Overview

This special purpose local option sales tax (SPLOST) is an opportunity for the voters in DeKalb County to continue the one-cent sales tax for school improvements that was approved by voters in 2007. This sales tax extension is limited to sixty months. If the continuation of the one cent tax is approved on November 8, 2011, school improvements will be funded by everyone who buys goods in the county, regardless of where they
live presentation.

Historically

SPLOST has provided $1.2 billion in revenue to support the Capital Improvements Plan for DeKalb County Schools since 1997.

Since then, twenty-two new schools, twenty-two major renovations/modifications along with many other capital renewal projects have been successfully completed. Additionally, SPLOST funds have been used to improve technology in the classroom and replace school buses as needed.

Going Forward

With an average facility age of forty-one years old, more schools need to be replaced. And in today’s environmentally conscious society, building new schools means making the most of sustainable engineering and technology.

SPLOST IV funds would also be used to continue making improvements to the technology available to students in our schools.

SPLOST will:

  • extend from 2012–2017
  • address a portion of the $2.2 billion need
  • focus on:
  • elementary school new construction
  • installing synthetic turf and replace lighting at stadiums
  • refreshing existing technology equipment and infrastructure
  • making improvements to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
  • upgrading the bus and service vehicle fleet
  • investing in security cameras, closed circuit televisions, and other improvements to the security systems
  • allocating funds for the Local School Priority Request (LSPR) program, which allows each school to make their own capital improvement requests
  • capital renewal—a vital program that will address the replacement of critical systems on an annual rotation at over 300 projects district wide

Frequently Asked Questions

A SPLOST program authorizes the collection of a penny sales tax on any purchases that are taxed in DeKalb County. Monies collected can be used to pay for necessary capital improvements including building improvements, new schools, classroom additions, technology, and transportation needs. To be put in place, voters must approve a SPLOST in a special referendum.

No. This is a continuation of the current penny sales tax for education that was approved by DeKalb County citizens in 1997, 2002, 2007 and 2012. It will not change the existing 7% sales tax in DeKalb County.

No. The penny sales tax spreads the responsibility of providing quality facilities for our children to all citizens (and visitors) of the community, not just homeowners. Anybody who spends money in DeKalb County is funding the Education SPLOST whether or not they live in the county. Approximately 35-40% of the funding will be provided by citizens outside the DeKalb County area.

Non-renewal of the current SPLOST would force the school district to consider other funding options to address the capital improvement needs. Property taxes could increase to fund debt from previous construction, or to cover the cost of future repairs and other capital improvements.

It’s for our children, our students, our future. The SPLOST revenue program is one of the best means to raise funds to give our students the best schools. As SPLOST is renewed, the school system will continue to modernize its infrastructure for the 21st century. Making improvements to our school district’s aging infrastructure, providing improved technology, and maintaining a safe and healthy learning environment will provide our children with the quality learning environment they deserve. Without sales tax money, most of thesw projects will not be done.

  • The school system has the option to receive the necessary construction funds immediately!
  • The school system can provide quality educational facilities for all students now and in the future.
  • Construction can proceed at today’s cost, which will likely be significantly less than tomorrow.
  • The school system receives debt service credit from the State, which will result in greater entitlement of state revenue for capital outlay purposes in the future.

  • SPLOST IV: It is estimated SPLOST IV could generate as much as approximately $475 million over the five-year period
  • SPLOST III, 2007-2012: SPLOST III generated $488 million over the five-year period
  • SPLOST II, 2002-2007: SPLOST II generated approximately $445 million over the five-year period
  • SPLOST I, 1997-2002: SPLOST I generated approximately $300 million over the five-year period

School systems in Atlanta, Fulton, Decatur, and DeKalb by state law must request the sales tax together because of shared borders and contiguous boundary lines.

Good schools are good for the entire community. The social and economic strength of a community are greatly influenced by the quality of the school system. Good schools mean well-prepared citizens, a strong labor market and an inviting atmosphere for living and working. Business and families make decisions to invest in a local area based upon the quality of schools.

Currently, the Georgia State Lottery does not fund K-12 education for the Atlanta Public Schools, City of Decatur Public Schools or DeKalb County Schools. Lottery proceeds only fund the state Pre-K program and the Hope Scholarship. Also, by law, school systems cannot use lottery funds for school renovations and construction projects.

School impact fees are prohibited by the State Constitution.

It is the fiduciary responsibility of the DeKalb School Board and Administration to ensure that SPLOST dollars are used in accordance with the public referendum and applicable laws, regulations and policies. Independent audits are conducted to verify the proper accounting of the funds.

Additionally, the schools superintendent appointed a Citizens Oversight Committee. As an advisory body, these local citizens convene to monitor the SPLOST projects and provide additional validation that the SPLOST program management meets the standard. The goal of this committee will be to develop and foster public trust in the management of SPLOST funds.

  • more information about the committee…

No. The penny sales tax cannot be used for personnel or any other operational costs. Only capital projects, which include new schools, classrooms, technology, and debt retirement, are acceptable uses of the sales tax revenue.

Five Year Local Facilities Plan

The State of Georgia provides limited funding assistance for capital outlay projects in school districts. This funding is determined by state formula. The entitlement funds are awarded as a project is completed. This process is known as “reimbursable” funding which means that the project (or phases of that project) must be completed first and then the district applies for the allotted reimbursement.

