---
title: HB 276. Income tax; change certain definitions
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb276
cite_as: HB 276, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb276
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb276.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb276/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69943
date: 2026-03-06
status: introduced
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: 199
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb276.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 276
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-02-05
last_action: House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute
sponsors:
- James Burchett
- Bruce Williamson
- Vance Smith
- Trey Kelley
- Shaw Blackmon
- Clint Crowe
text_version: Comm Sub
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB276/2025
upstream_id: 1958329
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- income tax credits
- biomass energy
- data center tax breaks
- high-tech manufacturing incentives
- state tax exemptions
---
# HB 276. Income tax; change certain definitions
## Text
The House Committee on Ways & Means offers the following substitute to HB 276:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to revenue and
taxation, so as to provide for a tax credit for woody biomass power generators; to provide for
limits; to provide for taxpayer certification; to provide for transfer of credits, reimbursement
of related audit costs, and recapture of tax credits wrongfully allowed; to authorize
promulgation of regulations; to provide for definitions; to provide for limitations of
exemptions for certain high-technology companies and high-technology data centers; to
extend such exemption for on-site woody biomass power generation; to provide for
definitions; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to revenue and taxation, is
amended in Article 2 of Chapter 7, relating to imposition, rate, computation, exemptions, and
credits, by adding a new Code section to read as follows:
"48-7-40.38.
(a) As used in this Code section, the term:
(1) 'Capacity' means the ratio of the net energy produced by a generating facility to the
amount of energy that could have been produced, in the absence of any scheduled or
unscheduled outages, in any selected time period.
(2) 'Power generator' means any equipment owned and operated by a customer of an
electric service provider for the production of electrical energy that:
(A) Operates on woody biomass;
(B) Has a minimum capacity of 50 megawatts; and
(C) Is used at least 50 percent capacity during the prior taxable year.
(3) 'Woody biomass' means wood residuals that include land-clearing residue, urban
wood residue, and pellets and do not include wood from any United States national forest.
(b)(1)(A) A taxpayer shall be allowed tax credits for expenditures made for the
purchase, installation, and readying of a power generator and related components
against the tax imposed by Code Section 48-7-20 in an amount of $500,000.00 per
megawatt of capacity for a maximum of five taxable years.
(B) The aggregate amount of tax credits allowed per taxpayer pursuant to this Code
section shall not exceed $200 million.
(2) The aggregate amount of tax credits allowed pursuant to this Code section shall not
exceed $1.6 billion.
(c) In order to claim the tax credits provided for in this Code section, a taxpayer shall
attach to such taxpayer's state tax return certification from the taxpayer that the
requirements of this Code section have been met and any other information required by the
commissioner.
(d)(1) Any tax credits allowed pursuant to this Code section shall be claimed on or
before December 31, 2036.
(2)(A) The total amount of the tax credits allowed pursuant to this Code section for a
taxable year may exceed the taxpayer's income tax liability.
(B) Tax credits claimed pursuant to this Code section may be carried forward for ten
years from the close of the taxable year in which the credits are claimed, provided that
no such tax credit may be claimed after December 31, 2036.
