On Friday, April 1, Monroe County will begin collecting proceeds from the Transportation Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax (TSPLOST) that was approved by nearly 60 percent of Monroe County voters via referendum in November 2021.
This means beginning tomorrow the county’s sales tax increases from seven cents per dollar to eight cents per dollar on consumer goods with some exclusions.
Per the Georgia Department of Revenue, in addition to the statutory exemptions that generally apply to all local taxes, TSPLOSTs do not apply to
- the sale or use of jet fuel
- the sale or use of any type of fuel used for off-road heavy-duty equipment, off-road farm or agricultural equipment, or locomotives
- the sale or use of fuel that is used for propulsion of motor vehicles on the public highways
- motor fuel for public mass transit
- the sale, use, storage, or consumption of energy that is necessary and integral to the manufacture of tangible personal property at a manufacturing plant in Georgia
The TSPLOST is expected to generate about $17 million in revenue ($14.1 million for Monroe County, $2.6 million for Forsyth and $300,000 for Culloden) over the next five years with at least half of that revenue generated by visitors to the county.
Monroe County intends to spend its portion of the proceeds on the resurfacing of as many county roads as possible as ranked by greatest need of repair. Commissioners approved last month to contract with an Atlanta-based civil engineering firm, Neel-Schaffer, Inc., to perform a comprehensive evaluation of all Monroe County roads that will be used to prioritize TSPLOST road repairs.
