proposed $90 million special purpose local option

sales tax is getting some powerful backing.

The

600-member Fayette County Board of Realtors has

endorsed the county Board of Education's SPLOST

and bond referendum, to be on the ballot Sept.

21.

School

board members voted Thursday to put the SPLOST

and accompanying $50 million bond sale on the

ballot, asking voters for permission to raise

funds for 289 new classrooms, upgraded technology

and security devices in the county's schools,

which are experiencing a growth rate of an

average 700 students per year.

"There

is not any group more aware of the number of new

people in the county than Realtors," said

Carolyn McCullough, president of the Board of

Realtors.

"Something

has got to change, and we think the SPLOST option

beats all the other alternatives," she

added.

McCullough

said her group "intends to work for the

passage" of SPLOST beyond issuing a

resolution, by having members speak to local

organizations. "I do believe this cause is

worth our efforts," she added. "Growth

is not going to stop."

This

is not the first time Realtors have gotten

involved politically. McCollough said that

Realtors recently won their fight against the

state legislature's proposed Amendment I, which

called for taxes to be paid by people selling

their homes for the Heritage Park fund.

"This

amendment was not in the best interest of

property owners," she said.

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