(e) Tax credits claimed pursuant to this Code section but neither used by the taxpayer
against its income tax liability nor refunded may be transferred or sold one time to one
single other Georgia taxpayer, subject to the following conditions:
(1) Only the taxpayer that claimed the tax credits allowed pursuant to this Code section
shall make the transfer or sale of such tax credits;
(2) The taxpayer that claimed the tax credits allowed pursuant to this Code section shall
submit to the commissioner written notification of any transfer or sale of such tax credits
within 30 days after the transfer or sale of the tax credits. Such written notification shall
include:
(A) Such taxpayer's credit balance prior to transfer;
(B) The credit certificate number;
(C) The remaining balance of credits after transfer;
(D) The tax identification number of the transferee;
(E) The date of transfer;
(F) The amount of credits transferred; and
(G) Other information as may be required by the department;
(3) Failure to comply with any provision of this subsection shall result in the
disallowance of the tax credits allowed pursuant to this Code section until the taxpayer
that claimed the credits is in full compliance;
(4) The transfer or sale of the tax credits shall not extend the time during which such tax
credits may be used. The carry-forward period for tax credits that are transferred or sold
shall begin on the date on which such tax credits were originally claimed; and
(5) A transferee shall have only such rights to claim and use the tax credits that were
available to the transferor at the time of the transfer; provided, however, that a transferee
shall not be eligible to transfer or receive a refund of such tax credits. To the extent that
the transferor did not have rights to claim or use the tax credits at the time of the transfer,
the commissioner shall disallow the tax credits claimed by the transferee or recapture the
tax credits from the transferee or transferor. The transferee's recourse shall not be against
the commissioner.
(f)(1) A taxpayer claiming, transferring, or selling tax credits allowed pursuant to this
Code section shall be required to reimburse the department for any department initiated
audits relating to the tax credits, provided that such amount shall not exceed the value of
the credits claimed by the taxpayer. This paragraph shall not apply to routine tax audits
of such taxpayer that may include the review of the tax credits provided in this Code
section.
(2) The commissioner may pursue all remedies available by law as necessary to
recapture tax credits wrongfully allowed or claimed by a taxpayer or a taxpayer's
transferee.
(g) The commissioner shall be authorized to promulgate any rules and regulations
necessary to implement and administer this Code section."
SECTION 2.
Said title is further amended in Code Section 48-8-3, relating to exemptions regarding state
sales and use tax, by revising paragraphs (68) and (68.1) as follows:
"(68)(A)(i) The sale or lease of computer equipment to be incorporated into a facility
or facilities in this state to any high-technology company classified under the 2017
North American Industrial Classification System code 334413, 334614, 511210,
517311, 517312, 517410, 517911, 517919, 518210, 522320, 541330, 541511,
541512, 541513, 541519, 541713, 541715, or 541720, provided that the exemption
allowed under this paragraph shall be limited to those purchases or leases made by
such a high-technology company for calendar years during which the high-technology
company made taxable purchases or leases of at least $15 million worth of such
computer equipment.
(ii) Notwithstanding the provisions of division (i) of this subparagraph to the
contrary, on and after January 1, 2024, and ending on December 31, 2028, the
exemption allowed under this paragraph shall be limited such that each person
claiming the exemption allowed by this paragraph shall be subject to paying 10
percent of all taxes imposed by this chapter on the first $15 million of its eligible
purchases or leases for which an exemption is claimed under this paragraph.
(iii)(I) Notwithstanding the provisions of divisions (i) and (ii) of this subparagraph
to the contrary, on and after January 1, 2029, and ending on December 31, 2034, the
exemption provided for by this paragraph shall be limited to high-technology
companies located in any county that includes a habitable barrier island with no
bridge to the mainland and owned by the Department of Natural Resources, and in
counties designated as tier 1 under Code Section 48-7-40 and to high-technology
companies that utilize power generator equipment installed and used behind the
meter at least 50 percent capacity with a minimum capacity of 50 megawatts during
the prior taxable year.
(II) As used in this subparagraph, the term:
(a) 'Behind the meter' means on the customer's side of the electric service
provider's meter.
(b) 'Capacity' means the ratio of the net energy produced by a generating facility
to the amount of energy that could have been produced, in the absence of any
scheduled or unscheduled outages, in any selected time period.
(c) 'Power generator' means any equipment owned and operated by a customer of
an electric service provider for the production of electrical energy that:
(1) Operates on woody biomass;
(2) Is located on the customer's premises;
(3) Operates in parallel with the electric service provider's distribution facilities;
(4) Is connected to the electric service provider's distribution system on the
customer's side of the electric service provider's meter; and
(5) Is intended primarily to offset part or all of the customer's requirements for
electricity.
