For many Georgians, (including me in Cobb County) the Presidential Primary was the only thing on the ballot on Tuesday. Not the case in Fulton, where residents were asked to vote on extending a 1% sales tax in the city of Atlanta for another four years to fund sewer infrastructure improvements. The Municipal Option Sales Tax, (MOST) which was backed by Mayor Kasim Reed, passed with relative ease, taking nearly 75% of the vote.
The money raised by the sales tax will primarily be used to develop a stormwater management plan in order to divide stormwater from waste water so that excess rainwater doesn’t go through the water treatment process. The extra stormwater, when put through the sewer system and treated, puts a massive amount of undue stress on the city’s wastewater infrastructure. Supporters of the bill warned that water bills for some Atlanta residents could rise by as much as 30% were the measure not passed as the city would have to improve its infrastructure regardless, per federal mandates.
Critics of the MOST pointed to widespread corruption in the Department of Watershed Management, which has been under fire in recent years for reports of mismanagement leading to stolen water meters and other equipment by employees. Following an audit in 2014, fourteen employees of the agency were fired, but questions still remain about the competence of a department which is receiving a significant amount of taxpayer money to build out infrastructure. On Tuesday voters seemed unfazed by those concerns, however, passing the MOST and giving the city the money it needs.
