Comité Ways & Means de la Cámara de Representantes, 24 de febrero de 2026

Transcripción

147 turnos. Seleccione un tiempo para reproducir ese momento del video.

1. 0:12:29

   All right.

2. 0:12:32

   Ladies and gentlemen, uh, I believe we have a quorum. We have legislative council. We are still finding our seats, but we'll go ahead and call this, uh, Ways and Means full committee meeting to order. Chairman Prince, would you mind opening us up with a word of prayer? Number 10. Uh, gotcha.

3. 0:12:52

   Let us-

4. 0:12:53

   Ready to count.

5. 0:12:53

   God, our Father, we thank you for this day. We thank you for this opportunity to come together to do the business of this great state of Georgia. Father, we ask that you give us discernment, guidance. Give us your wisdom, and most of all, give us your Son, Jesus. In His name, we pray, amen.

6. 0:13:07

   Amen.

7. 0:13:09

   Amen. All right. Well, thank you very much. Uh, Chairman Williamson, uh, HB 275. Are you ready, sir?

8. 0:13:16

   Yes, sir.

9. 0:13:16

   Very good.

10. 0:13:17

    Mr. Chairman, members of the committee, I bring before you HB 275, LC443454S, uh, passed out of our, uh, subcommittee, uh, yesterday.

11. 0:13:28

    Let me scoot closer to him, I think.

12. 0:13:28

    And quite simply, this is a effort, um, of, a great effort by the, um, by, uh, our assessors association. I keep forgetting the exact name of the association. What is it, Dante?

13. 0:13:41

    Georgia Association of Assessing Officials.

14. 0:13:44

    Yeah, that.

15. 0:13:44

    Those.

16. 0:13:45

    Um, and, uh, James Stokes is the, um, uh, chief appraiser or assessor over in, uh, Paulding County, and Tommy Knight is Walton County. That's my home county. Uh, they, with the support of ACCG, have proposed that we clean up the language, make it more, um, uh, friendly, uh, understandable, uh, and I would say, uh, um, more clarity to what the assessment notice is attempting to do. I passed around a f- a paper copy of it.

17. 0:14:17

    It is on your, uh, uh, PDF on our iPads if you'd like to take a look at it there. But quite simply, it's got very clearly where it's being mailed on the upper left. Uh, down on the bottom left, it talks about the exemptions that actually have been applied. It's got some spaces for exemption four, exemption five. That, uh, that's just space available, uh, if the applicable exemptions need to be, uh, uh, additional exemptions that, for the, uh, local levying authorities. Um, it shows in the upper, on the upper right-hand side, uh, that it's the 2026 property value.

18. 0:14:53

    It, uh, it does not lend itself to being confusing like the current assessment notices are. We're having a lot of our, uh, citizens think those are the property tax bills. They're writing checks, mailing them to the tax commissioners, who's having to turn around and mail the ch- uh, checks back because they're, they're not the bills. They're just your property value assessment notices. So, a- and the most, um, the clearest is on the upper right, where it says, "2026 current value," and this illustration shows that the, a gross assessment for the, um, for the property is $725,000, and it shows the previous year.

19. 0:15:34

    So it's very clear and understand- understandable to the property taxpayer what the old value was and what the new value is. Uh, so I would just, um, in, in the... The, all the lines in the bill instruct, uh, uh, um... Is the, is the code that lays all this out for us. It's the only way I can explain it, Mr. Chairman. Be happy to take any questions from members of the committee.

20. 0:16:03

    I don't see any questions, other than i- isn't it true that this may be the cleanest and clearest and the most taxpayer-friendly notice we've ever seen?

21. 0:16:13

    It is. I understand it so.

22. 0:16:15

    Move the bill to the next one.

23. 0:16:17

    Move to pass.

24. 0:16:17

    Second. We have a motion and a second. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor, please signify by stating aye.

25. 0:16:24

    Aye.

26. 0:16:24

    Those opposed, like sign. The bill passes, um- Mr. Chairman, a request ... on to rules. I don't see... Is Chairman Hilton in the room?

