the July 15 primary ballot.