SB465: SB465 Income Taxes; business enterprises that hire illegal aliens for large-scale projects from claiming certain tax credits associated with such projects; disqualify

Georgia currently offers a tax credit under O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.24 to business enterprises that create new full-time jobs as part of large-scale projects, worth $5,250 per eligible job each year for five years. This bill keeps that credit structure largely the same but adds a disqualification: if a business enterprise is found to have hired an illegal alien (as defined in O.C.G.A. § 16-11-201) and used that hire as the basis for claiming the credit, the business loses eligibility for the credit entirely. The bill also sets a sunset date, ending new credit approvals as of July 1, 2031. Businesses whose applications were approved before that date could still keep claiming the credit for whatever remains of their original five-year period. The existing rules letting businesses apply unused credit against quarterly or monthly withholding payments, and requiring employers to make health insurance available to new hires, stay in place.

• Disqualifies a business enterprise from claiming the large-scale project jobs tax credit if it is found to have hired an illegal alien and used that hire as the basis for the credit claim.
• Keeps the existing $5,250 per job, five-year tax credit structure for large-scale project jobs under O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.24 largely unchanged.
• Sets a sunset date of July 1, 2031, after which no business enterprise may newly claim this tax credit.
• Allows businesses whose applications were approved before July 1, 2031 to keep claiming the credit for the remainder of their original five-year period.
• Retains the requirement that credit amounts exceeding a business's tax liability can be applied against quarterly or monthly withholding payments under O.C.G.A. § 48-7-103.

Business enterprises undertaking large-scale projects in Georgia that create new full-time jobs and claim the associated state tax credit, along with their employees whose jobs qualify for the credit and who may be affected if their employer is disqualified for hiring an illegal alien.

Companies that rely on this jobs tax credit for large projects would need to verify they are not claiming credit based on hiring illegal aliens, or risk losing the credit entirely. The 2031 sunset also puts a future end date on new claims under this program, though already-approved projects keep their credits.

• Section 1 amends subsection (d) of O.C.G.A. § 48-7-40.24 to add that a business enterprise found to have hired an illegal alien and claimed that hiring as the basis for the credit is disqualified from receiving the credit.
• Section 1 adds a new subsection (s) barring any business enterprise from claiming the credit on or after July 1, 2031.
• Subsection (s) allows businesses whose applications were approved before July 1, 2031 to continue claiming the credit for the remainder of their original five-year eligibility period.
• Section 2 repeals all conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-10House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-09House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-06Senate Passed/Adopted By Substitute (Senate)
4. 2026-03-06Senate Third Read (Senate)
5. 2026-03-06Senate Taken from Table (Senate)
6. 2026-03-06Senate Tabled (Senate)
7. 2026-03-04Senate Engrossed (Senate)
8. 2026-03-03Senate Read Second Time (Senate)

• Steve Gooch (R, SD-051)Primary sponsor
• Drew Echols (R, SD-049)
• Frank Ginn (R, SD-047)
• Randy Robertson (R, SD-029)
• Russ Goodman (R, SD-008)
• Billy Hickman (R, SD-004)
• Carden Summers (R, SD-013)
• Ricky Williams (R, SD-025)
• Marty Harbin (R, SD-016)
• Matt Brass (R, SD-006)
• Jason T. Dickerson (R, SD-021)
• Timothy Bearden (R, SD-030)
• Bill Cowsert (R, SD-046)
• Max Burns (R, SD-023)
• Bo Hatchett (R, SD-050)
• Greg Dolezal (R, SD-027)
• Shawn Still (R, SD-048)
• Blake Tillery (R, SD-019)
• Ben Watson (R, SD-001)
• Lee Anderson (R, SD-024)
• Jason Anavitarte (R, SD-031)

1. PassedSenate voteMarch 4, 2026

   31 yea, 22 nay (1 not voting, 1 absent)

   Motion To Engross: Sb 306, Sb 465, Sb 498, Sr 668: Senate Vote #615

2. PassedSenate voteMarch 6, 2026

   49 yea, 0 nay (3 not voting, 3 absent)

   Passage By Substitute: Senate Vote #667

• income tax credits
• illegal immigration enforcement
• economic development incentives
• business taxes