Most people go to the polls knowing exactly how they are going to vote until they reach the end of the ballot and find questions pertaining to referendums or state constitutional amendments of which they were previously unaware.
Next Tuesday’s ballot includes four such questions. Two of the questions required amending the state constitution and two questions are aimed at reducing taxes for Georgia farmers.
The first constitutional amendment will mandate that any high-level state elected official indicted on criminal charges will forfeit their pay until such a matter is adjudicated.
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According to the sample ballot provided by the Elections Board, the amendment would apply to the governor, the lieutenant governor, the secretary of state, the attorney general, the state school superintendent, the commissioner of insurance, the commissioner of agriculture, the commissioner of labor and any member of the general assembly.
The amendment will not apply to local officials such as soon-to-be former Commissioner Sammie Sias, who continued to receive pay while on suspension after being indicted for making false statements to the FBI and illegally destroying documents.
Even after being convicted, Sias may still be receiving a paycheck due to a glitch in the current law.
According to Augusta Clerk of Commission, Lena Bonner, state law mandates that compensation stop for an elected official upon conviction, but Sias is appealing his case and so he may continue to get a paycheck until his term is officially over.
The second proposed amendment reads as such:
“Proposing an amendment to the Constitution so as to provide that the governing authorities of counties, municipalities, and consolidated governments and the board of education of each independent and county school system shall be authorized to grant temporary tax relief to properties severely damaged or destroyed as a result of a disaster and located within a nationally declared disaster area.”
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This measure would cover a major flood or a devastating ice storm and would allow for the suspension of local taxes, should such an event occur.
The referendum questions at the end of the ballot apply to eliminating ad valorem taxes on equipment used for timber production and reforestation.
Family-owned farms would also get a pass on ad valorem taxes on certain equipment as well. Certain family-owned farms already have the exemption, and the changes would expand the exemption to include dairy and egg production farms.
Early voting continues through Friday, and the election is set for Nov. 8.
Scott Hudson is the senior reporter for The Augusta Press. Reach him at scott@theaugustapress.com
