I certainly appreciate Dr. Kornegay taking time to answer questions and address concerns I have about ESPLOST IV. Especially since I’m a member of a demographic that receives few services and little attention from the school board, a senior citizen with no children or grandchildren in school locally.

I also appreciate the expanded explanation he gives about the use of the money that could be collected should the ESPLOST be given. I would like to point out again; this is a new tax every time because it must be allowed by the voters… again. This will be the fourth iteration. ESPLOST III will expire on a certain date. Unless voters have allowed it there won’t be an ESPLOST IV.

In my opinion this is no longer a SPECIAL PURPOSE local option sales tax. If it were it wouldn’t be used for the same things the prior tax has been used for the last 20 years. I like to call it the Business As Usual local option sales tax.

Instead of taking his frustration out on me Dr. Kornegay should be speaking to the state representatives and senators that represent Thomas County. The key to increasing funding of education lies with the state, and it’s the state that’s taken money previously used and currently needed by Thomas County Schools; and made it necessary to create a tax. When a genuine SPECIAL PURPOSE need arises the SP sales tax will be in use and the board will have to raise property tax anyway. Once they do that there won’t be anything left to hold over the voters heads.

Want to do something everyone can benefit from? Give a senior citizen school tax exemption. Not the half measure currently available; do it for real. Every homeowner can benefit from this.

Dr. Kornegay, regarding the invitation to your office. The reason I didn’t come back is I didn’t have any new questions and I knew your answers to the same questions would be same as last time. Maybe you were under the impression when I left that I agreed with you about ESPLOST. We didn’t agree then and still don’t. A difference of opinion is what makes America great.

Again I suggest the senior citizen school tax exemption. You’ll recall we also talked about that the day I was in your office.

It’s OK to vote against ESPLOST. The school boards can bring it up again. If it doesn’t pass this time we’ll see it again and again until it does. They can do that, we can’t; so make them work for it.

Vote NO on the ESPLOST… thanks again!!

Edward Marshall

Boston