GMA Legislative Action Alert
March 2, 2006
HR 162, Statewide Cap on Property Tax Assessments has unexpectedly moved this
week. It passed out of the House Ways & Means Committee yesterday, March 1 and
is now pending in the House Rules Committee.
What the Bill Would Do
This bill, if approved by Georgia voters in a statewide referendum, would
restrict increases in assessed values of real property for state, city, county
and school purposes to the annual increase in the Consumer Price Index (CPI) or
3%, whichever is less.
GMA Position
GMA opposes any statewide restrictions on local property taxes or assessments.
Limiting assessments to the CPI or 3% has no relation to the cost of providing
governmental services or educating Georgia's school children.
Cities do not over-rely on property tax revenues to fund municipal operations.
In 1994, property tax revenues accounted for 27.5% of all municipal revenues.
By 2004 that figure had fallen slightly to 26.5%. During that ten-year period,
however, the use of sales tax revenues to fund municipal operations rose from
17.3% to 21.4%.
This proposal would negatively impact the ability of Georgia's local
governments to fund the services residents expect and deserve.
What's Next?
HR 162 is in the House Rules Committee and can be voted on by the committee as
early as Monday, March 6. If it passes the committee, it will then be debated
and voted on by the full House.
What City Officials Need to Do
City officials need to contact their city's House member(s), requesting that
they ask House Rules Chairman Earl Erhart to hold the bill.
City officials also to need to contact all members of the House Rules Committee
(contact information attached to email), urging them to hold HR 162 and not
move it to the House floor for a vote.
In addition to calls, GMA encourages cities to fax official city correspondence
to members of the committee that do not represent their city.
Attachments