January 20, 2001

The Honorable Vernon Jones

DeKalb County Chief Executive Office

1300 Commerce Drive - 6th Floor

Decatur, GA 30030

Honorable Sir:

A property owner, I wish to respond directly to your proposal to raise the millage rate increasing property taxes on DeKalb County residents. On behalf of thousands of already over-burdened South DeKalb taxpayers, I want to make it perfectly clear; property owners oppose any increase in their assessments. Instead, south DeKalb residents feel that they are due a refund. South DeKalb taxpayers have indicated, by every means available, that they want a countywide audit to examine the disparities in services between north and south DeKalb County. The goal of such an audit should be to pair up revenue collection with current outlays to pinpoint disparities in county services, which resulted from previous tax increases. This communication presents an overview of a study commissioned by the Richard L. Kirksey, Jr. Memorial Foundation to illuminate the continuing role of institutionalized racism in the allocation of resources and services in DeKalb.

Seeking support early in your campaign for CEO, you appeared at a Town Hall meeting at Cedar Grove High School held for citizens desiring to express their opinion regarding a proposed park at Ward Lake next to Seminole Landfill. As you know, that location was rejected, but the park was promised as soon as a new site was found. However, almost three years later, no site has been proposed and no park built. During our conversation you promised, "If you elect me CEO, I will make sure this community gets a top quality park." Lack of a positive response to needs expressed by south DeKalb residents has been the pattern of previous county administrations and lies at the heart of our opposition to any tax increase. Since that meeting, several new and improved parks and recreational facilities have been opened in north DeKalb County, but none on the south end.

Storm clear-up last year showed the same pattern of disparities in services. First, all cleanup and debris removal was concentrated on the northern end of the county and quickly completed. However, the opposite was true for south DeKalb, where piles of trash remained in some neighborhoods as late as June. White contractors with make-shift trash hauling trailers came from as far away as Augusta and were awarded contracts for debris removal, while local haulers had to overcome hurdles, such as bonding and equipment specifications. White males received 94% of those contracts. The records do not indicate whether the remaining 6% went to white women or blacks.

The implementation and results of HOST (Homestead Option Sales Tax) still sticks in south DeKalb’s craw. Under HOST, all DeKalb neighborhoods were to be served equally with curbs and sidewalks. According to the hard-to-come-by information available, 98 % of all HOST funds have been spent in north DeKalb County. Further, 91 % of the contracts awarded were given to white males, even though blacks make up 62 % of DeKalb’s population. South DeKalb did not get curbs, gutters and sidewalks, therefore we missed out on opportunities to improve property values. Neither did black businesses benefit from county expenditures, which would have improved their bottom lines. It is the classic case of blacks paying full price but being forced to ride in the back of the bus, while black politicians agree blacks should stand if whites want to sit.

This brings us to south DeKalb’s greatest rub, the MARTA sales tax. Gauging your responses, DeKalb residents are unsure on which side your office will come down in the current class action lawsuit in federal court contesting the takeover of MARTA by GRTA. This suit docket number 1:00-CV-3259RWS John Burl Smith v. Roy Barnes alleges the State of Georgia violated "due process" and "equal protection" rights of DeKalb and Fulton County residents by expropriating their public utility -MARTA- without their consent or any compensation. South DeKalb County residents wonder also what are your plans regarding MARTA rail service to south DeKalb and the extension of the MARTA sales tax until 2047. In this regard, the lack of fairness and equity has widened the chasm of inequality. Since the end of segregation a lack of mobility has intensified disparities in economic development, access to jobs in other areas and the ability of South DeKalb to attract jobs. This bleak outlook for south DeKalb's economy is made worse by Roy Barnes’ proposed restrictions on teen driving. These issues are top priorities for us rather than green space.

Former DeKalb CEO Liane Levatan announced a $ 3.5 million redevelopment package for the Candler Road corridor in May 1998. Beyond paying a consulting firm from Boston to study what was already known, this project has not advanced. South DeKalb is like a hive of honeybees producing tax revenue that is harvested by beekeepers in north DeKalb. MARTA and the south DeKalb train served the same purpose for the State of Georgia. Roy Barnes’ takeover of MARTA through GRTA allows him to take our transportation tax money to benefit north Georgia and counties that have voted repeatedly not to spend their tax dollars to pay for their public transportation needs. The class action lawsuit against GRTA challenges this whole concept as unconstitutional, because it places an unfair tax burden on a few citizens in two counties -DeKalb and Fulton- by forcing them to pay for transportation for others they themselves do not receive.

This study concludes that in all areas of county services blacks experience disparate treatment, which is the institutionalized racism that began during slavery and was compounded during segregation. According to researchers, the record does not show DeKalb County instituted programs or procedures that made up for county and state government official actions that deprived blacks citizens of "equal protection" rights, following the death of segregation circa 1980. Despite lawsuits involving school desegregation, county employment, minority contracting, allocation of resources and services, relatively speaking, there has been no substantial change in the impact of institutionalized racism on DeKalb County.

Sir, black citizens elected you to deal with these issues and to level the playing field for blacks in DeKalb County. We did not expect you to join the other side and immediately "hit the ground running" by increasing our tax burden. South DeKalb's citizens see Sheriff Derwin Brown’s murder as a lynching. We remember when the KKK burned crosses atop Stone Mountain. A warning like the Georgia flag, this fiery symbol of terrorism could be seen for miles. Blacks survived then and we will survive now. We elected you because of your pledge; "I will stand up for you." We pray Sheriff Brown’s assassination filled black officials with greater determination to root out corruption in DeKalb County, regardless of color. We expect you to keep your promise that your administration will not be "business as usual." South DeKalb wants to know where you stand on issues presented here? I await your timely response.

Respectfully,

John Burl Smith