(d) 'Woody biomass' means wood residuals that include land-clearing residue,
urban wood residue, and pellets and do not include wood from any United States
national forest.
(B) Any person making a sale or lease of computer equipment to a high-technology
company as specified in subparagraph (A) of this paragraph shall collect the tax
imposed on the sale by this article unless the purchaser furnishes such seller with a
certificate issued by the commissioner certifying that the purchaser is entitled to
purchase the computer equipment without paying the tax. As a condition precedent to
the issuance of the certificate, the commissioner, at such commissioner's discretion,
may require a good and valid bond with a surety company authorized to do business in
this state as surety or may require legal securities, in an amount fixed by the
commissioner, conditioned upon payment by the purchaser of all taxes due under this
article in the event it should be determined that the sale fails to meet the requirements
of this subparagraph.
(C)(i) As used in this paragraph, the term 'computer equipment' means any individual
computer or organized assembly of hardware or software, including, but not limited
to, a server farm, mainframe or midrange computer, mainframe driven high-speed
print and mailing devices, and workstations connected to those devices via high
bandwidth connectivity such as a local area network, wide area network, or any other
data transport technology which performs one of the following functions: storage or
management of production data, hosting of production applications, hosting of
application systems development activities, or hosting of applications systems testing.
(ii) Such term shall not include:
(I) Telephone central office equipment or other voice data transport technology,
including any wireline or wireless telecommunication system;
(II) Equipment with imbedded computer hardware or software which is primarily
used for training, product testing, or in a manufacturing process;
(III) Computers or devices issued to employees, which shall include, but not be
limited to, smartphones, tablets, wearables, personal computers, and laptops; or
(IV) Prewritten computer software.
(D) Any corporation, partnership, limited liability company, or any other similar entity
which qualifies for the exemption and is affiliated in any manner with a nonqualified
corporation, partnership, limited liability company, or any other similar entity must
conduct at least a majority of its business with entities with which it has no affiliation.
(E) Each high-technology company that has been issued a certificate of exemption
pursuant to this paragraph shall report annually to the commissioner a list of the
facilities for which all computer equipment exempted by this paragraph during the
preceding calendar year was incorporated, as well as the amount of taxes exempted
under this paragraph during the preceding calendar year. Such report shall be filed
within 90 days after the end of the calendar year for which the high-technology
company utilized a certificate of exemption pursuant to this paragraph and shall be
subject to the confidentiality provisions of Code Section 48-2-15. The commissioner
shall not issue a certificate of exemption under this paragraph for the calendar year next
succeeding the reporting date to any high-technology company that has failed to
comply with the reporting required by this subparagraph.
(F) The commissioner shall promulgate such rules and regulations as are necessary to
implement the provisions of this paragraph.
(68.1)(A) For the period commencing on July 1, 2018, and ending on
December 31, 2031, except as otherwise provided by subparagraph (H) of this
paragraph, high-technology data center equipment to be incorporated or used in a
high-technology data center that meets the high-technology data center minimum
investment threshold and other conditions provided in this paragraph.
(B) Any person making a sale or lease of high-technology data center equipment shall
collect the tax imposed on such sale by this article unless the purchaser furnishes such
seller with a certificate issued by the commissioner certifying that such sale or lease is
exempted pursuant to this paragraph.
(C)(i) The commissioner shall not issue a certificate of exemption from sales and use
tax to a high-technology data center or high-technology data center customer as
provided in this paragraph unless the commissioner makes a determination that the
high-technology data center will more likely than not meet the high-technology data
center minimum investment threshold.
(ii) The commissioner may require any information necessary to determine if such
high-technology data center is in compliance with its investment budgeting plan to
meet the high-technology data center minimum investment threshold.
