Voters in 47 Localities Will Decide School Construction Sales Tax This Fall

Voters in 47 Virginia localities will decide in November whether to add a 1% sales tax to fund school construction and renovation, Cardinal News reported as the state's Commission on School Construction and Modernization reconvened.

Local leaders raced to meet an August ballot deadline after legislation this year extended the option statewide. The 47 referendums cover about 38% of newly authorized localities and include Floyd, Franklin, Giles, Grayson, Pulaski, Smyth and Wythe counties and Martinsville in Southwest and Southside Virginia.

Nine localities already had the authority under earlier law and have raised more than $119 million, according to Virginia Mercury reporting cited by Cardinal. Jeremy Bennett of the Virginia Association of Counties said the rush to the ballot shows both facility need and demand for local revenue tools.

Franklin County, with more than $117 million in identified capital needs, and Prince Edward County's One for Prince Edward campaign are among local outreach efforts. Former Richmond officials also launched Virginians for Modern Schools to share toolkits statewide.

Revenue under the updated law must go to future school construction or renovation; some Northern Virginia localities may also use proceeds for public transit. The revived state commission is reviewing referendum status and broader facility needs first estimated near $25 billion in 2021.

Email the Prince Edward County Board/Council:
Harrison Jones, District1@co.prince-edward.va.us,
Victor Thomas “Bill” Jenkins, District2@co.prince-edward.va.us,
Jerry Townsend, District3@co.prince-edward.va.us,
Odessa Pride, District4@co.prince-edward.va.us,
Llewellyn Gilliam Jr., District5@co.prince-edward.va.us,
David Emert, District6@co.prince-edward.va.us,
Cannon Watson, District7@co.prince-edward.va.us,
Pattie Cooper-Jones, District8@co.prince-edward.va.us,

Email the Richmond City Council:
Andrew Breton, andrew.breton@rva.gov,
Katherine Jordan, katherine.jordan@rva.gov,
Kenya Gibson, kenya.gibson@rva.gov,
Sarah Abubaker, sarah.abubaker@rva.gov,
Stephanie Lynch, stephanie.lynch@rva.gov,
Ellen Robertson, ellen.robertson@rva.gov,
Cynthia Newbille, cynthia.newbille@rva.gov,
Reva Trammell, reva.trammell@rva.gov,
Nicole Jones, nicole.jones@rva.gov,

Email the Giles County Board/Council:
Jeffrey Morris, jmorris@gilescounty.org,
John Lawson, Jr., jlawson@gilescounty.org,
Perry Martin, pmartin@gilescounty.org,
Richard “Ricky” McCoy, rmccoy@gilescounty.org,
Paul “Chappy” Baker,

Email the Franklin County Board of Supervisors:
Mike Carter, Mike.Carter@franklincountyva.gov,
Marshall Jamison, Marshall.Jamison@franklincountyva.gov,
Mike Meredith, mike.meredith@franklincountyva.gov,
Nick Mitchell, Nick.Mitchell@franklincountyva.gov,
Dan Quinn, dan.quinn@franklincountyva.gov,
Lorie Smith, Lorie.Smith@franklincountyva.gov,
Tim Tatum, tim.tatum@franklincountyva.gov,

Email the Martinsville City Council:
LC Jones, lcjones@martinsvilleva.gov,
Kathy Lawson, klawson@martinsvilleva.gov,
Rayshaun Gravely, rgravely@martinsvilleva.gov,
Aaron Rawls, arawls@martinsvilleva.gov,
Julian Mei, jmei@martinsvilleva.gov,

Email the Prince Edward County School Board:
Harvey Tackett,
Doug S. Farley,
Timothy W. Corbett, Sr.,
James A. Arieti,
Lucy B. Carson,
Robyn Simpson,
Susan Kimbrough,
Cainan Townsend,

Email the Richmond School Board:
Matthew Percival, mpercival@rvaschools.net,
Kathryn Ricard, kricard@rvaschools.net,
Ali Faruk, afaruk@rvaschools.net,
Wesley Hedgepeth, whedgepeth@rvaschools.net,
Stephanie Rizzi, srizzi@rvaschools.net,
Anne Holton, aholton@rvaschools.net,
Cheryl Burke, cburke2@rvaschools.net,
Emmett Jafari, ejafari@rvaschools.net,
Shavonda Fernandez, sdixon@rvaschools.net,

Email the Giles County School Board:
Jason B. Buckland, jbuckland@gilesk12.net,
Nicole Price, nprice@gilesk12.net,
Larry Jay Williams, jaywilliams@gilesk12.net,
Melissa Guynn, mguynn@gilesk12.net,
William “Davy” Price, dprice@gilesk12.net,

Email the Franklin County School Board:
Arlet Greer,
Jonathan Holley,
Jerry Conner,
Rebekah Slocum,
Jeff Worley,
Ron Shiflett,
Sandra Ingram,
Todd Martin,

Email the Martinsville School Board:
Nekia Blackwell,
Kathy Carter,
Yvonne Givens,
Tony Jones,
Michael Williamson,