| HB 0351 |
Neutral | Elections - Allow District Attorneys, Coroners and Constitutional Officers to Run Non-Partisan |
Allen Peake |
|---|
|
2/16/2017 |
House Second Readers |
Governmental Affairs |
- | - |
|
|
| This legislation would allow the General Assembly, through local legislation, to make elections for sheriffs, coroners, tax commissioners and superior court clerks nonpartisan. |
| HB 0374 |
Neutral | Tax Assessment - Change Procedures |
David Knight |
|---|
|
7/1/2018 |
Effective Date |
Ways & Means |
Finance |
- |
|
|
| This legislation allows for electronic return of property to the tax commissioner if he or she has adopted a written policy accepting electronic service. It also makes changes to the annual notice of current assessment from the board of tax assessors and makes changes to the property assessment appeals process, including lowering the value threshold for appeals to a hearing officer from $750,000 to $500,000. |
| HB 0375 |
Neutral | Tax Executions - New Owners |
Brad Raffensperger |
|---|
|
7/1/2017 |
Effective Date |
Ways & Means |
Finance |
- |
|
|
| This legislation changes the definition of new owner for purposes of tax executions. Under existing law, new owners (those who purchase after January 1st and after taxes are due) are entitled to a new notice of taxes and at least 60 days before penalties and interest can be applied. This bill would change "new owner" to mean persons who purchase real property after January 1st but on or before taxes are due. This bill would also repeal the provision of law allowing tax commissioners to receive 50 cents for issuance of a tax execution. |
| HB 0381 |
Support | Abandoned Mobile Homes - Method for Removal |
John Corbett |
|---|
|
5/1/2019 |
Effective Date |
Judiciary |
Judiciary |
- |
|
|
| This legislation establishes a process whereby private property owners can have abandoned mobile homes removed from their land. Local governments may elect to provide a qualified "local agent" to make a determination, at the request of a property owner, whether a mobile home is abandoned, derelict or intact. If deemed abandoned, the local government posts a notice, then the property owner notifies the last known mobile home owner (or posts a legal notice if no responsible party can be ascertained), which begins a process whereby the property owner can pay for the removal of the mobile home. A hearing procedure is provided in magistrate court for aggrieved mobile home owners in this process. Neither the local government nor the local agent shall bear any liability with respect to any lawful actions taken under this law. Action: counties wishing to participate must first appoint a qualified local agent. |
| HB 0384 |
Inactive | Cobb County; tax commissioner's office; change compensation of certain employees |
John Carson |
|---|
|
5/2/2017 |
Effective Date |
Intragovernmental Coordination |
State and Local Governmental Operations |
- |
|
|
| |
| HB 0397 |
Neutral | Homestead Exemptions - Absence in Health Care Facility |
Dale Rutledge |
|---|
|
3/30/2017 |
House Withdrawn, Recommitted |
Ways & Means |
- | - |
|
|
| This bill changes the definition of 'homestead' for purposes of all state and local homestead exemptions. Currently, absence of an individual from their residence is not in and of itself a waiver of the conditions for qualification. The bill clarifies that stays in a nursing home or assisted living facility are also not considered a waiver. |
| HB 0436 |
Evaluating | County Boundary Disputes - Placement of Revenues in Escrow |
Robert Dickey |
|---|
|
2/23/2017 |
House Second Readers |
Judiciary |
- | - |
|
|
| This bill provides that during a boundary dispute between counties, all ad valorem property tax and all sales and use taxes levied on and collected withing the disputed area are to be placed in an escrow account pending the resolution of the dispute. |
| HB 0661 |
Neutral | Enforcement of state tax liens |
Hugh Williamson |
|---|
|
2/20/2018 |
Effective Date |
Ways and Means |
Finance |
- |
|
|
| This bill makes substantial revisions to the procedures for transmitting, filing, recording, access to, and territorial effect of tax liens issued by the Department of Revenue. As drafted, it does not affect liens/executions for county or city taxes. |
| HB 1009 |
Evaluating | Taxpayers' Bill of Rights - Revisions |
Matt Gurtler |
|---|
|
2/28/2018 |
House Second Readers |
Ways and Means |
- | - |
|
|
| This bill makes numerous changes throughout the OCGA under the purported purpose of modernizing taxpayer rights. Among its many changes it: 1) requires a local government to post its proposed budget on its website the same day it is provided to the governing authority and to email notification thereof to interested parties; 2) requires a public hearing on the budget two weeks, rather than one week, prior to adoption of the budget and requires email notification thereof two weeks prior to the hearing; 3) requires tax commissioners and tax collectors to prepare and publish on their website and the county website a monthly report of the number and type of tax sales and their progress and disposition; rewrites the definition of fair market value of property by placing artificial limits thereon such that the maximum allowable fair market value cannot exceed the adjusted fair market value; 4) eliminates the requirement that a tax bill show a statement regarding reduction of the state ad valorem levy since there no longer is such a levy; 5) makes major changes to the annual publication of the five year history and the process of advertising intent to increase property taxes including: A) combining both procedures together; B) requiring a public hearing on a Saturday; C) emailing notice to interested parties; and D) prohibiting the state revenue commissioner from accepting a county digest if any recommending authority or levying authority, including a municipality fails to comply with any part of the new combined procedure and renders the levy of each levying authority invalid and unenforceable; and 6) requires all notices and reports of tax sales and five year histories and roll back compliance to be retained permanently. |
| SB 0192 |
Neutral | Non-Partisan Elections |
Rick Jeffares |
|---|
|
2/17/2017 |
Senate Read and Referred |
- | Ethics |
- |
|
|
| This legislation authorizes, via subsequent adoption of local legislation, the non-partisan election of candidates for the offices of district attorney, sheriff, coroner, tax commissioner and clerk of superior court. |
| SB 0229 |
Neutral | Columbus Consolidated Government Tax Commissioner; retain a specified percentage of school taxes; provide |
Joshua McKoon |
|---|
|
3/28/2017 |
House Second Readers |
Intragovernmental Coordination |
State and Local Governmental Operations |
- |
|
|
| |
| SB 0430 |
Neutral | Constitutional Office Salary Update in Statute |
Matt Brass |
|---|
|
3/29/2018 |
Senate Agreed House Amend or Sub As Amended |
Governmental Affairs |
State and Local Governmental Operations |
- |
|
|
| This legislation simply codifies the COLA's that have been awarded to constitutional officers and magistrate judges since 2006. The mandatory pay raise was removed from the legislation. To see what Georgia's constitutional officers currently make, by county, which includes COLA's, longevity increases and state and local supplements, please click here: Note that these figures do not include fees received as personal compensation in some cases (e.g. clerks' fees for processing U.S. passport applications, probates' vital records fees, and tax commissioners' fees for collecting city property taxes). |
| SR 1170 |
Neutral | Study Committee - Are Local Fees Going Toward Intended Purposes? |
Jack Hill |
|---|
|
3/29/2018 |
Senate Read and Adopted |
- | - | - |
|
|
| Following much discussion over the past several years regarding the redirection of state-collected fees from their intended purposes, this Senate study committee (consisting of 5 senators) will examine whether or not local government fees are fairly and equitably imposed and whether the monies collected from them are being appropriately used and directed for the purpose(s) for which they are intended. Examples of fees cited by this resolution include: storm water management fees, fire service fees, and traffic add-on fees. |