(iii)(I) Within 60 days after the end of the seventh year following its exemption
start date, a high-technology data center shall file a final report with the
commissioner listing the expenditures incurred that count toward its minimum
investment threshold, the number of new quality jobs created, and any other
information that the commissioner may reasonably require to determine whether the
high-technology data center has met the minimum investment threshold.
(II) If the commissioner determines that a high-technology data center failed to
meet its high-technology data center minimum investment threshold, such
high-technology data center shall be required to repay all taxes exempted or
refunded pursuant to its certificate of exemption issued pursuant to this paragraph
within 90 days after notification of such failure. Interest shall be due with such
repayment at the rate specified in Code Section 48-2-40 computed from the date
such taxes would have been due but for this exemption. Such repayment shall be
calculated notwithstanding otherwise applicable periods of limitation for assessment
of taxes under Code Section 48-2-49.
(iv)(I) As a condition precedent to the issuance of a certificate of exemption, the
commissioner, at his or her discretion, may require a good and valid bond with a
surety company authorized to do business in this state, in an amount fixed by the
commissioner not to exceed $20 million. The commissioner shall consider past
performance and in-state investment when determining the value of the bond, if one
is required.
(II) The bond that may be required by this division shall be forfeited and paid to the
general fund in an amount representing all taxes and interest required to be repaid
pursuant to division (iii) of this subparagraph if the high-technology data center fails
to meet the high-technology data center minimum investment threshold prior to the
expiration of the seven-year period.
(v) The commissioner shall have the authority to revoke the certificate of exemption
at any time he or she believes that the high-technology data center is not likely to
meet its high-technology minimum investment threshold.
(vi) Each high-technology data center that has been issued a certificate of exemption
pursuant to this paragraph shall provide a list of high-technology data center
customers that are deploying high-technology data center equipment in its facility and
shall notify the commissioner within 30 days of any change to the list.
(D)(i) The commissioner shall require annual reporting by the high-technology data
center of the amount of taxes exempted under this paragraph, the number of new
quality jobs, and the total payroll resulting from construction, maintenance, and
operation in and on its facility during the preceding year.
(ii) The commissioner shall issue an annual report to the chairperson of the Senate
Finance Committee and the chairperson of the House Committee on Ways and Means
concerning the exemption allowed by this paragraph. Notwithstanding the
confidentiality provisions of Code Section 48-2-15, such report shall include, for the
prior calendar year for each high-technology data center issued a certificate of
exemption pursuant to this paragraph, the amount of tax exempted and the number of
new quality jobs created by each high-technology data center.
(E) The commissioner shall promulgate such rules and regulations as are necessary to
implement the provisions of this paragraph.
(F) A high-technology data center shall not be entitled to claim any credit authorized
under Code Sections 48-7-40 through 48-7-40.33 or Code Section 36-62-5.1 on its tax
return if it has received a certificate of exemption from the commissioner pursuant to
this paragraph. If a determination is made by the commissioner pursuant to division
(iii) of subparagraph (C) of this paragraph that the high-technology data center must
repay all taxes exempted or refunded pursuant to this paragraph, such high-technology
data center may file amended income tax returns claiming any credit to which it would
have been entitled under the foregoing Code sections but for having claimed the
exemption under this paragraph.
(G) As used in this paragraph, the term:
(i) 'Exemption start date' means the date on or after July 1, 2018, chosen by the
high-technology data center and indicated on its application filed on or after
January 1, 2019, which begins the seven-year period during which the minimum
investment threshold must be met. A refund claim must be filed for taxes paid on
purchases qualifying for this exemption for any period on or after July 1, 2018, during
which the high-technology data center has not yet applied for and received its
certificate of exemption from the commissioner.
(ii) 'High-technology data center' means a facility, campus of facilities, or array of
interconnected facilities in this state that is developed to power, cool, secure, and
connect its own equipment or the computer equipment of high-technology data center
customers and that has an investment budget plan which meets the high-technology
data center minimum investment threshold.