27. 0:16:36

    Over at the Senate. He's not here. All right. Uh, Representative, uh, Burnough, HB 942. You ready?

28. 0:16:45

    Over there. That, that mic at the end of the table or this one, either one. Whichever one you prefer.

29. 0:16:54

    Oh, thank you.

30. 0:17:02

    Thank you, Mr. Chairman and committee. I am presenting LC443245. Um, it's a bill that deals with, uh, tax equity, and tax equity is one of the basic underlining principles of taxation. It is fair for Clayton County property owners to pay taxes on land improvement and personal property when the city of Atlanta escapes paying property taxes on land improvements and personal property under the guise of using property for public and governmental purposes, 4,000-plus acres.

31. 0:17:40

    Is it fair or even lawful to take 100% tax exemption on airport-owned property located outside of its territorial limits that is used in part for non-governmental, non-public purposes in the generation of revenue? There are eight commercial services primary airports in Georgia. However, the Atlanta airport is the only airport fac- facility impacted by the current statute or proposed amended statute.

32. 0:18:12

    Using available tax digest and tax rates, the amended statute would yield an annual estimated 34.6 million for Clayton County and Clayton County public schools and seven cities, and 12.4 million for City of College Park. The legislation requiring the City of Atlanta to pay property taxes like all other property owners in the county will bring equity, economic stability, and social equity to taxpayers of Clayton County.

33. 0:18:42

    Your support is critical to p- to the passage of this legislation. And for those who were not here yesterday, um, this, um, the City of Atlanta and, well, for the airport, has been collecting this money for 80 years, since 1946. So since 1946, ex- exemption was based on consideration and development and stages of the airport that no longer exist. So this is from, um, code, uh, let's see.

34. 0:19:18

    The exemption code section is 48-5-41, so it's basically about fairness for, uh, Clayton County. Um, and, um, yesterday, uh, we did talk about that, uh, we only want, um, 60%, uh, of the money, um, due us, and the City of Atlanta was asked if they could agree to that, and they said, "No, not at that time." This will not cost the state any money.

35. 0:19:50

    There's no liability on the state.

36. 0:19:55

    Chairman.

37. 0:19:55

    Um, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and, um, I do appreciate you bringing this bill. I, I, I w- it was, uh, somewhat impactful when you mentioned the 80 years of, of property tax exemption. And I believe this, of 100% exemption, this still gives them 60% off, so I guess that gets them down to only being taxed on 40% of the value, like a lot of other businesses would, would be, and that 80 years does seem like a pretty good head start. At the appropriate time, I'd like to make a motion to pass, Mr. Chairman.

38. 0:20:23

    All right. I think we had, uh, Chair Lady Camp for-

39. 0:20:31

    Oh, yes, sir. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you for bringing this bill.

40. 0:20:31

    You're welcome.

41. 0:20:31

    This is an interesting topic, uh, most assuredly. I was doing a little research on this particular topic, and I'm sure this was probably brought up yesterday, but don't, isn't it true that most airports in the United States do not pay property tax to the municipalities where they're located?

42. 0:20:46

    Uh, I don't know.

43. 0:20:49

    Do you know if what-

44. 0:20:50

    Ours is, um, our situation is very, um, rare. Uh, we own the land and they own the airport, so the land is in Clayton County.

45. 0:21:03

    Yeah.

46. 0:21:03

    And then the airport is in Clayton County. So this is an exception. It's not like most airports.

47. 0:21:09

    Okay. Thank you.

48. 0:21:10

    You're welcome.

49. 0:21:11

    I don't think it, I don't think it applies to real property.

50. 0:21:17

    Come on. Can you hear me?

51. 0:21:18

    Mm-hmm.

52. 0:21:19

    Okay.

53. 0:21:19

    Mm-hmm.

54. 0:21:20

    Uh, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and, uh, thank you representatives. I'm sorry I was not here yesterday, so I don't wanna ... I hate to have to go back, but I do have a few questions. I just wanna be clear on a few things.

