Transportation Investment Act
Your Penny, Your Progress

In 2012, a unique transportation referendum passed in three of Georgia's regions: Central Savannah River Area (Region 7), River Valley (Region 8) and Heart of Georgia Altamaha (Region 9). These regions implemented a 10-year special purpose one percent sales tax to fund transportation improvements that had been chosen by their own leadership. Collection of these Transportation Investment Act (TIA) funds began on Jan. 1, 2013.

In May 2018, voters of the Southern Georgia region (Region 11) approved their participation in TIA, and collections for their 10-year sales tax program began on Oct. 1, 2018.

In 2020 (CSRA) and 2022 (RV and HOGA), the citizens of the three original TIA regions again voted to approve continuing their participation for another 10-year term, effective Jan. 1, 2023.

TIA policy requires that all projects from a region's investment list be started within the 10 years in which their funding is collected. Because larger, more complex transportation projects can take several years to go from preconstruction to completed, some projects may still be under construction if and when that region starts another term and another investment list. 

If a TIA 1 project is still under construction when the region enters its TIA 2 decade, its funds have already been collected and assigned during the TIA 1 term, and no additional funding may be pulled for it during the TIA 2 term.

Yes. The law created a Citizens Review Panel for each Special District in which the tax was approved. This panel, made up of Special District citizens, is charged with assessing the progress of projects included on the approved investment lists. Five panel members are appointed by the Speaker of the House and the Lt. Governor. The panel must issue an annual report to the General Assembly which includes project progress and expenditures. A minimum of three public meetings are held annually by each Citizens Review Panel.

Project controls are in place to limit cost overruns. Georgia DOT is committed to designing projects according to scope, schedule and budget as set forth in the approved investment lists. The Citizens Review Panels— appointed by the state's leadership - provide oversight and monitor how dollars are spent.

If the special district transportation sales and use tax collected reaches the projected amount before the 10 years, the tax will stop. Any additional funds collected during that final calendar quarter will be distributed via the discretionary pot of funding, according to the current LARP formula provided to GSFIC for that fiscal year.

It is the goal of the program that every project on the approved investment lists be built. In the event available funding for projects yet to be built is not enough, then the likely approach would be to scale back the remaining projects according to the available funds. However, cash flow projections will be closely monitored during the entire period to help prevent and proactively handle these issues.

Establishing and implementing the TIA project delivery program is an exercise in cooperation, collaboration and communication. Georgia DOT engineers and staff coordinate with partner agencies, local governments, the leadership of Regional Commissions, and the Citizens Review Panels to achieve efficiency and transparency. 

In addition, periodic reports will be made to the Georgia General Assembly and to the public, via the TIA website, social media and news announcements, that will provide updates on projects, revenues and expenditures.

TIA directs the Georgia Department of Revenue Commissioner to exclusively administer, collect and enforce the special district transportation sales and use tax for the use and benefit of the Special District imposing the special district transportation sales and use tax, and to disburse the proceeds of the special district transportation sales and use tax as soon as practicable after collection to the Georgia State Financing and Investment Commission (GSFIC).

TIA directs the Georgia State Finance and Investment Commission (GSFIC) to maintain and administer the special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds in a trust fund, separate from other funds of GSFIC, on behalf of the Special District imposing the special district transportation sales and use tax, to ensure the proper application of the proceeds for the approved investment list(s) for each Special District.

Georgia DOT is responsible for the management of the budget, schedule, execution and delivery of all projects contained in the approved investment lists.

The proceeds of the special district transportation sales and use tax are not funds of the State and are instead held in trust by GSFIC on behalf of the Special Districts imposing the special district transportation sales and use tax. The local governments within each Special District can use the 25% discretionary portion of the tax funds disbursed to them by GSFIC on any other transportation project in the region.

The annual revenue projection is an estimate of the monthly special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds by each Special District for subsequent fiscal years and is prepared by the Georgia State University Fiscal Research Center. The 10-year forecast utilized to create the approved investment lists are reviewed and approved by the State Fiscal Economist.

In managing the budget, schedule, execution, and delivery of the projects contained in the approved investment lists, Georgia DOT exclusively determines whether a project is to be designed and constructed by Georgia DOT, by or on behalf of a local government, or by another public or private entity. 

