HB1585: HB1585 Income tax; donations to nonprofit corporations that provide housing to cancer care patients; provide credit

Georgia currently has no dedicated tax credit for donations to nonprofits that house families of children undergoing cancer treatment. HB 1585 would add a new section to Georgia's tax code, O.C.G.A. Section 48-7-29.29, creating such a credit for contributions to 'qualified organizations' that provide temporary lodging for minor cancer patients and their parents or guardians. Donors would have to get their contributions preapproved by the Department of Revenue before giving, and the nonprofits themselves would have to be certified by the Division of Family and Children Services. The total credits available statewide would be capped at $10 million a year, with at least $5 million reserved for individual donors. Individual and married-couple donors face dollar caps, while corporations can claim up to 30 percent of their tax liability. Nonprofits must spend at least 80 percent of donations on housing costs, file annual reports, and post financial disclosures, with unused credits carrying forward three years.

• Creates a new state income tax credit for donations to nonprofit organizations that provide temporary housing to minor cancer patients and their parents or legal guardians.
• Caps total statewide credits at $10 million per year, with no more than $5 million of that going to corporations or other non-individual entities.
• Requires donors to get contributions preapproved by the Department of Revenue and requires nonprofits to be certified by the Division of Family and Children Services (part of the Department of Human Services).
• Sets per-donor limits for the first half of each year: $2,500 for single filers or heads of household, $5,000 for married couples filing jointly, and 30 percent of tax liability for corporations.
• Requires certified nonprofits to spend at least 80 percent of donated funds on housing costs, cap administrative use of funds at 20 percent, and file annual reports and audits.
• Allows unused credits to carry forward for three years but bars taxpayers from claiming the credit against past tax years or for donations already deducted elsewhere.

Individual and corporate taxpayers who donate to qualifying cancer housing charities, nonprofit organizations that provide lodging for pediatric cancer patients and their families, the Department of Revenue and the Division of Family and Children Services, which administer certification and preapproval, and families of children receiving cancer treatment who rely on such housing.

Donors would get a dollar-for-dollar state tax credit for giving to certified cancer housing charities, which could increase funding for temporary lodging that lets families stay near children undergoing cancer treatment, while capping the state's total revenue loss from the credit at $10 million a year.

• Section 1 adds O.C.G.A. Section 48-7-29.29, defining 'cancer,' 'cancer care,' 'cancer housing accommodations,' and 'qualified organization' for purposes of the credit.
• Subsection (b) sets the aggregate annual credit cap at $10 million, with at least $5 million reserved for individuals, heads of household, married couples, and pass-through entity owners.
• Subsection (c) sets first-half-of-year donation limits: $2,500 for single filers, $5,000 for joint filers or pass-through owners, and 30 percent of tax liability for corporations.
• Subsection (g) directs the Division of Family and Children Services to certify and periodically recertify qualifying housing nonprofits, including annual audits.
• Subsection (h) requires taxpayers to seek Department of Revenue preapproval before donating, with a 60-day window to actually make the contribution once approved.
• Subsection (m) requires certified nonprofits to spend at least 80 percent of donated funds on housing costs and caps administrative or overhead use at 20 percent.
• Subsection (n) allows unused credits to carry forward three years but disallows use of the credit against prior years' taxes or on already-deducted contributions.
• Section 2 repeals any conflicting laws.

1. 2026-03-23House Second Readers (House)
2. 2026-03-20House First Readers (House)
3. 2026-03-19House Hopper (House)

• Shaw Blackmon (R, HD-146)Primary sponsor
• Patty Stinson (D, HD-150)
• Omari Crawford (D, HD-089)
• Bruce Williamson (R, HD-112)
• Bethany Ballard (R, HD-147)
• Samuel Park (D, HD-107)

• income tax credits
• cancer patient housing
• charitable giving
• nonprofit regulation
• childhood cancer