55. 0:21:29

    Mm-hmm.

56. 0:21:31

    Um, so would this ... How would this bill actually impact ... You know, we, when we talk about the airport, I'm thinking about, you know, the World Cup is coming to Georgia this summer. Would this have any impact on what's, you know, the World Cup, this big e- event that's coming to Georgia this summer? Will this legislation have any impact on that?

57. 0:21:48

    I don't think so, no.

58. 0:21:49

    Okay. So is the, is ... Further question, if you don't mind. Uh, would, so does this ... Clayton County not get any taxes, anything from, from Atlanta now? I mean, what's ... I'm just, I'm just trying to follow what the real issue is.

59. 0:22:01

    They get some. They get some, but not, not for the property.

60. 0:22:06

    Okay.

61. 0:22:06

    They get some money, but it's not near what they, what we're supposed to get.

62. 0:22:11

    And you say Atlanta has refused to pay Clayton County what Clayton County feel they're owed?

63. 0:22:16

    Well, what happen- Well, it is that, um, what we're asking is to change the statute. So they would keep 60 and we're asking them to pay us the 40.

64. 0:22:26

    Okay.

65. 0:22:28

    And they've been doing it for 80 years. So Chairman Martin?

66. 0:22:35

    And just add to the lady's, the question. Does, what services does Clayton County provide to the airport?

67. 0:22:41

    Um, the, um, court services, police

68. 0:22:48

    are, are a few examples.

69. 0:22:50

    Fire.

70. 0:22:50

    Fire. Thank you.

71. 0:22:51

    Okay. That, that, just, I just wanted to, to mend the, the, you know, you to be able to ... I think it was sounded in s- subcommittee you mentioned those, uh, perhaps yesterday, and I was just giving you the opportunity to mention those today.

72. 0:23:00

    Oh, okay. Thank you.

73. 0:23:03

    I know.

74. 0:23:03

    All right. We have a motion. I see no further questions. Is there a second?

75. 0:23:11

    I have a question.

76. 0:23:11

    Okay.

77. 0:23:13

    And when we talked, a- and 'cause we talked about services, I think that was Chair, Chairman Martin's, uh, question. The Atlanta public, uh, I mean, don't the APD, Atlanta folks handle the airport?

78. 0:23:24

    They handle inside the airport. We handle those things that are outside. So if somebody gets arrested, they come to Clayton County.

79. 0:23:31

    They come to you j- okay. Thank you.

80. 0:23:36

    And I got ... Mr. Chairman, I got one last question. I, I would

81. 0:23:41

    ... Yes, Representative Stinson.

82. 0:23:42

    Thank you. Will anyone from Atlanta be able to, or have they, did they speak yesterday, um, I forgot, about this particular measure?

83. 0:23:50

    They did.

84. 0:23:50

    They spoke yesterday.

85. 0:23:51

    They did speak yesterday.

86. 0:23:52

    Okay.

87. 0:23:56

    We have a, a motion. Is there a second?

88. 0:23:58

    Second.

89. 0:23:59

    We have a motion and a second on the floor. Any further discussion? Is there somebody's this-

90. 0:24:05

    Question.

91. 0:24:06

    Yes.

92. 0:24:06

    Who, who actually owns the airport? Like what, which entity owns the airport?

93. 0:24:09

    The City of Atlanta.

94. 0:24:10

    The city of Atlanta. So it's my understanding that, you know, and, and I know with county airports, the government owns the property. They don't, they're tax-exempt from paying any taxes to the local government.

95. 0:24:19

    Yeah, it's a real property situation.

96. 0:24:21

    Yeah.

97. 0:24:21

    It's not, we're, we're not talking about real property in this instance, is the way that was described yesterday. Um, all right, uh-

98. 0:24:29

    Motion second. Further discussion? I don't see any more lights. What's, uh, let's see. Who's all in favor of the, uh, bill, please signify by stating aye. Aye. Those opposed, lights on.

99. 0:24:41

    No. All right. All those in favor of passage, please signify by raising your right hand.

