In this election year and constant social media bemoaning of the cost of groceries and other consumer items, legislators are working on several tax measures to return money to Georgia taxpayers. 

Here’s what the bills would do if they pass in both chambers and the governor signs them.

The House of Representatives passed three bills to provide income and property tax breaks to Georgians, all of which are now under consideration in the Senate:

• HB 1015 cuts the state income tax for individuals to 5.39% from 5.49%, retroactive to Jan. 1. The bill would accelerate a graduated tax drop that already started, per a 2022 law, at a top tax rate of 5.75%, which is planned to decrease to 4.99% by 2029. At the time, House Ways and Means Chair Shaw Blackmon, R-Bonaire, said the cuts, once fully implemented, would save a family of four with an income of $75,000 about $650 per year. 

If the Senate and governor approve the new bill, Georgia residents who earned $58,000 in 2024 would save another $34 in annual income tax, according to a Georgia Budget & Policy Institute analysis. Those earning $105,000 would save an additional $72, and those earning $183,000 would save $128, according to the institute.

The state is expected to collect $1.1 billion less in income tax revenues this year if the latest tax rollback is approved. 

• HB 1021 increases the state income tax deduction for each child or dependent (including an elder parent) to $4,000 from $3,000. The Georgia Budget & Policy Institute estimated that families will save about $54 per dependent per year through this tax exemption if implemented in fiscal year 2025, which begins July 1, 2024.

The change would cost the state about $152 million in revenues in fiscal year 2025. 

• HB 1019 increases the homestead exemption on the assessed value of an owner-occupied home to $4,000 from $2,000. Bill sponsor Rep. Matt Reeves, R-Duluth, noted that tax bills vary according to the assessed value and local tax rates and said that average savings to homeowners in his Gwinnett County district would be about $100.

Meanwhile, the Senate passed a competing bill that would prohibit local governments from raising home property assessments more than 3% a year. Senate Bill 349, sponsored by Sen. Chuck Hufstetler, is now under consideration in the House. 

Both bills to change how residential property taxes are calculated would require a majority two-thirds vote in both chambers and voter approval through a state referendum in November.

Have questions or comments? Contact Jill Jordan Sieder on X @journalistajill or at [email protected].

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