--- title: HB 791. Butts County; ad valorem tax; increase homestead exemption collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb791 cite_as: HB 791, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb791 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb791.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb791/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71413 date: 2025-05-13 status: passed corpus_version: bills-2026-08-28 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/hb790.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb792.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 885 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb791.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 791 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-05-13 last_action: Effective Date 2025-05-13 sponsors: - Clint Crowe text_version: Enrolled has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB791/2025 upstream_id: 2010565 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - property taxes - homestead exemption - Butts County - senior citizens - local referendum --- # HB 791. Butts County; ad valorem tax; increase homestead exemption ## Text 25 LC 61 0165/AP House Bill 791 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE) By: Representative Crowe of the 118th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend an Act to provide a homestead exemption from Butts County ad valorem taxes in1 the amount of $4,000.00 of the assessed value of the homestead for certain residents of the2 county who are 62 years of age or over, approved April 13, 2001 (Ga. L. 2001, p. 4289), so3 as to increase the exemption amount to $20 ,000.00; to p rovide f or compliance with4 constitutional requirements; to provide for a referendum, effective dates, automatic repeal,5 mandatory execution of election, and judicial remedies regardin g failure to comply; to6 provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.7 BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:8 SECTION 1.9 An Act to provide a homestead exemption from Butts County ad valorem taxes in the amount10 of $4,000.00 of the assessed value of the homestead for certain residents of the county who11 are 62 years of age or over, approved April 13, 2001 (Ga. L. 2001, p. 4289), is amended by12 revising subsection (a) of Section 10 as follows:13 "(a) Each resident of Butts County who is a senior citizen is granted an exemption on that14 person's homestead from all Butts County ad valorem taxes in the amount of $20,000.0015 H. B. 791 - 1 - 25 LC 61 0165/AP of the assessed value of that homestead. The value of that pro perty in excess of such16 exempted amount shall remain subject to taxation."17 SECTION 2.18 In accordance with the requirements of Article VII, Section II of the Constitution of the State19 of Georgia, this Act shall not become law unless it receives the requisite two-thirds' majority20 vote in both the Senate and the House of Representatives.21 SECTION 3.22 The election superintendent of Butts County shall call and conduct an election as provided23 in this section for the purpose of submitting this Act to the e lectors of Butts County for24 approval or rejection. The election superintendent shall conduct that election on the Tuesday25 after the first Monday in November, 2025, and shall issue the call and conduct such election26 as provided by general law. The election superintendent shall cause the date and purpose of27 the election to be published once a week for two weeks immediat ely preceding the date28 thereof in the official organ of Butts County. The ballot shall have written or printed thereon29 the words:30 "( ) YES31 ( ) NO32 33 34 Shall the Act be approved which increases the homestead exempti on from Butts County ad valorem taxes for certain residents of the county who are 62 years of age or over from $4,000.000 of the assessed value of the homestead to $20,000.00 of the assessed value of the homestead?" All persons desiring to vote for approval of the Act shall vote "Yes," and all persons desiring35 to vote for rejection of the Act shall vote "No." If more than one-half of the votes cast on36 such question are for approval of the Act, Section 1 of this Act shall become of full force and37 effect on January 1, 2026. If the Act is not so approved or if the election is not conducted38 as provided in this section, Section 1 of this Act shall not become effective, and this Act shall39 be automatically repealed on the 365th calendar day following the election date provided for40 H. B. 791 - 2 - 25 LC 61 0165/AP in this section. The expense of such election shall be borne by Butts County. It shall be the41 election superintendent's duty to certify the result thereof to the Secretary of State. The42 provisions of this section shall be mandatory upon the election superintendent and are not43 intended as directory. If the election superintendent fails or refuses to comply with this44 section, any elector of Butts County may apply for a writ of ma ndamus to compel the45 election superintendent to perform his or her duties under this section. If the court finds that46 the election superintendent has not complied with this section, the court shall fashion47 appropriate relief requiring the election superintendent to call and conduct such election on48 the date required by this section or on the next date authorized for special elections provided49 for in Code Section 21-2-540 of the O.C.G.A.50 SECTION 4.51 Except as otherwise provided in Section 3 of this Act, this Act shall become effective upon52 its approval by the Governor or upon its becoming law without such approval.53 SECTION 5.54 All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.55 H. B. 791 - 3 - ## 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 791 would raise the Butts County homestead property tax exemption for residents 62 and older from $4,000 to $20,000, pending voter approval in a November 2025 referendum. ### Plain-language summary Since 2001, Butts County has given homeowners age 62 and older a break on their county property taxes by exempting $4,000 of their home's assessed value from ad valorem (property) taxation. This bill would increase that exemption to $20,000, meaning a larger share of a qualifying senior's home value would not be taxed by the county. Because the change affects local tax law, the bill requires a two-thirds vote in both chambers of the General Assembly and must be approved by Butts County voters in a referendum set for the Tuesday after the first Monday in November 2025. If voters approve it, the new $20,000 exemption takes effect January 1, 2026. If voters reject it or the election is not held as required, the bill is automatically repealed 365 days after the scheduled election date. ### What it does - Increases the Butts County homestead exemption for residents 62 and older from $4,000 to $20,000 of a home's assessed value for county ad valorem tax purposes. - Requires a two-thirds majority vote in both the Georgia House and Senate before the change can become law, per the state constitution. - Requires Butts County's election superintendent to hold a referendum on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November 2025 so voters can approve or reject the increase. - Sets the exemption increase to take effect January 1, 2026 only if voters approve it in that referendum. - Automatically repeals the Act 365 days after the election date if voters reject it or if the election is not properly conducted. - Allows any Butts County voter to seek a court order (writ of mandamus) forcing the election superintendent to hold the vote if they fail to do so. ### Who it affects Butts County homeowners age 62 or older who qualify for the existing homestead exemption, Butts County government (which sets and collects the property tax and bears the referendum's cost), and the county election superintendent, who must organize the vote. ### Why it matters If approved by voters, qualifying senior homeowners in Butts County would see a larger portion of their home's value shielded from county property taxes, lowering their tax bills starting in 2026. If voters reject the measure, the current $4,000 exemption stays in place. ### Key provisions - Section 1 rewrites subsection (a) of the 2001 Act to raise the homestead exemption from $4,000 to $20,000 of assessed home value for Butts County residents 62 or older. - Section 2 requires a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate for the Act to become law, as required by the Georgia Constitution. - Section 3 requires a countywide referendum in November 2025, specifies the ballot language, sets the effective date of January 1, 2026 upon approval, and provides for automatic repeal and court enforcement if the vote fails or is not held. - Section 4 makes the rest of the Act effective upon the Governor's approval or upon becoming law without approval. - Section 5 repeals any conflicting laws. ## Status - Status: Passed (2025-05-13) - Last action: Effective Date 2025-05-13 (2025-05-13) - Sponsors: Clint Crowe - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/71413 > The history, votes, and amendments (885 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb791.md?full=1