100. 0:24:49

     Those opposed.

101. 0:24:55

     Bill fails? All right. Well, we'll, we'll hold onto that for right now. Okay. Representative Burnough. Thank you.

102. 0:25:04

     Are you ready? Yes, sir.

103. 0:25:14

     It's one of those cleanse the palate there. HB 376. Yes, sir. Um, thank you, Mr. Chairman, members of the committee.

104. 0:25:23

     Here to present House Bill, uh, 376, which passed this committee unanimously just a couple of days ago. Uh, this went to rules and came back just for a small edit. That edit is on line 45, where we failed to, uh, account for really the impact of inflation. This, the original 10 million was set over 10 years ago. Obviously, things have changed in both development and historic projects. And so, a slight adjustment from changing from 10 to five. Everything else with the underlying bill remains the same.

105. 0:25:53

     And I will yield for any questions.

106. 0:26:00

     Any questions for the author?

107. 0:26:06

     I don't see any. Um, what's the will of the committee? We have a motion do pass. Is there a second? We have a second. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor, please signify by stating aye. Aye. Any opposed? All right. Thank you, Chairman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Yeah.

108. 0:26:28

     Chairman Stephens, you want to...

109. 0:26:46

     Lord. Long day. All right.

110. 0:26:52

     HB 1209.

111. 0:26:57

     Thank you, Mr. Chairman- That's a way to- ... members of the committee. Um, this bill is a public-private partnership. Um, we've got folks down in our area that are gonna build a massive project, uh, provided they can get a little help. The locals will be donating in sales tax refund once the project is built, half of the, um, sales tax. Um, and the state will be on the hook for the other half. So we're looking at a total of seven million. That is the bill, Mr. Chairman, and I'd ask for your favorable consideration.

112. 0:27:29

     Any questions for the author of the bill on HB 1209? Do I want to make a motion? I don't see any questions, so- Do you pass? ... uh, the motion do pass. Is there a second? Any further discussion? Hearing none, all in favor, please signify by stating aye. Aye. Those opposed, like sign. All right. Thank you very much. I c- I can't get that one.

113. 0:27:59

     All right. We're gonna be at ease for just a couple of minutes, and we'll reconvene in just a second. You wanna sit down? I'll phone the...

114. 0:29:36

     I guess we wanna recognize, we'll reconvene and recognize Chairman Stephens for a motion. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. I'd like for this committee to reconsider its previous actions on House Bill 942. Second. We have a motion and a second for reconsideration. Any further discussion on the motion? All those in favor, please signify by stating aye. Aye. Those opposed. Motion carries. All right, so reconsideration. Is Representative Burnough here?

115. 0:30:07

     She is not. In that case, I'll make the motion to move the bill. Okay. We have a motion, uh, do, do pass. We have a second? Second. Any further discussion? Hearing none, all those in favor, please signify by stating aye. Aye. Those opposed. Opposed. All right, bill passes. Thank you. Chairman Stephens, and we'll switch for just a second.

116. 0:31:06

     Members of the committee, we're here to hear the, um, uh, third hearing on HR 1114. And Representative Blackmon, you have the floor. Oh, thank you, uh, thank you, Mr. Chairman. Um, bring before you House Resolution 1114. As you have h- heard the, uh, Speaker say a number of times, that our property tax structure has been on an unsustainable path for our homeowners. And, um, we are, we are being, we are forcing our residents to, to make some very tough decisions.

117. 0:31:37

     And, uh, he charged, uh, us with coming up with a solution that could be taxpayer-friendly but respectful of our local governments. And we've spent an awful lot of time discussing this with our local governments, and we continue to discuss, and that enabling legislation continues to evolve. This is the framework for what we have put together, um-

118. 0:31:57

     To provide property tax relief for our homeowners and some, uh, certainty for all of our property owners. And I'll go through the resolution, uh, briefly. We've even made, uh, some changes a- a little bit recently based on what we've been asked to do from our local governments. On, uh, page two, the latest, um, substitute that really has not changed, uh, to any great degree. Section one provides for the homeowner, uh, relief grants that we currently have in law and have been, um, appropriated according to the, the House supplemental budget, um, this session to go, uh, through our county governments to our homeowners.