(iii) 'High-technology data center customer' means a client, tenant, licensee, or end
user of a high-technology data center that signs at least a 36 month contract for
service with the high-technology data center.
(iv) 'High-technology data center equipment' means computer equipment as defined
in paragraph (68) of this Code section of a high-technology data center or such
equipment of a high-technology data center customer to be used or deployed in the
high-technology data center; and the materials, components, machinery, hardware,
software, or equipment, including, but not limited to, emergency backup generators,
air handling units, cooling towers, energy storage or energy efficiency technology,
switches, power distribution units, switching gear, peripheral computer devices,
routers, batteries, wiring, cabling, or conduit, which equipment or materials are used
to:
(I) Create, manage, facilitate, or maintain the physical and digital environments for
computer equipment;
(II) Protect the high-technology data center equipment from physical,
environmental, or digital threats; or
(III) Generate or provide constant delivery of power, environmental conditioning,
air cooling, or telecommunications services for the high-technology data center.
Such term shall not include real property as defined in Code Section 48-8-3.2. A
high-technology data center may not count high-technology data center equipment
that it purchases or that is purchased by the high-technology data center customer and
subsequently leased to another party more than once for purposes of satisfying the
high-technology data center minimum investment threshold.
(v) 'High-technology data center minimum investment threshold' means:
(I) For high-technology data centers located in a county in this state having a
population greater than 50,000 according to the United States decennial census of
2010 or any future such census, the creation of 25 new quality jobs and $250
million in aggregate expenditures incurred over any consecutive seven-year period
between July 1, 2018, and December 31, 2031, on the design and construction of the
high-technology data center and high-technology data center equipment to be used
or incorporated in the high-technology data center;
(II) For high-technology data centers located in a county in this state having a
population greater than 30,000 and less than 50,001 according to the United States
decennial census of 2010 or any future such census, the creation of ten new quality
jobs and $75 million in aggregate expenditures incurred over any consecutive
seven-year period between July 1, 2018, and December 31, 2031, on the design and
construction of the high-technology data center and high-technology data center
equipment to be used or incorporated in the high-technology data center; and
(III) For high-technology data centers located in a county in this state having a
population less than 30,001 according to the United States decennial census of 2010
or any future such census, the creation of five new quality jobs and $25 million in
aggregate expenditures incurred over any consecutive seven-year period between
July 1, 2018, and December 31, 2031, on the design and construction of the
high-technology data center and high-technology data center equipment to be used
or incorporated in the high-technology data center.
(vi) 'New quality jobs' shall have the same meaning as provided in paragraph (2) of
subsection (a) of Code Section 48-7-40.17.
(H) This paragraph shall stand repealed by operation of law on January 1, 2032.
(i) On and after January 1, 2032, and ending on December 31, 2037, the exemption
provided for by this paragraph shall be limited to high-technology data centers located
in any county that includes a habitable barrier island with no bridge to the mainland
and owned by the Department of Natural Resources and in counties designated as
tier 1 under Code Section 48-7-40 and to high-technology data centers that utilize
power generator equipment installed and used behind the meter at least 50 percent
capacity with a minimum capacity of 50 megawatts during the prior taxable year.
(ii) As used in this subparagraph, the term:
(I) 'Behind the meter' means on the customer's side of the electric service provider's
meter.
(II) 'Capacity' means the ratio of the net energy produced by a generating facility
to the amount of energy that could have been produced, in the absence of any
scheduled or unscheduled outages, in any selected time period.
(III) 'Power generator' means any equipment owned and operated by a customer of
an electric service provider for the production of electrical energy that:
(a) Operates on woody biomass;
(b) Is located on the customer's premises;
(c) Operates in parallel with the electric service provider's distribution facilities;
(d) Is connected to the electric service provider's distribution system on the
customer's side of the electric service provider's meter; and
(e) Is intended primarily to offset part or all of the customer's requirements for
electricity.
