(The Center Square) – A Georgia House subcommittee recommended passage of a measure that gives a $500 tax break to married couples filing joint tax returns.
The $1 billion tax break proposed by Gov. Brian Kemp last year gives $250 to single tax filers and $375 to single head of household filers who submitted returns in the 2023 and 2024 tax years.
The Income Tax Subcommittee of the House Ways and Means Committee unanimously green-lighted the tax break quickly Monday afternoon.
The subcommittee also gave its stamp of approval to a bill that would reduce the state’s flat tax income rate from 5.49% to 5.39%, effective with the 2025 tax year.
The tax rate would decrease every year until it reaches 4.99%, according to the bill.
The proposal has a caveat that says future tax reductions cannot occur if the three criteria are not met. The governor’s revenue estimate for the succeeding fiscal year must be at least 3% above the present fiscal year estimate, new revenue collections from the prior fiscal year must be higher than each of the three previous years, and the Revenue Shortfall Reserve cannot exceed the amount of the decrease in state revenue forecast to occur because of the tax reduction.
Committee Chairman Rep. Bruce Williamson, R-Monroe, said the state has $16.5 billion in excess reserves in response to concerns about the criteria.
The bills need approval from the House of Representatives and Senate before they can be signed by Kemp.
By Kim Jarrett | The Center Square