119. 0:32:36

     We have done this in the past, and this would open it up for local governments to do the very same thing. It would also take the cap off of what is currently $18,000 of the assessed value. Section two, um, uh, establishes the ability to, in, in, in, uh, exclusive of growth and inflation, put a, uh, revenue, um, governor on some of our, uh, our ad valorem tax for local governments for non-homestead properties.

120. 0:33:08

     That's some certainty with regard to what those, uh, properties would see on increases year over year, but it does allow, and we made the changes asked, shall, uh, instead of may on line 50, allow for new development and growth. Um, you'll see more on that in the enabling legislation. Um, on section three, you see the same language on page four. Um, but on page three, it says that, uh, the, uh, schools may use up to two cents of sales tax.

121. 0:33:44

     Section five is, uh, the provision that provides for a local homestead option sales tax, which is in place to reduce, uh, homestead property taxes, and it gives the framework for that. We have added on line 104, as you'll see, the ability, uh, extemporaneously to retire bond indebtedness for the county's consolidated governments, municipalities, local school systems. Again, one of the changes there. Um, section, well, six, 4A, is local finance assessments on page six.

122. 0:34:19

     Uh, it authorizes the general assembly to provide for these, uh, assessments. Right now, we're seeing these types added on to, to tax bills, um, in, i- in, over and above the M&O levy. Oftentimes, um, this would allow them to do this in a, in a more direct and, and transparent way with, uh, certain guardrails to protect the taxpayer.

123. 0:34:46

     And then section seven is the, uh, the ballot question that we asked to put before the voters. Um, and speaking of our, our voters and our homeowners, I noticed that as we've progressed in my time on Ways and Means, we seem to have been able to find ways to, to provide credits and exemptions and deductions for most every sector of our economy. But, but oftentimes the homeowner is overlooked, and this is an opportunity for our homeowners to get some real tax relief.

124. 0:35:16

     And, uh, when I have my, my, my seatmate at church on Sunday lean over and say, you know, "What are y'all doing on this property tax?" And he said, "Can I please come up and testify?" He said, "I'm about to retire, and I don't know if I can afford any more increases in my property tax, uh, or I might have to sell my home and move out." And, um, we continue to get hit with these stories, I think, uh, week after week for, for a number of years now. And, um, I think it's, it's time we did something for our homeowners, and this provides the framework for that.

125. 0:35:53

     Be happy to try to answer any questions. I know we've been through several meetings, Mr. Chairman, um, and I appreciate the committee's indulgence. Several hours of testimony. Um, m- members of committee, number 10. Yes, sir. Thank you, Chairman Blackmon, for bringing the bill. Uh, understand homeowners and, uh, the property tax is going up. However, uh, as far as schools and public safety, what is gonna be our remedy? 'Cause I know in Augusta-Richmond County, that is a heavy lift, uh, if we don't have that property tax consistently throughout.

126. 0:36:28

     Well, the... Again, this is, this is just the constitutional amendment that pr- provides the framework. But again, we allow local governments new options and sources, and the repurposing not only of sales tax, use of, uh, these assessments for capital projects and essential services, and then we also provide for economic development, which is not an option right now. So you can actually reduce property tax for the homeowner with new development within your county and your city. So we have certainly, uh, ran a lot of numbers, and, um, we, we know that there is, is, uh, at least some s- s- in some communities, mostly our rural communities are ones that, that may see some challenges.

127. 0:37:12

     But we're working on the enabling legislation on ways to mitigate that. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Other questions? Ladies and gentlemen, we are... Yes, sir. One comment. Yes, sir. Mr. Chairman, just to be clear here, because we've worked on this a little bit. Uh, you, you, you've worked on it a lot. But i- isn't it clear, as you just said, this is a constitutional amendment that is time-sensitive because we have to get that on the ballot in an even number election year, right? That's correct. And is it further true that the, the, the final date to do this is 2032, I believe?

