We asked 28 DeKalb elected officials how they will vote and their reasons for supporting or opposing the sales tax. Twenty-six of them responded. Only state Reps. Stacey Abrams (District 84) and Dee Dawkins-Haigler (District 93) did not respond to repeated telephone calls placed over the past two weeks.
DeKalb CEO Burrell Ellis
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“For the first time, we can ensure that there will be regional support of the MARTA rail system. This is an opportunity for us to expand a system that we’ve been investing in for 40 years. If DeKalb County takes $225 million to the table, we’re in the game. If we take zero, DeKalb’s not even on the scoreboard.”
COUNTY COMMISSION
Elaine Boyer (District 1)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
Boyer said through a spokeswoman that she will not comment on T-SPLOST until July. However, she prides herself on having never voted for a tax increase since joining the Board of Commissioners in 1992.
“I believe the citizens of this county do not elect us to go to Decatur to find creative ways to spend their money,” Boyer said in a statement when she qualified for re-election in May. “Government is large enough.”
Jeff Rader (District 2)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“If T-SPLOST fails, the Legislature could decide to move decision-making on projects out of local officials’ hands and into legislators’ hands. Even if we reject the list that we have it doesn’t mean the next list will be any better. {Given the nature of the current legislative leadership} I don’t think that would bode well for transit.”
Larry Johnson (District 3)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“Because it doesn’t have I-20. I’m for transit. I think it’s needed. We just have to go and get it right. … That [I-20] rail line would be a benefit for us economically, health-wise and community-wise.”
Sharon Barnes Sutton (District 4)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I’m not campaigning against it, but I will not vote for it. I support improved transportation in the area. Central and South DeKalb need that I-20 rail. It’s needed for economic development, community transportation, access to all the benefits of this referendum. I think it’s important for the entire region and it’s important enough to do it right. We just needed to do the right thing. South DeKalb shouldn’t be the only segment fighting for South DeKalb.”
Lee May (District 5)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
I am voting against the transportation sales tax because it doesn’t fairly invest funds in the southern part of our region that includes South DeKalb. It leaves out the most important project. I-20 is the most promised, the most studied and the most qualified to receive investment from this sales tax. We just can’t rely on federal funds to get this project done.”
Kathie Gannon (Super District 6)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I came from a ‘no,’ but I’m at a ‘yes.’ One of the biggest reasons is I’m a real transit advocate. I think it would be a terrible loss and shame to give up our 30-year investment in transit by not supporting this opportunity to continue transit growth.”
Stan Watson (Super District 7)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“DeKalb is in dire need of economic development. Nobody in the leadership is developing a plan for the Stonecrest area or for South DeKalb mall. The transportation SPLOST is a start. I don’t like the rapid bus transit for I-20 but it’s a start. DeKalb is due a check, but this is a start.”
CONGRESS
Hank Johnson (District 4)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“Despite its obvious flaws, it is the only thing that we can get out of Georgia’s Legislature at this time that will help untangle the region’s traffic nightmare. With matching funds from the federal government, the investment DeKalb County residents make in transit can pay off not just in the Emory University area, but also in South DeKalb, where we all want to see rail expansion from Indian Creek MARTA station to Stonecrest mall.”
John Lewis (District 5)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I have not really made up my mind. I am biased toward transit. We need to lose our love affair with the automobile and put more of our resources in transit. … For the most part, Fulton and DeKalb have been bearing the burden of MARTA. That is not fair. I am going to do my part to champion rail for I-20.”
DeKalb Delegation
to the General Assembly House
Stacey Abrams (District 84)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
Did not return repeated calls seeking comment.
She voted against House Bill 277, the Transportation Investment Act of 2010, or TIA.
Simone Bell (District 58)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I am neutral at this time. If constituents see something they like, they should vote for it. I am not making recommendations on it. I voted against the transportation bill because it didn’t provide anything specific to the constituents I served at the time.”
Stephanie Stuckey Benfield (District 85)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I have serious reservations about the T-SPLOST. For one, it doesn’t fix the MARTA problem and I am concerned about the lack of full funding for the I-20 corridor. I also think the Georgia Legislature should have shown some more leadership and simply passed a gas tax. … We have one of the lowest gas taxes in the country. As some areas approve and others don’t approve T-SPLOST, the state could end up with a ‘patchwork’ approach to its transportation problems.”
Voted for the TIA in 2010.
Dee Dawkins-Haigler (District 93)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
Did not return repeated calls seeking comment.
She voted against TIA in 2010.
Karla Drenner (District 86)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I support transportation and the transportation reform and I see the importance of what we did in putting it on the ballot to allow citizens to vote for it. I am concerned over the project list and the cost of the referendum for my constituents. I think Fulton and DeKalb are being shortchanged by having to pay more than the rest of the counties for transportation.”
