Cobb superintendent defends Ed-SPLOST funding distribution

Cobb Education SPLOST critics — *A Cobb school district graphic shows how SPLOST funds have been distributed by school board post.*

During a Cobb Board of Education meeting Thursday night, school superintendent Chris Ragsdale took issue with criticism of how Education SPLOST funds have been distributed across the county.

Early voting began Monday in a Cobb Education SPLOST VI referendum that would extend the one-percent sales tax for school construction, maintenance and technology from 2024-28.

That extension, if approved, would provide nearly $900 million for the Cobb County School District and Marietta City Schools.

The Education SPLOST (Special-Purpose Local-Option Sales Tax) began in 1999 and has been extended by voters ever since. The current SPLOST V expires Dec. 31, 2023, and is expected to collect nearly $800 million.

At a SPLOST virtual town hall earlier this week held by the Mableton Improvement Coalition, there were complaints that some parts of Cobb County were being left behind in SPLOST funding.

“I truly do not understand how anyone in due conscience can propagate such a false narrative,” he said. “I need to present data to show a true and accurate picture of SPLOST. Some continue to push the idea that only certain schools or areas of Cobb get the majority of SPLOST funding.”

Ragsdale then showed a pie chart illustrating how SPLOST revenues from the first five sales tax collections have been distributed, according to school board post (above).

Although dollar figures were not provided, the chart showed that Post 2 (Smyrna/South Cobb), Post 1 (North/West Cobb), Post 6 (Part of East Cobb/Cumberland) and Post 3 (South Cobb/Mableton/Austell) have had the highest percentages.

The other two East Cobb-area posts, 4 and 5, and Post 7 (West Cobb/Powder Springs) had the lowest percentages, at around 10 percent each.

“Cobb has always provided SPLOST funds to the areas of greatest need,” Ragsdale said, reading from prepared remarks. “Those areas change over time. . . . When those needs change, that’s where the funding will be provided as well.”

Ragsdale did not respond to citizens who spoke earlier in the meeting that they were opposing SPLOST because they think the Cobb school district isn’t doing a good job handling the money.

Among the critics is Heather Tolley-Bauer, an East Cobb resident and a co-founder of Watching the Funds, a citizen watchdog group that’s been tracking Cobb school district finances since late last year.

The group (we profiled WTF in July) has been critical of district spending on COVID-19 safety measures, as well as the AlertPoint emergency system that has malfunctioned.

Her message was “No Accountability, No SPLOST.”

“In the past I’ve voted yes, but as a parent and an advocate for fiscal responsibility in our schools this year I will vote no,” Tolley-Bauer said during a public comment session. “And I am not alone.

“Because of the actions of this board, we have no confidence in you. . . . Why have you neglected your fiduciary responsibility to us?”

Later Thursday, the school district posted the pie chart on its Facebook page but faced more criticism from voters who made similar complaints.

Some wanted to know more details of how the district has been spending federal money designated for COVID-19 recovery, and the district linked to a Georgia Department of Education page with related information.

That didn’t satisfy some citizens, including one who wrote “Clean house, CCSD leadership and I, along with a large number, will happily vote for this 2024 SPLOST.”

Those responses have concerned parents who are advocating for SPLOST VI, which includes a rebuild of the main campus building at Sprayberry High School (full list of projects here).

They’re having a community meeting on Tuesday at 6:30 p.m. at the school (2525 Sandy Plains Road) to go over the proposed rebuild, as well as newly approved projects for a new Sprayberry gym and renovations to the school’s career training facility.

Shane Spink, a leader of the Sprayberry rebuild effort, has continued to counter current criticisms by saying that the “Ed-SPLOST is not about the curriculum or school board policies. The Ed-SPLOST is not partisan. The project list for Cobb County School District reaches across party lines of the school boards and each and every Cobb County School gets improvements through this.”