128. 0:37:43

     We have a six-year runway. We have a six-year runway. And, and i- i- in, um, something that we did a few years ago, the TAVT was massaged several times as it went into place as we were working with our friends in the local governments and, and the school boards that, that got their, previously got taxed from, from, um, auto bills and that sort of thing. And your, your intent, is it true that, that that'll be an ongoing effort, that we will continue to work with those, those same stakeholders for this, right? Yes, sir, Mr. Chairman. We have, and I certainly appreciate the schools and the counties and the cities.

129. 0:38:14

     They have been very engaged. We have, uh, had a number of conversations at the, uh, organization level and with independent individual counties and cities and schools, and we continue to have those, uh, conversations as we proceed through the enabling legislation. But I think we've been extraordinarily transparent and, uh, uh, collaborative. Um, and we continue to see adjustments and get, get new suggestions, uh, even as, as recent as this morning. So... Thank you, Mr. Chairman. Thank you.

130. 0:38:46

     Yes, ma'am. I don't have a mic, so I'll just talk loud. But, um, I have talked to all of the leadership in my county, and I get to, I get some of the same comments that you've gotten from my neighbors not wanting to pay taxes on their house. But I also get a lot of concern from other taxpayers that aren't sure how they're gonna pay on their farms if, if they decide to go up on that to take care of the people not having to pay for their houses. And they don't trust that that won't happen.

131. 0:39:18

     So until the enabling legislation's available, I can't vote for this constitutional amendment. I will- Happy to provide you with the latest, uh, iteration, but it does provide that, what, what is mentioned in here, the cap for non-homestead properties. So COOV and FLIPPA stay in place just as they are. All exemptions remain. Uh, what this says is that after year one you would pay, you know, no property tax ultimately, uh, for your home, and everybody gets one home.

132. 0:39:48

     So, um, the, the enabling legislation, again, puts a 3% cap on non-homestead properties. Again, happy to get you a, a copy of that and- I would need that before I could vote for this. Yeah. And it's, it's available online with that cap on there. So I think, I think the, the, the one thing that we've looked at is the trajectory from, say, '19 to '24. You see the increase in property tax as a total, you know, for the state. Uh, that cap would, would have, have more than cut in half what those increases look like in aggregate.

133. 0:40:24

     So, um, again, that, that, that may speak to your question and, but I appreciate your statement, I believe- Right ... Madam Representative. I do have a question that I have received from constituents, and they wanna know if the increase in the property taxes at the local level has anything to do with the decrease of the funding from the state to schools. Uh, I don't know if I'd be able to answer that. I don't, I haven't been able to either. Neither have they. I'm not aware of any, any direct correlation necessarily there other than with regard to, to, to how the equalization and local fair share operate, but that is one thing that's also in the enabling legislation with regard to exemptions.

134. 0:41:05

     Let me try to answer that, Mr. Chairman. I think some of that may be from ARPA money that has come down from the feds from 2020 through '24. It was a four-year process. As that money was allocated to the local governments, they, based on that, they, they based budgets on that level of revenue, and if it, it was pulled away, then they continued spending. They need more money from the locals to replace that federal dollar, federal money that came down through the state. That could be one reason. That could be one reason. The other reason that's been alluded to is that we have not fully funded the Q to E for a number of years.

135. 0:41:37

     There have been years where we have in the most recent years, but it didn't go back and cover the, the down, the, the, what was missed out on all those years prior to the ones that we did fully fund, just for the year, not for the backlog. So there's been some decrease in money going to the schools, and, and rural counties feel it. True. And so I'm not saying it's a final no, but today I can't do it. Chairman Williams. Uh, thank you, Mr. Chairman. Uh, so as, as we talk about this, um, the funding specifically to, to, um, rural counties, is it not true that, uh, six years ago we passed this facilitator bill which unleashed money, uh, all across our, uh, local governments through Georgia?