She voted for the TIA in 2010.
Michele Henson (District 87)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“We need a regional transportation network. What we are getting is a heavily politicized patchwork of projects. The sales tax is a very regressive tax, which puts the burden on those who can least afford it. South DeKalb is disserved in all of this. The Clifton Corridor is going to serve the CDC and Emory, which are both tax-exempt institutions. People need to look at it.”
She voted for the TIA in 2010.
Dar’shun Kendrick (District 94)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I am not advocating for T-SPLOST but I will vote for it. After education, transportation is the second reason people don’t want to locate here. It’s far from perfect, but my fear is that if we don’t pass it, then we’ll lose contracts … to other Southern states.”
She wasn’t in the Legislature when TIA was approved in April 2010.
Rahn Mayo (District 91)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I believe a ‘no’ vote is the only way to compel the majority party and leaders in the state who are in favor of this transportation tax to come back to the table and structure a more equitable and favorable project list and governance structure. I believe if this doesn’t pass in July, the General Assembly will immediately get to work on another transportation bill to create a law that will allow us to duplicate this effort and make it even better.”
He voted against the TIA in April 2010.
Billy Mitchell (District 88)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I have some severe concerns about DeKalb being asked to pay another penny without knowing what projects will get priority if the money doesn’t come in as planned. I want to know who is going to get the contracts, who is going to do the work, and who is going to make the decisions. Will the people in my community benefit? Until these questions are answered, I don’t see how they can ask DeKalb to support this.”
He voted for the TIA in April 2010.
Howard Mosby (District 90)
President of the DeKalb Delegation
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I don’t know yet how I will vote. We need answers on the governance issue. What will happen if we don’t raise all the money? How will the projects be prioritized? Where is DeKalb in all of that? Who is going to get the jobs? Who will be awarded those contracts? How can members of this community get contracts?
“This is one of the biggest votes we are going to make and we turn it back to the people. We should have just made the decision. As policy-makers we need to make the decision, not turn it back to the people.”
He voted against the TIA in April 2010.
Mary Margaret Oliver (District 83)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“DeKalb is getting over a billion dollars, so I think we should vote for it for our own county’s interest. Georgia is the only state that does not provide any general revenue for public transportation. We’re falling behind other states. We have to step forward.”
She voted for TIA in April 2010.
Pam Stephenson (District 92)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“If I had to vote today, I would vote no. Unless we get some clarity, I cannot support it. There are too many outstanding issues that are unanswered – control and governance, and MARTA. Why are we penalizing one system over the other? Why can the other transit systems spend their money on operations and maintenance but MARTA is being prohibited?”
She voted against TIA in April 2010.
“Coach” Williams (District 89)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I voted ‘no’ at the Capitol because the speaker of the House and the chairman of the Transportation Committee didn’t give us a chance to speak on the bill or even make comments. I don’t feel that the people in South DeKalb will be given their fair share of revenues. They deserve more.”
SENATE
Gloria Butler (District 55)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I’m going to vote for it although I voted against it during the session. A lot of people in South DeKalb have told me they don’t want it. In DeKalb we have been paying a penny for over 30 years for transportation and a penny for Grady and then we are being asked to pay another penny. But if you don’t do something, then the alternative is nothing. Something has to be done about the tied-up traffic.”
She voted against TIA in April 2010.
Jason Carter (District 42)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I support the T-SPLOST. I think it is critically important for our region’s economy and for creating jobs. Not to support it is to take a step backward for our economy and our community. It’s not perfect, but we absolutely don’t have a choice as Atlantans. In the current environment, I don’t think we are going to do better for DeKalb.”
He was not yet a senator when the TIA passed in 2010.
Steve Henson (District 41)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“I am not out there advocating for T-SPLOST, but I will vote for it. I didn’t think we needed 12 regional councils. I would have preferred a different method for paying for transportation improvements, but it’s the only game in town, so I’m going to vote for it.”
He voted against the TIA in April 2010.
Emanuel Jones (District 10)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“We recognize that it’s not perfect. But considering the environment we’re in, with the congestion and the lack of transportation dollars, to me this is a good approach to building the infrastructure we need in the Greater Atlanta area. Keep in mind that this is not a permanent tax. It’s a short-term tax that I think will yield long-term results.”
Jones voted for the TIA in April 2010.
Ronald Ramsey (District 43)
3 Yes 3 No 3 Undecided 3 No comment
“If we vote for this, we will not have rail and citizens along the I-20 corridor will receive double taxation without [rail] transportation. I think we need to vote it down and force the issue back to the table so that we can craft a viable transportation plan that not only serves its intent on a regional basis but that attracts the kind of industry and growth that was the reason I voted for the transportation plan.”
He voted against the TIA in April 2010.
– Compiled by Donna Williams Lewis
and Jennifer Ffrench Parker
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