DeKalb County Jail employees will act as tour guides to demonstrate to the public how cramped the jail is. In March, voters will decide whether to enact a new tax that would finance an expansion of the jail.

The referendum, set to be voted on March 16, would levy a half-cent sales tax on most items bought in the county. Food, medicine, automobiles and farm machinery are excluded from the tax, DeKalb County Sheriff Roger Scott said.

The tax is expected to bring in $4 million annually to expand and maintain the jail, Scott said.

The proposed referendum is the lowest cost option to residents, said Dennis Sands, chairman of the DeKalb County Board.

The county board voted 20 to 4 in favor of putting the referendum on the ballot. Objections came from board members who are not comfortable with creating any new tax, Sands said.

The tax will cost the average resident about $3 a month or $36 a year. Comparatively, a property tax increase would cost the average household $150 a year, Sands said.

Also, Sands said, a sales tax would bring in money from more than DeKalb County residents. Anyone making purchases in the county would contribute.

The jail, built in 1981, has been in need of expansion for years, DeKalb Sheriff’s Lt. Joyce Klein said. The passing of a referendum would allow for expansion, but first, Klein said, people need to see what they’re voting for.

“It’s easy for me to sit here and say we need more space,” Klein said. “If you’re going to vote on an issue, you should see it from an insider’s perspective.”

At the time the jail was built, it normally held 40 inmates, with a capacity of 64. On Saturday, 78 inmates were being held, with jail capacity at 89. The referendum would make the jail larger and would add 75 beds.

Being close to capacity with no room to expand makes it difficult to implement sought-after programs or initiatives, Scott said.

There is no space to separate mentally ill inmates, or ones who may be violent, Scott said. The expansion, he said, would provide that space.

The jail expansion could be completed by fall 2006 if the referendum is approved.