(IV) 'Woody biomass' means wood residuals that include land-clearing residue,
urban wood residue, and pellets and do not include wood from any United States
national forest;"
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.
A Georgia House bill would create a new income tax credit for companies that build large wood-fueled power generators, while also reshaping existing sales tax breaks for high-tech companies and data centers to favor those using similar biomass generators.
### Plain-language summary
This bill adds a new state income tax credit (O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.38) for taxpayers who buy and install a 'power generator' running on woody biomass, such as wood scraps or pellets, with at least 50 megawatts of capacity used at least half the time. The credit equals $500,000 per megawatt of capacity, can be claimed for up to five years, and is capped at $200 million per taxpayer and $1.6 billion total statewide. Unused credits can carry forward ten years but must be claimed by December 31, 2036, and can be sold or transferred once to another Georgia taxpayer under strict reporting rules. The Department of Revenue can recapture credits and requires taxpayers to reimburse audit costs.
The bill also changes Georgia's sales tax exemptions for high-technology companies and high-technology data centers (O.C.G.A. § 48-8-3). Starting in 2029, the exemption for high-tech companies would be limited mainly to companies in certain low-population 'tier 1' counties, a specific barrier island county, or companies that use their own woody biomass power generators. A similar limitation would apply to high-technology data centers starting in 2032, extending their exemption through 2037 under the same biomass-generator and location conditions.
### What it does
- Creates a new state income tax credit for buying, installing, and readying a woody biomass power generator of at least 50 megawatts capacity used at least half the time.
- Sets the credit at $500,000 per megawatt for up to five taxable years, capped at $200 million per taxpayer and $1.6 billion statewide, with claims allowed only through December 31, 2036.
- Allows unused credits to be carried forward for ten years and sold or transferred once to a single other Georgia taxpayer, with mandatory notice to the Department of Revenue.
- Requires taxpayers claiming the credit to reimburse the state for department-initiated audits tied to the credit and lets the commissioner recapture wrongly claimed credits.
- Narrows, starting in 2029, the sales tax exemption for certain high-technology companies to those in specific tier 1 counties, a designated barrier island county, or those using qualifying on-site biomass power generators.
- Extends and similarly limits, starting in 2032, the sales tax exemption for high-technology data centers through 2037 based on location or use of on-site biomass power generators.
### Who it affects
Companies that build or operate large wood-fueled electric generators, high-technology manufacturers and data center operators that currently qualify for Georgia sales tax exemptions, county governments in tier 1 or barrier-island areas, and the Georgia Department of Revenue, which will certify, audit, and track these credits and exemptions.
### Why it matters
The new tax credit could steer significant private investment toward wood-fueled power plants in Georgia while reducing state tax revenue by up to $1.6 billion over time. The changes to high-tech sales tax exemptions would concentrate future eligibility in certain rural or biomass-using facilities rather than tech companies statewide.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 adds new Code Section 48-7-40.38, defining 'power generator,' 'capacity,' and 'woody biomass' and creating the income tax credit and its caps, deadlines, transfer rules, and audit and recapture provisions.
- Section 2 revises O.C.G.A. § 48-8-3, paragraph (68), narrowing the existing 10 percent reduced-tax treatment for high-technology company computer equipment purchases to end December 31, 2028, then further limiting eligibility from 2029 through 2034 to tier 1 counties, a specific barrier island county, or companies using qualifying biomass generators.
- Section 2 also revises paragraph (68.1) governing high-technology data center sales tax exemptions, replacing the automatic repeal on January 1, 2032 with a new limited exemption running through December 31, 2037 tied to the same county and biomass-generator conditions.
- Section 3 repeals any conflicting state laws.
## Status
- Status: Introduced (2025-02-05)
- Last action: House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (2026-03-06)
- Sponsors: James Burchett, Bruce Williamson, Vance Smith, Trey Kelley, Shaw Blackmon, Clint Crowe
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/69943
> The history, votes, and amendments (199 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb276.md?full=1