HB439: HB439 Revenue and taxation; revise deductions allowed to dealers

Under current Georgia law, counties and cities do not have a standard mechanism to hand back surplus tax collections to homeowners as a direct credit on their property tax bill. This bill creates that mechanism. A county or municipality that wants to start a 'local homeowner's incentive adjustment grant program' must first get voter approval in a referendum. Once approved, the local government sets up a special grant fund and, in years when it collects more revenue than it budgeted, it appropriates money into that fund. The fiscal officer then calculates a per-homestead tax credit from the fund and applies it to each qualifying homeowner's property tax bill, up to the amount of tax owed after other exemptions and millage rollbacks. The credit cannot exceed the money actually in the fund, and any credit given in error can be collected back like a delinquent tax. The state revenue commissioner will write rules for administering the programs. Once started, a program stays in place until voters approve discontinuing it in another referendum. The law would take effect January 1, 2027.

• Creates a new chapter in Georgia law (O.C.G.A. Title 36, Chapter 89A) allowing counties and municipalities to adopt local homeowner's incentive adjustment grant programs after voter approval.
• Requires a countywide or citywide referendum to start the program and another referendum to end it, with a simple majority deciding the outcome.
• Sets up a dedicated local grant fund (O.C.G.A. § 48-5-381.1) that a local government fills using surplus revenue, meaning money collected above what was originally budgeted.
• Directs local fiscal officers to calculate a per-homestead tax credit from the fund and apply it directly to each qualifying homeowner's property tax bill.
• Caps the credit so it cannot exceed the homeowner's tax bill or the total money available in the fund, and requires the credit amount to be shown on the tax bill.
• Allows local governments to recover any credit that was granted by mistake using the same collection process used for overdue taxes.

Homeowners with a qualifying homestead exemption in participating counties or cities, local government finance officers and elected governing authorities who must run referendums and manage the new grant funds, and the state revenue commissioner, who must write administrative rules for the program.

If voters in a county or city approve one of these programs, homeowners there could see a reduction in their property tax bill in years when the local government collects more revenue than expected. The size of any credit depends entirely on how much surplus money the local government chooses to set aside, so the benefit would vary by place and by year.

• Section 1 adds Chapter 89A to Title 36, defining terms like 'qualified homestead,' 'county millage rate,' and 'local homeowner's incentive adjustment grant fund' (O.C.G.A. § 36-89A-1).
• Code Section 36-89A-2 requires a referendum to start a program and a separate referendum to discontinue one, each decided by majority vote.
• Code Section 36-89A-3 limits new appropriations to the grant fund to years when actual revenue collected exceeded the prior year's budgeted appropriations.
• Code Section 36-89A-4 spells out how fiscal authorities calculate each homeowner's credit and caps it at the homeowner's tax liability or the fund balance, whichever is lower.
• Code Section 36-89A-5 directs the state revenue commissioner to adopt rules and forms for administering the program.
• Code Section 36-89A-6 allows a political subdivision to recover any credit granted in error using the same process used for delinquent taxes.
• Section 2 adds O.C.G.A. § 48-5-381.1, letting local governments create and fund the grant fund from surplus revenue or accumulated general fund overages.
• Section 3 sets the effective date as January 1, 2027.

1. 2026-05-12Effective Date 2027-01-01
2. 2026-05-12Act 709
3. 2026-05-12House Date Signed by Governor (House)
4. 2026-04-06House Sent to Governor (House)
5. 2026-03-25House Agreed Senate Amend or Sub (House)
6. 2026-03-23Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
7. 2026-03-23Senate Third Read (Senate)
8. 2026-03-23Senate Engrossed (Senate)

• Bill Yearta (R, HD-152)Primary sponsor
• Robert Dickey (R, HD-134)
• Noel Williams (R, HD-148)
• Victor Anderson (R, HD-010)
• Trey Kelley (R, HD-016)
• Matt Barton (R, HD-005)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)

1. PassedHouse voteMarch 6, 2025

   170 yea, 1 nay (3 not voting, 6 absent)

   Passage: House Vote #225

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 23, 2026

   49 yea, 1 nay (1 not voting, 3 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #789

3. PassedHouse voteMarch 25, 2026

   99 yea, 64 nay (4 not voting, 9 absent)

   Agree To Senate Substitute: House Vote #764

• property taxes
• homestead exemptions
• local government finance
• referendums
• tax credits