---
title: HB 141. Revenue and taxation; allow businesses and practitioners to provide affidavits of certified public accountants in lieu of tax returns
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb141
cite_as: HB 141, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb141
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb141.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb141/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69563
date: 2026-05-11
status: passed
corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13
license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md
publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 1802
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb141.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 141
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-05-11
last_action: Effective Date 2026-07-01
sponsors:
- Martin Momtahan
- Trey Kelley
- Mandi Ballinger
- Charles Cannon
- Brent Cox
- Noel Williams
- Jason Anavitarte
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB141/2025
upstream_id: 1945147
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- occupation tax
- local government taxation
- small business
- certified public accountants
- tax returns
---
# HB 141. Revenue and taxation; allow businesses and practitioners to provide affidavits of certified public accountants in lieu of tax returns
## Text
House Bill 141 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By: Representatives Momtahan of the 17th, Kelley of the 16th, Ballinger of the 23rd, Cannon
of the 172nd, Cox of the 28th, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Code Section 48-13-10 and Code Section 48-13-14 of the Official Code of
Georgia Annotated, relating to determining amount of occupation tax, criteria for
classification of businesses and practitioners, administrative fee, exemptions or reduction in
fees for economic development, and election of tax by practitioner, and levy on business or
practitioner with location or office in more than one jurisdiction, allocating gross receipts,
and limits on levies using criteria for taxation, respectively, so as to allow businesses and
practitioners to provide affidavits of certified public accountants in lieu of tax returns; to
provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Code Section 48-13-10 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to determining
amount of occupation tax, criteria for classification of businesses and practitioners,
administrative fee, exemptions or reduction in fees for economic development, and election
of tax by practitioner, is amended by adding a new subsection to read as follows:
"(i) A business or practitioner may elect to provide affidavits of certified public
accountants in lieu of tax returns or other financial information to local governments to
facilitate their determination of the amount of occupation tax to be levied."
SECTION 2.
Code Section 48-13-14 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to levy on
business or practitioner with location or office in more than one jurisdiction, allocating gross
receipts, and limits on levies using criteria for taxation, is amended by revising paragraph (1)
of subsection (d) as follows:
"(1) Financial information necessary to allocate the gross receipts of the business or
practitioner, provided that a business or practitioner may elect to provide affidavits of
certified public accountants in lieu of tax returns; and"
SECTION 3.
All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.
## Summaries written by Georgia Commons
The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary.
House Bill 141 lets Georgia businesses and professionals submit a certified public accountant's affidavit instead of tax returns when local governments calculate occupation taxes.
### Plain-language summary
Local governments in Georgia charge occupation taxes on businesses and licensed practitioners, and current law lets them ask for tax returns or other financial records to figure out how much tax to levy, including allocating gross receipts when a business operates in more than one jurisdiction. This bill gives businesses and practitioners another option: they can choose to submit a sworn affidavit from a certified public accountant (CPA) instead of handing over tax returns or other financial information.
The bill amends two sections of Georgia's occupation tax law (O.C.G.A. § 48-13-10 and § 48-13-14). One change lets any business or practitioner elect to use a CPA affidavit in place of tax returns when a local government sets the occupation tax amount. The other change applies specifically to businesses with offices in multiple jurisdictions, allowing a CPA affidavit in place of tax returns when allocating gross receipts among those jurisdictions. All conflicting laws are repealed.
### What it does
- Adds a new option letting businesses and practitioners submit a certified public accountant's affidavit instead of tax returns to help local governments set occupation tax amounts.
- Amends the multi-jurisdiction gross receipts allocation rule so businesses can use a CPA affidavit instead of tax returns to allocate receipts among jurisdictions.
- Repeals any existing state or local laws that conflict with these new options.
### Who it affects
Businesses and licensed practitioners who pay local occupation taxes, especially those operating offices in more than one Georgia jurisdiction, local governments that levy and calculate occupation taxes, and certified public accountants who would prepare the affidavits.
### Why it matters
Businesses could avoid disclosing full tax returns to local governments by instead providing a CPA's sworn statement, potentially simplifying paperwork and protecting sensitive financial details, while local governments would need to accept these affidavits as an alternative basis for calculating occupation taxes.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 adds subsection (i) to O.C.G.A. § 48-13-10, letting a business or practitioner elect to provide a CPA affidavit in lieu of tax returns or other financial information for occupation tax determinations.
- Section 2 revises paragraph (1) of subsection (d) in O.C.G.A. § 48-13-14, adding the same CPA affidavit option for allocating gross receipts of businesses with locations in multiple jurisdictions.
- Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Passed (2026-05-11)
- Last action: Effective Date 2026-07-01 (2026-05-11)
- Sponsors: Martin Momtahan, Trey Kelley, Mandi Ballinger, Charles Cannon, Brent Cox, Noel Williams, Jason Anavitarte
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69563
> The history, votes, and amendments (1,802 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb141.md?full=1