All the people who are active in metro Atlanta, whether it be politicians, real estate folks, big companies/senior management, the universities, foundations, etc are doing what they can to promote TSPLOST.
Those who are against are 3 groups:
1) All the "think I know what's really best for Atlanta because I'm such a connected businessman" Republicans in the suburban counties. These are definitely your Tea Party people who just can't conceive that conservative businessmen and Republican governors could actually be for such a horrible TAX. They think that all the successful leaders in GA (whether private or public sector) are wrong for some reason.
This same group also refuses to acknowledge any facts and resorts to categorizing, generalizing, and hysteria. They lump this tax in with HOT and GA 400 tolls. They lump it in with any other tax that has produced revenue that has been mispent and subject to corruption. No denying that has happened before. They say this that and the other about this tax without having actually read the bill and without actually saying anything factually correct about it whatsoever, and there won't be any way to convince them. They seriously think all taxes are evil, except for the Fair Tax.
WHICH LEADS ME TO MY MAIN POINT::::
This is hardly different from the fair tax. This is a tax on consumption, and no necessaries like food, batteries during storm season, etc. Why are they so against this tax? Some of them already only pay 6% sales tax, and yet their schools are closing, their libraries shuttering, and obviously gridlock is the 800 pound gorilla in the room. A 25 mil property tax and 6-7% sales tax is not going to solve any problems when your county is growing by 2-4% each year! If we were moderate to slow growth region, sure, but we're not.
2) Fulton/Dekalb middle class residents who feel they already pay for this thing with higher sales tax (technically they do and they have for decades) while other counties piggyback and demand service and say without actually paying for it.
This is a contentious issue because now Fulton/Dekalb residents will be double paying for transit and for roads out in the burbs. Other counties have not been paying for transit in Fulton, but Fulton has been paying for transit that has benefited other areas in indirect ways. There is an issue of fairness here, but I hope people get over it.
Sales tax in Atlanta will now be 9%, among the highest in the nation. That's a tough pill for some to swallow, and rightly so.
I think the way to spin this (at the risk of further alienating suburban voters) is to point out that Atlanta as a city will ultimately benefit the most. This is a jobs bill and those jobs are going to be coming to the city, which will help tax rolls.
3) Poor Dekalb/South Fulton mostly minority residents. They are going to most likely have some forms of relief from this tax and the economics should not necessarily impact them, but the tax does not necessarily benefit them like it does the wealthier suburban areas and the wealthier intown areas of Fulton/Dekalb. It's not like we're building more MARTA lines through dependent neighborhoods or overhauling busses in any significant way.
Sierra Club and the NAACP are on board with this line of thought.
From WSJ today:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304830704577496503502969584.html?KEYWORDS=atlanta
I think it's doomed to fail. People are just too hung up on key thoughts like "It's not the appropriate mix of projects and won't help" or "It's a tax and should not be passed as it will be mispent" (which is entirely not true...we know what 85% of the tax will go towards and we have a citizen oversight committee), etc etc.
Untie Atlanta is catchy, but is not catching on. I am the only one I have seen with a Vote Yes July 31st/Untie Atlanta bumper sticker, and for such a hot/major issue one would expect a little more.
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