(The Center Square) – Senate bills that would reduce Georgia’s income tax burdens are languishing in the House of Representatives, while two amended proposals from the lower chamber with the same reductions are awaiting a vote.
Senate Bill 476 would increase the standard deduction for married couples from $24,000 to $100,000 and from $12,000 to $50,000 for single filers. The bill was drafted after the Senate Special Committee to Eliminate Georgia’s Income Tax, appointed by Lt. Gov. Burt Jones, held a series of meetings in 2025 to discuss how to eliminate the state income tax.
It passed the Senate in February but has languished in the House. A second bill that would reduce the state income tax rate to 3.99% by 2028 has not had a committee hearing, either.
Sen. Blake Tillery rolled provisions of two Senate bills into two amended House bills. The House would have to approve the amended bills, but they have not reached the House floor.
House Bill 463 would reduce the state income tax rate to 3.99% by 2028, as outlined in Senate Bill 477, and would increase the standard deduction for married couples to $32,000 from $24,000 and to $16,000 from $12,000.
House Bill 134 mirrors the standard deduction increase from $24,000 to $100,000 for married couples and from $12,000 to $50,000 for single filers, as included in Senate Bill 476.
Tillery, chairman of the special committee, said when introducing Senate Bill 476 that the goal was to completely eliminate the income tax within six years.
“I am optimistic we will be able to find middle ground where we end special interest corporate credits and use that money to provide real income tax relief for middle class Georgians,” Tillery said in a statement to The Center Square on Monday.
Senate bills 476 and 477 were panned by Democrats questioning how the state would recoup the $16 billion in income tax revenue it receives annually.
“This is not a debate about whether we want affordability or not,” said Atlanta Democrat Sonya Halpern during the Senate floor debate on the bill. “We all do. The affordability framing ignores a basic truth of state budgeting. Good public policy requires math, not messaging, not momentum and certainly not magical thinking. This bill ignores the math.”
Meanwhile, the Senate Rules Committee on Monday added two tax relief bills to its Tuesday calendar, including one that would cap property tax increases to 3% or the rate of inflation.
House Speaker Jon Burns championed property tax breaks at the beginning of the legislative session, first proposing a plan that would have eliminated homestead property taxes entirely.
House Bill 1116 would “stem what is an unsustainable path for our homeowners and for our property owners across the state,” Rep. Shaw Blackmon, R-Bonaire, said during the House floor debate.
The bill raised concerns among cities and counties.
Decatur City Manager Andrea Arnold told The Center Square in an interview that the bill could cost the city $4 to $5 million a year.
“We did an analysis and said, what would our revenue have looked like if this had been in place the last five years?” Arnold said. “And over the last five years, it would have resulted in approximately a loss of $21 million or about $4.2 million a year. That $4.2 million is roughly equivalent to my entire fire department or over 9% of my operating budget.”
The Senate Rules also moved House Bill 1001, which would reduce the state’s income tax rate from 5.19% to 4.99%, to Tuesday’s floor calendar. The bill is backed by Gov. Brian Kemp.
By Kim Jarrett | The Center Square
