AJC's Mike King endorses parks bond referendum

An excerpt from Mike King's opinion column in the Atlanta Journal Constitution, Thursday, October 19, 2006

Don't make me do the math

If Cobb County voters pass the $40 million bond referendum to acquire new land for parks, will they be increasing their tax burden? Not really.

Here's why: The county's current bonded indebtedness for parks is inconsequential, but if the bond referendum is rejected, the property taxes going toward the old bonds would eventually go down a tiny bit. That would happen in 2017, when a 1996 bond issue expires. But taxes would only decrease by about $4 a year on a $200,000 home. Because of the timing, homeowners wouldn't feel much of a difference if they voted for a new bond issue.

Bottom line: It makes all the sense in the world to pass this modest bond issue.