---
title: HB 1551. Pickens County; school district ad valorem tax; homestead exemption; increase income cap
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb1551
cite_as: HB 1551, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1551
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1551.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1551/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74092
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.
up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md
previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1550.md
next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1552.md
index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md
omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 887
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1551.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 1551
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-05-11
last_action: Effective Date 2026-05-11
sponsors:
  - Rick Jasperse
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB1551/2025
upstream_id: 2134532
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - property taxes
  - homestead exemption
  - Pickens County
  - school funding
  - local referendum
---

# HB 1551. Pickens County; school district ad valorem tax; homestead exemption; increase income cap

## Text

House Bill 1551 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By: Representative Jasperse of the 11th
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend an Act providing a homestead exemption from all Pickens County School District
ad valorem taxes for educational purposes for the full value of the homestead of certain
residents of that school district, approved April 21, 1997 (Ga. L. 1997, p. 4283), so as to
increase the income cap on such exemption; to provide for compliance with constitutional
requirements; to provide for a referendum, effective dates, automatic repeal, mandatory
execution of election, and judicial remedies regarding failure to comply; to provide for
related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
An Act providing a homestead exemption from all Pickens County School District ad
valorem taxes for educational purposes for the full value of the homestead of certain
residents of that school district, approved April 21, 1997 (Ga. L. 1997, p. 4283), is amended
in Section 2 by revising subsection (a) as follows:
"(a) Each resident of the Pickens County School District who is a senior citizen or who is
disabled is granted an exemption on that person's homestead from all Pickens County
School District ad valorem taxes for educational purposes for the full value of that
homestead if that person's income, together with the income of all members of the family
residing within the homestead, does not exceed $40,000.00 for the immediately preceding
taxable year."
SECTION 2.
In accordance with the requirements of Article VII, Section II of the Constitution of the State
of Georgia, this Act shall not become law unless it receives the requisite two-thirds' majority
vote in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.
SECTION 3.
The election superintendent of Pickens County shall call and conduct an election as provided
in this section for the purpose of submitting this Act to the electors of the Pickens County
school district for approval or rejection. The election superintendent shall conduct that
election on the Tuesday following the first Monday in November of 2026 and shall issue the
call and conduct that election as provided by general law. The election superintendent shall
cause the date and purpose of the election to be published once a week for two weeks
immediately preceding the date thereof in the official organ of Pickens County. The ballot
shall have written or printed thereon the words:
"( ) YES Shall the Act be approved which increases the income cap on the current
full homestead exemption that certain senior citizens and disabled persons
( ) NO receive from Pickens County School District ad valorem taxes for education
purposes from $25,000.00 to $40,000.00?"
All persons desiring to vote for approval of the Act shall vote "Yes," and all persons desiring
to vote for rejection of the Act shall vote "No." If more than one-half of the votes cast on
such question are for approval of the Act, Section 1 of this Act shall become of full force and
effect on January 1, 2027. If the Act is not so approved or if the election is not conducted
as provided in this section, Section 1 of this Act shall not become effective, and this Act shall
be automatically repealed on the 365th calendar day following the election date provided for
in this section. The expense of such election shall be borne by Pickens County. It shall be
the election superintendent's duty to certify the result thereof to the Secretary of State. The
provisions of this section shall be mandatory upon the election superintendent and are not
intended as directory. If the election superintendent fails or refuses to comply with this
section, any elector of the Pickens County school district may apply for a writ of mandamus
to compel the election superintendent to perform his or her duties under this section. If the
court finds that the election superintendent has not complied with this section, the court shall
fashion appropriate relief requiring the election superintendent to call and conduct such
election on the date required by this section or on the next date authorized for special
elections provided for in Code Section 21-2-540 of the O.C.G.A.
SECTION 4.
Except as otherwise provided in Section 3 of this Act, this Act shall become effective upon
its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law without such approval.
SECTION 5.
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.

A House bill would raise the income limit for a Pickens County School District homestead tax exemption from $25,000 to $40,000 for qualifying senior citizens and disabled residents, pending voter approval.

### Plain-language summary

Since 1997, Pickens County School District has offered a full homestead exemption from school property taxes for senior citizens and disabled residents whose household income falls below a set cap. This bill raises that income cap from $25,000 to $40,000 per year, letting more qualifying homeowners keep the full exemption on their school property taxes.
Because the change affects local tax law, the Georgia Constitution requires it to pass both the House and Senate by a two-thirds vote and then go before Pickens County school district voters in a referendum on the November 2026 general election ballot. If voters approve, the higher income cap takes effect January 1, 2027. If voters reject it or the election is not held as required, the whole Act is automatically repealed one year after the election date.

### What it does

- Raises the income cap for a Pickens County School District senior/disabled homestead property tax exemption from $25,000 to $40,000 per year.
- Requires the change to be approved by two-thirds of both the House and Senate under the Georgia Constitution's local tax law rules.
- Requires a countywide referendum in the Pickens County school district on November 3, 2026 before the change can take effect.
- Sets the new income cap to take effect January 1, 2027 only if voters approve it.
- Automatically repeals the entire Act if voters reject it or if the required election is not held.
- Allows any Pickens County school district voter to seek a court order forcing the election superintendent to hold the vote if they fail to do so.

### Who it affects

Senior citizens and disabled homeowners in the Pickens County School District who currently earn between $25,000 and $40,000 a year and were previously excluded from the full exemption, plus Pickens County election officials who must conduct the referendum and the school district that collects the tax.

### Why it matters

If voters approve the measure, more senior and disabled homeowners in Pickens County would pay no school property tax on their homes, potentially reducing their tax bills significantly, while the school district would collect less revenue from those exempted homeowners.

### Key provisions

- Section 1 amends the 1997 Act to raise the income cap in the homestead exemption from $25,000 to $40,000 for qualifying senior or disabled residents.
- Section 2 requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers because the bill affects local ad valorem tax law under the Georgia Constitution.
- Section 3 mandates a referendum in the Pickens County school district on November 3, 2026, with the exact ballot language specified, and sets January 1, 2027 as the effective date if approved.
- Section 3 also provides that failure to hold the required election results in automatic repeal 365 days after the election date, and allows a court to compel the election if officials do not comply.
- Section 4 sets the Act's general effective date as upon the Governor's approval, except for the referendum timing set in Section 3.

## Status

- Status: Passed (2026-05-11)
- Last action: Effective Date 2026-05-11 (2026-05-11)
- Sponsors: Rick Jasperse
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/74092

> The history, votes, and amendments (887 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb1551.md?full=1