HB 1371: Georgia Secure Tomorrow Act of 2026; enact

Georgia currently offers various job tax credits, but none specifically target companies working on defense, space, drone, or disaster-response technology. This bill creates a new tax credit under Georgia's income tax code (O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.38) for 'business enterprises' engaged in what it calls 'Secure Tomorrow activities,' a broad category covering work supporting the U.S. Department of Defense, national security space and air systems, FEMA and Georgia Emergency Management Agency disaster response, and related dual-use technologies like drones and counter-drone systems. To qualify, a company must invest at least $3 million in a new facility (or $1.5 million to expand one) and create or retain at least 20 full-time jobs paying at least 135 percent of the county average wage. Companies apply to the state and a new Secure Tomorrow Task Force certifies eligible projects. Approved companies get a base wage credit plus bonuses for veterans, drone work, space work, and disaster-response work, plus a capital investment credit and location bonuses near military bases, ports, airports, or engineering schools. Credits are capped at $15 million per project and $75 million statewide per year, and take effect January 1, 2027.

• Creates a new Georgia income tax credit for businesses engaged in defense, space, drone, and disaster-response work that meet job and investment thresholds.
• Requires companies to create or retain at least 20 full-time jobs paying at least 135 percent of the county average wage to qualify.
• Sets minimum investment requirements of $3 million for a new facility or $1.5 million to expand an existing one.
• Creates the Secure Tomorrow Task Force, a 15-member state panel, to review applications and certify which projects qualify for the credits.
• Allows unused credit amounts to be refunded against withholding payments and carried forward for up to 15 years, and requires repayment with interest if a company later fails to meet job or investment requirements.
• Caps total credits at $15 million per project and $75 million statewide in any single year.

Businesses in defense manufacturing, aerospace and space systems, drone and counter-drone technology, and emergency response equipment or services; veterans employed by those businesses; the Georgia Department of Economic Development and Department of Revenue; and communities near military bases, ports, airports, or engineering colleges that could see qualifying facilities locate nearby.

Companies that meet the job, wage, and investment thresholds could significantly reduce their Georgia income tax bills, potentially by millions of dollars per project, which could influence where they choose to build or expand facilities. Georgia taxpayers would forgo up to $75 million a year in tax revenue in exchange for the promised jobs and investment.

• Section 2 adds O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.38, defining 'Secure Tomorrow activities' to include defense industrial base work, national security space and air systems, disaster response for FEMA and the Georgia Emergency Management and Homeland Security Agency, and related dual-use technologies.
• Subsection (b) requires companies to apply to the state commissioner and have their project certified by the new Secure Tomorrow Task Force within 30 days of application.
• Subsection (c) grants a base credit of 7 percent of employee compensation, plus added credits of 1.5 to 2 percent for veterans, drone workers, space-sector workers, and FEMA/GEMA equipment or service workers, for up to 15 years.
• Subsection (d) adds a capital investment credit of 10 percent, rising to 14 percent for investments over $25 million or projects creating more than 150 jobs.
• Subsection (e) adds location-based bonuses, including 3 percent of capital investment for projects within 60 miles of listed military bases, ports, or the Atlanta airport, or $5,000 per new job near an engineering-focused college.
• Subsection (f) makes excess credits refundable against a business's quarterly or monthly withholding payments.
• Subsection (h) caps credits at $15 million per project and $75 million in aggregate per taxable year statewide.
• Subsections (j) through (m) require biennial compliance reports and impose recapture of past tax savings, with interest, if a business fails to maintain jobs, wages, or investment, or abandons the facility.

1. 2026-02-20House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-02-19House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-02-18House Hopper (House)

• Jordan Ridley (R, HD-022)Primary sponsor
• Kasey Carpenter (R, HD-004)
• Mitchell Horner (R, HD-003)
• Trey Kelley (R, HD-016)
• Mitchell Scoggins (R, HD-014)

• tax credits
• defense industry
• economic development
• aerospace and space industry
• emergency management