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House · Failed · 2026 Special Session

HB 35: Webster County; ad valorem tax; provide homestead exemption

Last action June 22, 2026 · House Lost Reconsidered Bill/Resolution

A local bill would give Webster County homeowners a property tax exemption funded by a new 1 percent local sales tax, pending voter approval in a November 2026 referendum.

Read the full bill text

These buttons carry the bill's own text, not the summaries below. Copy for LLM, View as markdown, and Send to AI use the Markdown version: the text as filed, then the summaries under a heading that names them as ours. View raw is the text alone.

The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Introduced version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.

In plain language

This bill applies only to Webster County. It would create a homestead exemption, a break on property taxes for a primary home, that offsets county property taxes by an amount tied to money raised from a new Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST) within the county. Homeowners would need to apply once with the county tax official, and the exemption would renew automatically each year as long as they remain eligible. The exemption would apply only to Webster County's own property taxes, not school or state taxes, and would stack on top of any other homestead exemption a homeowner already has. It would run from January 1, 2027 through the end of 2039, tied to a sales tax collected from 2028 through 2037. Because it affects only Webster County, the bill needs a two-thirds vote in the General Assembly and must be approved by Webster County voters in a November 2026 referendum before taking effect.

What the bill does

  • Creates a homestead exemption for Webster County property taxes equal to the assessed value covered by new local sales tax proceeds.
  • Funds the exemption through a new 1 percent Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST) collected within the county from 2028 to 2037.
  • Requires homeowners to apply once with the local tax official, after which the exemption renews automatically each year.
  • Limits the exemption to county-level property taxes only, stacking it on top of any other homestead exemptions already in place.
  • Sets the exemption period from January 1 of the year after voter approval through December 31, 2039.
  • Requires a November 2026 referendum in Webster County and automatic repeal of the law if voters reject it or the election is not held.

Who it affects

Homeowners in Webster County who occupy their property as a primary residence, the Webster County tax official who processes exemption applications, the county election superintendent who must run the referendum, and county government, which loses some property tax revenue offset by new sales tax collections.

Why it matters

If voters approve it, homeowners in Webster County would see their county property tax bills reduced based on how much the new local sales tax raises, effectively shifting some of the tax burden from property owners to anyone making purchases subject to the sales tax within the county.

Key provisions

  • Section 1 defines key terms and grants the exemption, tying its value to LHOST proceeds collected under O.C.G.A. § 48-8-109.50 and related code sections.
  • Section 1(c) and (d) set application rules, allowing automatic renewal for people already receiving a similar exemption and requiring notice if someone becomes ineligible.
  • Section 1(e) limits the exemption to county taxes only, restricts it to property within the special district, and sets it to run from approval through December 31, 2039.
  • Section 1(f) sets the LHOST collection period from January 1, 2028 to December 31, 2037.
  • Section 3 requires a two-thirds majority vote in both the House and Senate for the bill to become law, as required by the Georgia Constitution.
  • Section 4 requires a countywide referendum on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November 2026, with automatic repeal if voters reject it or no election occurs.
  • Section 5 sets the general effective date as approval by the Governor, except for the referendum-related provisions in Section 4.

From the bill

“Each resident of the special district is granted an exemption from all ad valorem taxes imposed by the county for all purposes in the amount of the assessed value of such homestead property”

This is the core exemption the bill creates for Webster County homeowners.

“Shall be in addition to and not in lieu of any other homestead exemption applicable to the homestead property”

Clarifies the new exemption stacks with, rather than replaces, existing homestead exemptions.

Discussed in meetings (3)

The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.

  1. House floor session, June 20, 2026 (legislative day 3)

    From 1:05:29 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, Special Session, p. 99

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The clerk reported a favorable committee recommendation and included the Webster County measure in the local homestead-exemption package. Supporters said local voters could choose a sales tax to reduce property taxes; opponents said higher sales taxes would raise everyday costs. The package failed, 95 to 67, short of two-thirds. The majority leader gave notice of reconsideration.

  2. House floor session, June 22, 2026 (legislative day 4)

    From 1:21:52 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, Special Session, p. 141

    Summary by Georgia Commons: The clerk listed HB 35 for Webster County on the reconsidered 66-bill homestead-exemption calendar. The House had approved reconsideration 97-75. During the group vote, one member argued the measures were not a tax increase and said non-Georgians pay 17.2% of sales taxes. A second member opposed new taxes during an affordability crisis. The majority whip said local voters should decide. The calendar failed 99-74, short of the required two-thirds vote. The chair said no further reconsideration was allowed.

Status timeline

  1. 2026-06-22House Lost Reconsidered Bill/Resolution (House)
  2. 2026-06-22House Reconsidered (House)
  3. 2026-06-20House Notice to Reconsider (House)
  4. 2026-06-20House Third Reading Lost (House)
  5. 2026-06-20House Third Readers (House)
  6. 2026-06-20House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
  7. 2026-06-18House Second Readers (House)
  8. 2026-06-17House First Readers (House)
Show full history (9 actions)
  1. 2026-06-17House Hopper (House)

Sponsors

  • Mike Cheokas (R, HD-151)Primary sponsor

Votes

  1. PassedHouse voteJune 20, 2026

    95 yea, 67 nay (5 not voting, 12 excused)

    Local Calendar: House Vote #5

  2. PassedHouse voteJune 22, 2026

    97 yea, 75 nay (1 not voting, 6 excused)

    Local Calendar: House Vote #9

  3. PassedHouse voteJune 22, 2026

    99 yea, 74 nay (1 not voting, 5 excused)

    Local Calendar: House Vote #10

Topics

  • property taxes
  • homestead exemption
  • local sales tax
  • Webster County
  • ballot referendum

Ask about this bill

Answers come from this document. Not legal advice.

Machine-readable https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2026-special/hb35.md · https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md · MCP https://mcp.georgiacommons.org/mcp