Regardless of the delivery agent, Georgia DOT is alone responsible for requesting disbursement of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds from GSFIC upon the completion of a project or portion of a project, reporting progress and performance in the execution, schedule, and delivery of projects on the approved investment lists to GSFIC, and providing adequate record-keeping to allow for an annual audit in accordance with O.C.G.A. § 48-8-249(d).

GSFIC provides an annual revenue projection for the subsequent fiscal years to Georgia DOT no later than December 31st of each year. The annual revenue projection includes monthly collection estimates by each Special District. GSFIC will provide updated revenue projections on a quarterly basis or more frequently if monthly collections vary more than five percent (5%) from projections.

TIA directs GSFIC to maintain and administer the special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds in a trust fund, separate from other funds of GSFIC, on behalf of the Special District imposing the special district transportation sales and use tax, to ensure the proper application of the proceeds for the approved investment list(s) for each Special District. Georgia DOT annually provides GSFIC with a draw schedule.

The obligation of GSFIC to pay or reimburse any eligible project cost is expressly limited solely to the amount of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds remitted to GSFIC by the Georgia Department of Revenue net of the local government distributions.

GSFIC's certification as to the availability of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds is conclusive.

Similarly, the obligation of Georgia DOT to pay or reimburse any eligible project cost is expressly limited to the amount of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds remitted to Georgia DOT by GSFIC and designated by Georgia DOT for the project.

In order to safeguard the availability of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds a reserve fund has been established by GSFIC for each Special District. Reserves may be used throughout the year to meet extraordinary cash requirements of GDOT in excess of the annual expenditure projections included in the Annual Program Draw Schedule or in the event monthly revenue collections fall below the Annual Revenue Projection. Reserves will be replenished as soon as special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds allow.

GSFIC and GDOT have established a reserves policy. It is subject to modification depending on Program needs. Similarly, the obligation of GDOT to pay or reimburse any eligible project cost is expressly limited to the amount of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds remitted to GDOT by GSFIC and designated by GDOT for the project.

In the event GDOT's monthly cash needs for projects on the Approved Investment Lists exceed the balance of special district transportation sales and use tax available, GDOT will establish a prioritization of payment schedule. GDOT is currently working on the priority of payment policy. Similarly, the obligation of GDOT to pay or reimburse any eligible project cost is expressly limited to the amount of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds remitted to GDOT by GSFIC and designated by GDOT for the project.

GSFIC has the right to review and audit the use of funds dispensed to GDOT upon receipt of a complaint or as otherwise warranted. In addition, an annual audit, paid for by the net tax proceeds available for the projects on the Approved Investment List for each Special District and conducted by an independent auditing firm as selected by GSFIC. The audit will include a schedule which shows for each project the original estimated cost, the current estimated cost, amounts expended in prior years, and amounts expended in the current year. Similarly, the obligation of GDOT to pay or reimburse any eligible project cost is expressly limited to the amount of special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds remitted to GDOT by GSFIC and designated by GDOT for the project.

It is recognized that projects may include funds from sources other than special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds. For purposes of the annual audit, GDOT shall identify the source of all funds, including funds from sources other than special district transportation sales and use tax proceeds.

As they are collected, region's TIA proceeds are divided into two portions: 1) 75% is used to fund all projects on that region's final investment list, and 2) 25% is divided among all local governments within the region to be used to fund individually-selected transportation needs.

Code Section 48-8-249 (e) provides that "proceeds shall be used by the local governments only for transportation projects as defined in paragraph (10) of Code Section 48-8-242 and may also serve as the local match as required for state transportation projects and grants."

Code Section 48-8-242 (10) provides "'Project' means, without limitation, any new or existing airports, bike lanes, bridges, bus and rail mass transit systems, freight and passenger rail, pedestrian facilities, ports, roads, terminals, and all activities and structures useful and incident to providing, operating, and maintaining the same. The term shall also include direct appropriations to a local government for the purpose of serving as a local match for state and federal funding."

Each local government's share is based on the actual monthly proceeds, as well as the county's 'LARP factor,' which is a function of its population and its number of road miles.

Specifically, the 'LARP factor' is defined in Code Section 48-8-242 (6) as: the sum of one-fifth of the ratio between the population of a local government’s jurisdiction and the total population of the Special District in which the local government is located, plus four-fifths of the ratio between the paved and unpaved centerline road miles in the local government’s jurisdiction and the total paved and unpaved centerline road miles in the Special District in which such local government is located.