136. 0:42:23

     And in particular, it helped, um, uh, smaller rural counties that didn't have the sales generations. And w- w- uh, for the m- m- members that are not on the committee, facilitator bill made sure that taxes, sales taxes were collected at the local level where the, where the package was received through the delivery service. That was a blessing, a blessing, uh, that numerically r- as, uh, as I understand the math, has yielded $3.5 billion more than was being previously collected just from that facilitator tax that goes to local governments.

137. 0:43:04

     $3.5 billion over the last six years. And unless I'm mistaken, I, I believe that at the same, essentially the same, uh, time period, that property taxes have simultaneously increased almost $6.5 billion across local governments in Georgia. So this is an unsustainable model that we're, that we're facing right now, but I do wanna clarify the fact that this money has been pouring into counties that, and, and, and local governments that was not previously been received.

138. 0:43:36

     Is that not true? Uh, that- Mr. Chairman ... um, th- that is, that is very true. And we see a number of, uh, you know, states that are looking at this. I believe Florida just passed, uh, something that, you know, doesn't offer any opportunities, uh, uh, all that much on, uh, on revenues to keep that ecosystem intact at the local level.

139. 0:43:59

     A- and Mr. Chairman, is it not true that over the last couple years, I know there was a study last year, that school boards across the state are sitting on $6.5 billion in cash reserves while increasing property taxes across the state? Is that not true?

140. 0:44:15

     I'm sure the gentleman knows of what he speaks. Look, I would, I'd say it's important, Mr. Chairman, as I just, you know, pulled out some information that, that I think you probably have looked at and we had looked at when we were doing this. Uh, and, and to the lady's, uh, statement, is, it is not true that Georgia actually is spending more today on, on education than we, we ever have in the, in the history, including the COLAs. That to say s- some school systems may be getting, uh, less money because of the ARPA money. It, it is not true that the m- mentioned, the gentleman mentioned earlier. Further, some schools are losing students.

141. 0:44:45

     There, there's less students that are attending them in 2025 than there were in earlier years, so the F- FTEs are, are down. But I, I think it's, um, somebody, uh, once I took a s- a statistics course, and they said there are lies, darn lies, and statistics. So I think we can all pick our numbers to do that. Isn't it true? And, and clearly the, the issue we have here is you, you have put a plan together that

142. 0:45:12

     Property ownership is different than it was at the turn of the century. And I'm not talking about the turn of the, the one from the 20th to the 21st. I'm talking about 1900 to now, and that's the same, um, property tax system we're doing. And what you're just doing is giving folks an opportunity to keep their homes and still giving the local governments and school boards the opportunity to get the money they need. And, and I just, I think it's important for us to realize that we are spending more, and we- it's important that we spend it wisely. And, and again, I think we've been very consistent.

143. 0:45:43

     The, the speaker does wanna continue, uh, the conversation through this process, especially regarding the enabling legislation. We do need to, uh, get the, the framework in place, and then we need to, to continue. We've had several hearings on both pieces of legislation. And as we're getting late amendments to the enabling legislation, we try to incorporate those in as well. Um, but I, I would, I would, you know, note that it has been a, a very, uh, collaborative, and I've enjoyed working with, you know, representatives from the schools, the individual schools, our, our counties, our cities, and, and others, uh, to come up with a solution.

144. 0:46:20

     I mean, this is not a, um, a- again, a Republican versus Democrat, a House versus Senate, or a local versus state issue. I mean, this is about our homeowners. This is about the American dream. This is about that slipping through the fingers of some of our Georgians, and, and we wanna make that, uh, that dream a reality for more Georgians, not less.

145. 0:46:41

     Ladies and gentlemen, after hours of testimony, um, I am open for a motion. We got a motion and, um, several seconds. All those in favor of moving the bill, 11... Excuse me, HR 1114 will say aye. Aye. All those opposed. Moves- No. Let's do a hand count. All those in favor?

146. 0:47:08

     All right. All those opposed?

147. 0:47:12

     The bill passes, moves on to the Rules Committee. Thank you, ladies and gentlemen. We are adjourned.