The Greene County Sheriff’s Office New Jail - Issue 12 will be on the ballot March 17, 2020. If passed, Issue 12 will provide funding to build a new Sheriff’s Office and Jail Facility. Issue 12 is a ¼% sales tax on purchases made in Greene County. The sales tax would be temporary and is estimated to pay for the entire facility in 10-12 years. The temporary tax would add just 25 cents to a $100 purchase.
This is NOT a property tax levy. Up to 40% of the tax would be paid by non-Greene County residents according to estimates. 46% of inmates booked into the Greene County Jail have a home address that is outside of Greene County.
The current downtown jail is over 50 years old and is not in compliance with State Jail Standards. The jail has been under a Federal Consent Decree for over 30 years that limits the number of inmates that can be housed. The building that houses the Sheriff’s Administrative offices and Law Enforcement division is almost 100 years old and was originally built as a car dealership.