Georgia Voter Debt

For more than 150 years Georgians have had the right to control local government debt via referendum (GA Constitution: Debt Clause and Revenue Bond clause). Our rights have been invalidated by the courts. We need an amendment to the state constitution to reverse what the Courts have done. Larry Savage 12/3/17

The Cobb County Commission voted to saddle their voters with a $2 billion debt to get the Braves Stadium moved from Atlanta to Cobb. You would think that a debt of this size and complexity would have required a ballot issue, so that Cobb voters could decide. Responsible cities don’t replace their stadiums every 20 years, they maintain and upgrade them. The Cobb Stadium is making I-285 gridlock worse than it already is and the cost of expanding roads and highways is too high.

City Councils in Georgia cities can exercise similar disregard for the voters and have their appointed committees authorize tax giveaways to companies with no ballot action.

Georgia law allows government entities to borrow with no limits. Cities and counties can borrow up to 10% of the value of their tax register that includes all property in their cities and counties, including yours.  This need to be reduced to limit the borrowing for these municipalities to the value of city and county assets. Businesses can’t borrow more than the value of their assets and government should be held to the same standards. We’ve had lots of cities and counties go bankrupt over the past decades.

Norb Leahy, Dunwoody GA Tea Party Leader