VALDOSTA — The Education Special Purpose Local Option Sales Tax was passed once again with poll results of %80. The tax allows local school districts to collect a one percent sales tax to fund school facility improvements and equipment.

On Tuesday, March 17, local residents were able to vote for the ESPLOST V tax. The ESPLOST tax is already an existing tax, and was voted to continue into the next five years as the fifth ESPLOST passed in Valdosta City and Lowndes County.

The ESPLOST V funds will be divided between Valdosta City and Lowndes County school systems over a span of five years after the current ESPLOST ends. The current ESPLOST will end in the next two years.

The ESPLOST V campaign kicked off early this year to ensure that local school systems could plan financially for upcoming years. The largest project ESPLOST V will be funding is a new Valdosta High School.

“Much of what we are going to be doing with our ESPLOST funds will be to construct a new Valdosta High School. Why a new high school? The one that we currently have was occupied in 1972, though it has had some cosmetic changes on the inside, the infrastructure is still that of 1972. We have major infrastructure problems out there including a deteriorated sewer infrastructure, water infrastructure, and air chiller,” Martin Roesch, Valdosta City Superintendent said at the ESPLOST V kick off. 

This year’s tax is expected to receive a maximum total of about $58 million. The extension is set at a sum of $135 million or 5 years, which ever comes first.