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In March, Troup County voters will head back to the polls for another important election, although there won’t be any people on the ballot this time around.

However, the stakes for our community are arguably just as high, if not higher, than the general election in November, or in January, when Georgia decided control of the U.S. Senate.

March’s election will be based around the ESPLOST, a one-cent sales tax that funds capital improvements in the school system.

The vote is not for a new tax but is instead to continue the current ESPLOST, which has helped pay for new schools, technology upgrades, security updates and more.

We realize that people hate paying taxes, but without this money, the school system would be unable to upgrade buildings and would be in dire straits trying to find funding for necessary projects, such as HVAC upgrades or flooring and roofing replacements.

We realize the big-scale projects get most of the water cooler talk, but this ESPLOST VI also includes adding classrooms, replacing flooring and fixing heating and cooling issues at numerous schools.

It’s not all about building schools, though it did fund the construction of Clearview Elementary School and will fund the building of a new Rosemont Elementary School, if it passes.

We also hear that too much of the money goes toward athletic facilities, but only projects at Callaway High School focus on athletics this time around.

ESPLOST V, the last SPLOST approved by voters, included the athletic facilities at LaGrange High and Troup High.

It’s also important to point out that ESPLOST is not a property tax.

It’s a sales tax, meaning anyone who makes a purchase in Troup County pays into it, including visitors.

It’s estimated that a significant chunk of ESPLOST funding actually comes from visitors.

Supporting ESPLOST means supporting the next generation of our community’s leaders.

It means ensuring children have an up-to-date, safe location to do their schoolwork.

It’s important we invest in the school system and in the future of this community.

We hope you’ll do your own research on ESPLOST and make an informed decision when you go to the polls when they open.

And we hope that decision will ultimately be yes, as there’s a lot riding on this vote.