Opt in or out? Homestead exemption meetings continue in Columbia County
EVANS, Ga. (WRDW/WAGT) - Local governments are still considering whether to opt in or out of the controversial homestead exemption in Georgia.
The Columbia County Board of Commissioners will have a hearing at 6 p.m. in the Evans Government Center Auditorium.
More than 60% of voters in November said yes to the homestead exemption question on the ballot, which could put a cap on tax hikes on your home.
“You are going to have a major problem with price increases, residential taxes, non-homestead taxes and business taxes,” says one Columbia County resident. “It all depends if Columbia County wants to have growth.”
The law establishes a floating homestead exemption, which limits the annual increase in property tax assessments on homestead properties to the rate of inflation for the previous year.
However, the law has a way out for local municipalities.
What does homestead exemption law mean for you?
With the new year comes new laws and one such law in Georgia has to do with protecting homeowners from big spikes in property tax values.
Counties can announce their plans to opt-out, which then triggers the need for at least three public hearings.
After those hearings, governments and school districts will vote on whether to opt in or out.
The commissioners and board in Columbia County that we’ve spoken to say legally, they have to use that language in order to hold the public hearings.
Instead, they say they are using these meetings to figure out if they will opt out.
CSRA’s smaller counties facing challenges with homestead exemptions
The clock is ticking for local governments to make a decision on the Homestead Exemption Act. We took a deeper look into the challenges smaller counties like Jefferson County face.
Leaders tell us the turnout remains strong during each meeting and that’s what they want. Every piece of community input plays a part in the overall decision.
It’s all about House Bill 581.
“It’s a very complex bill,” said Scott Johnson, county manager for Columbia County. “It’s not just as easy as saying we’re going to give everybody a tax break.”
Leaders like Johnson say it’s not as easy as 1-2-3.
“In a lot of instances, House Bill 581 does not give a tax break,” said Johnson. “So capping the assessments does not in itself create a tax break.”
“The floating local option sales tax would replace the lost revenue,” said Johnson. “House Bill 581 puts a cap on homesteaded properties and as a result of that cap, there’s going to be some missing revenue. But that will be made up for in the floating local option sales tax, should we get that in place.”
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But there’s only one way the sales tax can be an option for voters in November.
“Everybody has to opt in,” said Johnson. “If anybody opts out, not counting the school board, the school board’s completely independent, they don’t get the sales tax. But to get the sales tax, the county, and in our case, the counties Harlem and Grovetown would all have to opt in for us to even be able to ask the citizens for the sales tax. Any entity opts out, all are out.”
That’s where leaders are hitting another roadblock.
“The problem that we’re running into is for Columbia County, we have to decide by March 1, whether we’re going to opt in or opt out. Grovetown and Harlem have to decide by March 1, whether they’re going to opt in or opt out,” said Johnson. “Then we will not know if we get the sales tax in place until November, so that creates a divide there, not understanding if we’re going to be able to replace that revenue.”
And they’re still unsure of the best option for the county.
“So we’re still going to have to tighten our belt,” he said. “We’re still going to have to make sure that we balance our budgets carefully because even with the additional sales tax, that doesn’t necessarily mean that we’re going to have additional money coming in. So for us, I don’t know that there’s a better way one way or the other.”
Columbia County has one final meeting on Feb. 18 at 6 p.m.
If you can’t make these meetings they are on their website where you can watch them live or replay as needed.
In Augusta, the Commission meets at 6 p.m. at Diamond Lakes Regional Park.
HOW WE GOT HERE
House Bill 581: What prompted the referendum?
- The measure came after lawmakers fielded complaints about rising property tax bills. From 2018 to 2023, the total assessed value of property across Georgia rose by nearly 61%, according to figures from the Georgia Department of Revenue. Most governments pocketed increased revenues even as they lowered tax rates, boosting employee pay and other spending. Statewide property tax collections rose 44% from 2018 to 2023.
Other communities
- The city of Grovetown will hold its final meeting on Feb. 11 at 2 p.m. at the City Hall council chambers.
- The Augusta-Richmond County government has several public hearings scheduled too. Those will be Feb. 11 at 6 p.m. at Warren Road Community Center, and Feb. 18 at 11 a.m. in the Lee N. Beard Commission Chamber.
- The Burke County Board of Commissioners intends to opt out, and will hold hearings at the Historic Burke County Courthouse, 602 Liberty St. in Waynesboro. They’re set for Feb. 12, as well as 9 a.m. Feb. 17.
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