Are you ready to vote on the three proposed amendments?
Choices on the ballot are to vote "yes" or to vote "no" to each of the proposals.
1. Increase Acre Limit for Agriculture and Timber Conservation Use: Shall the Constitution of Georgia, for the purpose of protecting family farmland, be amended so as to increase the maximum acreage to qualify for assessment and taxation as a bona fide conservation use property from 2,000 acres to 4,000 acres?
Background: The Georgia Constitution currently puts a 2,000-acre cap on the amount of farmland or timberland that can be included in a “conservation use” covenant in exchange for a very reduced tax rate.
Change: A “Yes” vote would increase the cap to 4,000 acres.
2. Require Nonpartisan Elections for All Probate Judges: Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to require that all probate court judges be elected in nonpartisan elections?
Background: The Georgia Constitution currently specifies nonpartisan elections for Superior Court judges, State Court judges, Georgia Appeals Court judges, and Georgia Supreme Court justices, but leaves it up to counties to specify how to elect their Probate Judge.
Change: A “Yes” vote would make all Probate Judge elections nonpartisan.
3. Create Next Generation 9-1-1 Fund: Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to authorize the General Assembly to dedicate certain existing revenues, including revenues reallocated by law, to a nonlapsing fund to be used exclusively for the expansion, maintenance, and operation of emergency 9-1-1 systems in this state?
Background: The Georgia Constitution currently specifies that the General Assembly cannot micromanage the spending of public funds appropriated to departments and agencies, except in the case of eighteen “special use” funds.
Change: A “Yes” vote would allow the General Assembly to add a nineteenth special use fund for 9-1-1 systems around the state.