5 minutes for a clean energy future for Dekalb!

August, 2023

QUICK ACTION NEEDED

We have a great opportunity to advocate for Dekalb SPLOST II funds to go towards clean energy projects! Please take a super quick survey NOW to provide input to Dekalb County commissioners before they vote tomorrow (Thursday, August 24) morning. 

Click here to take the survey.

Why is it important?

Dekalb County had its first SPLOST (Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax) in 2017. The 1% sales tax was restricted to funding four categories - transportation, public safety, parks and recreation, and community facilities. 
 
SPLOST II does not have such restrictions, and Dekalb County Commissioners have been reaching out to their constituents to determine what the SPLOST II funding categories should be. This is an ideal time to prioritize county investments in clean energy in order to leverage money that is available through the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). Billions of dollars of federal grant money is available in matching funds for solar energy, energy efficiency, electric vehicles and other clean energy projects. 10-20 dollars of local taxpayer money can bring back 70-80 dollars of federal money!

Can my input on the survey make a difference?

Yes! During his last community meeting on August 17th, Commissioner Ted Terry presented information about District 6 survey responses collected up to that point (see below) . As you can see in the first column, some of the #1 priority votes were very close. Clean Energy Projects was listed as the #1 priority by 104 people. The next highest vote getting categories had 107, 109, and 111 votes. 
If everyone receiving Decatur Cares About Climate emails takes the survey and ranks Clean Energy Projects as their #1 priority, we will make a major impact.
The Dekalb County Commissioners can only respond to our concerns if they hear from us!

Thanks for being part of Decatur Cares About Climate, and thanks for taking action! Please forward this on to friends and family and ask them to also take the survey.