---
title: HB 563. Motor vehicles; authorize licensed physical therapists to certify an individual is disabled for purposes of obtaining special vehicle decals
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb563
cite_as: HB 563, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb563
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb563.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb563/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70614
date: 2026-03-27
status: engrossed
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: 635
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb563.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 563
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2025-03-04
last_action: Senate Read Second Time
sponsors:
- Karen Bennett
- Alan Powell
- John Corbett
- Carolyn Hugley
- Anissa Jones
- Tangie Herring
- Russ Goodman
text_version: Comm Sub
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB563/2025
upstream_id: 1978213
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
- tax credits
- biomass energy
- state revenue
- energy policy
---
# HB 563. Motor vehicles; authorize licensed physical therapists to certify an individual is disabled for purposes of obtaining special vehicle decals
## Text
The Senate Committee on Agriculture and Consumer Affairs offered the following
substitute to HB 563:
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Article 2 of Chapter 7 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to imposition, rate, computation, exemptions, and credits, 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 related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for
other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Article 2 of Chapter 7 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to
imposition, rate, computation, exemptions, and credits, is amended 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 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.
(2) The aggregate amount of tax credits allowed pursuant to this Code section shall not
exceed $200 million.
(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.
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.
Despite its title about physical therapists and disability decals, the substitute bill text actually creates a new Georgia income tax credit for large woody biomass power generators, capped at $200 million total.
### Plain-language summary
The header for this bill describes authorizing physical therapists to certify disability for special vehicle decals, but the substitute text supplied here does something entirely different. It adds a new section to Georgia's tax code (O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.38) creating an income tax credit for taxpayers who buy, install, and prepare power generators that run on woody biomass, defined as wood residuals like land-clearing debris, urban wood waste, and pellets, but not wood from national forests.
To qualify, a generator must have at least 50 megawatts of capacity and have run at least half the time in the prior tax year. The credit is $500,000 per megawatt, claimable for up to five years, with a statewide cap of $200 million and a claim deadline of December 31, 2036. Unused credits can carry forward ten years and be transferred once to another Georgia taxpayer under specific notification rules, and taxpayers must reimburse the state for related audits.
### What it does
- Creates a new Georgia income tax credit for taxpayers who install large woody biomass power generators, set at $500,000 per megawatt of capacity for up to five years.
- Caps the total statewide amount of this tax credit at $200 million and requires all credits to be claimed by December 31, 2036.
- Allows unused credits to carry forward for ten years and to be sold or transferred one time to a single other Georgia taxpayer, with written notice to the Department of Revenue.
- Requires taxpayers claiming the credit to certify compliance on their state tax return and to reimburse the department for audits tied to the credit.
- Authorizes the state revenue commissioner to write rules to administer the new credit program.
- Limits eligible generators to those with at least 50 megawatts of capacity that operated at 50 percent capacity or more in the prior year, running on wood residue rather than national forest wood.
### Who it affects
Owners and operators of large biomass power generation equipment, Georgia corporate and individual income taxpayers who might buy or receive transferred credits, and the Georgia Department of Revenue, which will certify, audit, and administer the new credit program.
### Why it matters
If enacted, businesses that build qualifying wood-waste power generators in Georgia could offset up to $200 million in state income taxes over time, potentially encouraging biomass energy investment, while the state treasury would see reduced tax collections from participating taxpayers.
### Key provisions
- Section 1 adds O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.38, defining 'power generator' as equipment of at least 50 megawatts capacity running on woody biomass at 50 percent utilization or more.
- The credit amount is set at $500,000 per megawatt of capacity, claimable for a maximum of five taxable years, per subsection (b).
- The total statewide credit pool is capped at $200 million, and all credits must be claimed by December 31, 2036, per subsections (b) and (d).
- Credits exceeding a taxpayer's tax liability can carry forward for ten years, but not past the 2036 cutoff, per subsection (d)(2).
- Subsection (e) permits a one-time transfer or sale of unused credits to a single other Georgia taxpayer, with detailed notification requirements to the Department of Revenue.
- Subsection (f) requires taxpayers to reimburse the department for department-initiated audits related to the credit and lets the commissioner recapture wrongly claimed credits.
- Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.
## Status
- Status: Engrossed (2025-03-04)
- Last action: Senate Read Second Time (2026-03-27)
- Sponsors: Karen Bennett, Alan Powell, John Corbett, Carolyn Hugley, Anissa Jones, Tangie Herring, Russ Goodman
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70614
> The history, votes, and amendments (635 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb563.md?full=1