Georgia CommonsHB 63: Dodge County; ad valorem tax; provide homestead exemption
Last action June 22, 2026 · House Lost Reconsidered Bill/Resolution
A House bill would give Dodge County homeowners a property tax break funded by a new 1 percent local sales tax, but only if county voters approve both in a November 2026 referendum.
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 LegiScan holds.
In plain language
This bill applies only to Dodge County. It would create a homestead exemption, a break on property taxes for a primary home, that offsets Dodge County property taxes by an amount tied each year to how much money a new Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST) brings in within the county. The sales tax would run from January 1, 2028 through December 31, 2037, and the property tax break would apply from the year after voters approve it through the end of 2039. Homeowners would need to apply once with the county tax official, and the exemption would then renew automatically as long as they stay eligible. The exemption only covers county taxes, not school or other local taxes, and it comes on top of any other homestead exemption a homeowner already gets. Because this changes property tax rules, the bill needs a two-thirds vote in both the House and Senate, and then must be approved by Dodge County voters in a November 2026 referendum before it takes effect on January 1, 2027.
What the bill does
- Creates a new homestead exemption in Dodge County that reduces a homeowner's property tax bill by an amount based on new sales tax revenue collected each year.
- Ties the size of the exemption to proceeds from a new 1 percent Local Homestead Option Sales Tax (LHOST) collected within the county from 2028 through 2037.
- Requires homeowners to file one application with the Dodge County tax official, after which the exemption renews automatically each year without reapplying.
- Limits the exemption to county-level property taxes only, and makes it additional to, not a replacement for, other homestead exemptions.
- Requires a countywide referendum in November 2026 before the law can take effect, and automatically repeals the bill if voters reject it or no election is held.
- Sets the exemption period to run from the year after voter approval through December 31, 2039.
Who it affects
Homeowners in Dodge County who qualify for a homestead exemption, the Dodge County tax official who processes applications, the county election superintendent who must run the November 2026 referendum, and Dodge County's government, which collects both the new sales tax and the affected property taxes.
Why it matters
If approved by both the legislature and Dodge County voters, homeowners there would see their county property tax bills reduced each year by an amount tied to new sales tax collections, shifting some of the local tax burden from property owners toward everyone who pays the county sales tax, including nonresidents who shop there.
Key provisions
- Section 1 defines terms and grants the exemption, sizing it each year to the net proceeds of the new LHOST collected in the special district conterminous with Dodge County.
- Section 1(c) and (d) set application rules: homeowners already receiving another county homestead exemption do not need to reapply, and the exemption renews automatically once granted.
- Section 1(e) limits the exemption to county-purpose taxes on the specific property, makes it additional to other exemptions, and sets it to run from the year after referendum 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, per the Georgia Constitution.
- Section 4 requires a Dodge County referendum on the Tuesday after the first Monday in November 2026, with automatic repeal 365 days later if voters reject it or the election is not held.
- Section 4(c) allows any Dodge County voter to seek a court order forcing the election superintendent to hold the election if they fail to do so.
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”
“If more than one-half of the votes cast on such question are for approval of the Act, Section 1 of this Act shall become of full force and effect on January 1, 2027.”
Status timeline
- House Lost Reconsidered Bill/Resolution (House)
- House Reconsidered (House)
- House Notice to Reconsider (House)
- House Third Reading Lost (House)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
Show full history (9 actions)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Danny Mathis (R, HD-133)
Votes
- House voteJune 20, 2026
95 yea, 67 nay (5 not voting, 12 absent)
- House voteJune 22, 2026
97 yea, 75 nay (1 not voting, 6 absent)
- House voteJune 22, 2026
99 yea, 74 nay (1 not voting, 5 absent)
Topics
- property taxes
- Dodge County
- homestead exemption
- local sales tax
- county referendum