HB 7: Income tax; workforce-ready graduates employed in high-tech full-time jobs in rural counties; provide tax credit

Georgia currently has no specific income tax break for graduates who take tech jobs in rural parts of the state. This bill adds a new tax credit to Georgia's income tax code (O.C.G.A. Title 48) aimed at closing that gap. It defines a 'workforce-ready graduate' as someone with a postsecondary credential in engineering or computer, information, or data science who is certified by the Georgia Department of Labor as completing an approved workforce readiness program. Starting January 1, 2027, such a graduate who works at least 40 weeks in a 12-month period in a qualifying 'high-tech full-time job' at a small business (fewer than 20 employees) in a designated rural county can claim a $4,000 tax credit per year of employment, capped at $12,000 per person and usable only once. The Department of Community Affairs must publish the list of qualifying rural counties, and the Department of Labor must set certification criteria by January 1, 2027. The law takes effect July 1, 2026, and applies to tax years starting on or after January 1, 2027.

• Creates a new Georgia income tax credit of $4,000 per year, capped at $12,000 total, for workforce-ready graduates in qualifying rural tech jobs.
• Requires the Department of Labor to set criteria for workforce readiness programs and graduate certification by January 1, 2027.
• Limits eligible jobs to specific tech roles (such as data scientists, software developers, and network administrators) at small businesses with fewer than 20 employees located in rural counties.
• Requires the Department of Community Affairs to publish an annual list of qualifying rural counties based on population and poverty rates.
• Bars anyone first employed in a qualifying job before January 1, 2027 from claiming the credit, and limits each person to claiming it only once.
• Allows unused credit amounts to carry forward up to three years but not to be applied to past tax years.

Recent graduates in engineering, computer science, information science, or data science who take tech jobs in rural Georgia counties; small businesses (fewer than 20 employees) in those counties that employ them; the Georgia Department of Labor, which must certify graduates and programs; and the Department of Community Affairs, which must publish qualifying county lists.

The credit could make it more financially attractive for young tech workers to take jobs at small rural businesses instead of leaving for cities, potentially helping rural employers recruit skilled staff, though the benefit is capped at $12,000 per person and only applies to jobs starting in 2027 or later.

• Section 1 adds new Code section 48-7-29.29 defining 'employer,' 'high-tech full-time job,' 'rural county,' 'small business,' and 'workforce-ready graduate.'
• Subsection (b) requires the Department of Labor to adopt certification criteria for workforce readiness programs by January 1, 2027.
• Subsection (c) creates the $4,000 annual tax credit, caps total credits at $12,000 per individual, and limits eligibility to jobs first held on or after January 1, 2027.
• Subsection (c)(3) allows each individual to receive the credit only once in their lifetime.
• Subsection (d) caps the credit at the taxpayer's tax liability, allows a three-year carryforward of unused credit, and bars applying it to past tax years.
• Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026, applicable to taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2027.

1. 2026-02-26House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
2. 2025-04-04House Withdrawn, Recommitted (House)
3. 2025-03-03House Committee Favorably Reported By Substitute (House)
4. 2025-01-15House Second Readers (House)
5. 2025-01-14House First Readers (House)
6. 2025-01-13House Hopper (House)

• Dar'shun Kendrick (D, HD-095)Primary sponsor

• income tax credit
• rural economic development
• tech jobs
• workforce development
• small business