HB 1233: Local government; waive development impact fees for certain projects related to development of affordable or workforce housing; authorize

Georgia law lets local governments charge developers 'development impact fees,' one-time charges meant to cover the cost of new roads, water lines, and other infrastructure needed because of new construction. Current law already lets local governments exempt some projects from these fees if they spur major economic growth or affordable housing, but only if the local government funds the project's share of infrastructure costs from some other source. This bill adds a new option: if a project builds workforce housing made up of single-family homes meant mainly for owner occupancy, and the exemption fits the local comprehensive plan, a city or county can waive that funding-replacement requirement entirely. The bill also says that if a local government uses this waiver, it cannot raise impact fees on other developments just to make up for the fee revenue it gave up on the workforce housing project.

• Lets municipal or county impact fee ordinances waive fee exemption funding requirements specifically for workforce housing projects of owner-occupied single-family homes.
• Requires that the workforce housing exemption still align with the local government's comprehensive plan before it can be granted.
• Prohibits local governments from raising impact fees on other development projects solely to offset revenue lost from an exempted workforce housing project.
• Leaves the existing option of granting impact fee exemptions for major economic development or affordable housing projects unchanged, still requiring outside funding to cover those exempted costs.

Home builders and developers who build owner-occupied, single-family workforce housing; city and county governments that set development impact fee policy; and other developers or property owners who might otherwise see their impact fees raised to cover a workforce housing exemption.

Local governments could offer a financial incentive, an impact fee waiver, to encourage more workforce housing construction without needing to find replacement funding elsewhere. Other developers are also protected from seeing their own fees raised to cover that lost revenue, which could affect how much infrastructure funding local governments collect overall.

• Section 1 amends O.C.G.A. § 36-71-4(l), which governs when local impact fee ordinances can exempt projects from development impact fees.
• Adds a new provision letting local governments waive the requirement that exempted projects fund their infrastructure share from another source, but only for workforce housing consisting of owner-occupied single-family homes.
• Requires that such workforce housing exemptions still meet the existing requirement that the exemption's public policy basis appear in the local comprehensive plan.
• Bars local governments from increasing impact fees on other projects for the sole purpose of offsetting revenue lost from an exempted workforce housing project.
• Section 2 repeals conflicting laws, a standard provision with no independent substantive effect.

1. 2026-02-10House Second Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
2. 2026-02-09House First Readers (Cámara de Representantes)
3. 2026-02-06House Hopper (Cámara de Representantes)

• Kasey Carpenter (R, HD-004)Patrocinador principal
• Clint Crowe (R, HD-118)
• Rob Clifton (R, HD-131)
• Spencer Frye (D, HD-122)
• Dale Washburn (R, HD-144)

• affordable housing
• workforce housing
• development impact fees
• local government finance