Georgia law (20-2-260) requires all school systems to develop and maintain a long-range,five-year plan to be eligible to participate in Georgia’s Capital Outlay Program. Every five years, school districts apply for this funding by completing two major requirements: first, report the number of schools the district expects to operate in that five year period and second, submit a capital project scheduling plan for that five year period.

The first report is known as a “Proposed School Organization.” (In short, the district “proposes” to the state that it will operate said schools.)

The second report is the “Local Five-Year Facilities Plan,” (or LFP) which is a capital project planning document. This document lists all of the specific projects that will be completed over the five-year period. The state of Georgia also conducts a site visit to validate the plan and determines the specifying funding entitlement for each project fitted to the priorities of projects and funding available. For example, a new school may be fully reimbursed while a roof replacement may receive a percentage of the construction value for reimbursement.

Working together, the District staff and State staff collaborate to develop these capital planning documents. This district-state team ensures the documents are prepared to standard and approved by the local school board and the state school board. These documents help ensure the planning, programming, budgeting and execution of the capital projects are completed to achieve state requirements for reimbursable funding.

For the DeKalb County School District only, the state school board must approve the LFP by June 2013 in order for the district to remain eligible to receive these project-reimbursable funds. The DeKalb School District has already programmed approximately $21M into the SPLOST Capital Improvement Plan. Please see the FY2014 entitlement report for details on funding.

For more information of the State of Georgia Capital Outlay Program visit Georgia Department of Education.

The Five-Year Local Facilities Plan (LFP) was approved by the DeKalb County Board of Education in April, 2013 and approved by the Georgia Department of Education (Ga. DOE) in June, 2013.

The LFP is the blueprint the DeKalb County School District will use for its Capital Improvements Plan, which includes new buildings, classroom additions, and facility upgrades.

Approval of Five Year Local Facilities Plan:

  • GA DOE Validation – Team Report of Five-Year Plan
  • DeKalb Board of Education Approval of Five-Year Local Facilities Plan
  • Proposed Organization

Annual Entitlements:

The original, approved LFP is noted below as “Update 0.” All other updates are listed below in the order in which they were received.

As changes are received from the Ga. DOE, they will be posted to this page. You can view the file by clicking on the file name.

Update Date Description File Name

0

4/02/13

 Original Version of Five-Year Local Facilities Plan

1

8/29/13

 Updated Proposed Organization to reflect Pleasantdale ES built to 900 FTE v. 600 FTE.
(Replaces pages 6 – 9.)

2

8/29/13

 Updated Curriculum & Space Needs sheet for proposed New Pleasantdale Elementary School.
(Replaces pages 885.)

3

11/01/13

 Updated Curriculum & Space Needs sheet for Henderson MS – based on proposed classroom addition.
(Replaces page 1441.)
(Out of date: replaced by #5)

4

11/01/13

 Updated Curriculum & Space Needs sheet for Redan HS based on proposed classroom addition.
(Replaces pages 1933 – 1934.)

5

12/02/13

 Updated Curriculum & Space Needs sheet for Henderson MS – based on proposed classroom addition.
(Replaces page 1441.) (Out of date: Replaced by #6)

6

07/08/14

 Updated data for Henderson MS based on updates to proposed classroom addition.
(Replaces pages 1441 – 1456.) (Replaces Update #5)

Program Highlights

  • Retirement of existing CIP’s financial debt (approximately $49M)
  • Completion of SPLOST III work
  • New/replacement of seven (7) elementary schools and one (1) middle school
  • Major roofing, HVAC, code & life safety improvements
  • Six (6) major additions and/or renovations
  • Career technology, fine arts, & classroom additions
  • Renovations of classrooms from floor to ceiling
  • Technology upgrades to all facilities
  • Replacement of school buses and aging service vehicles

Project Schedule

Project Timeline and Sequence

Archive

SPLOST IV Projects

  • Technology Projects

  • Elementary School prototype Design
  • Fernbank ES (August 2015)
  • Gresham Park ES (August 2015)
  • Peachcrest ES (August 2015)
  • Austin ES (August 2018)
  • Pleasantdale ES (August 2018)
  • Rockbridge ES (August 2018)
  • Smoke Rise ES (August 2018)
  • Redan High School Addition
  • Henderson Middle School Addition
  • DSA/DESA/Comprehensive Arts School Conversion
    at former Avondale Middle School
  • Austin ES (August 2018)
  • Pleasantdale ES (August 2018)
  • Rockbridge ES (August 2018)
  • Smoke Rise ES (August 2018)

Building S.P.A.C.E.S. Initiative

The DeKalb County School District (DCSD) is launching the Building S.P.A.C.E.S. Initiative in an effort to determine how, where, and why future resources should be dedicated to the improvement and modernization of our buildings and infrastructure to support the District’s vision “to inspire our community of learners to achieve educational excellence.” This initiative helps support equity across all levels of the organization, in every school, and for every member of our district and community. Whether a space is for Student Growth, Parent Engagement, Administrator Leadership, Community Awareness, Educator Support or Service Delivery, S.P.A.C.E.S. needs to be a place where everyone is welcome and the success of all is paramount.

Status Reports & Audits

Status Report

Audits

Annual Reports