Rep. Shaw Blackmon Applauds Governor Kemp for Signing Income and Property Tax Relief Legislation

ATLANTA - State Representative Shaw Blackmon (R-Bonaire), chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, today announces that Governor Brian Kemp has signed House Bill 463 and Senate Bill 33 into law. Sponsored by Rep. Blackmon, HB 463 lowers the state income tax rate, increases the standard deduction and exempts portions of tips and overtime pay from taxation. Rep. Blackmon also carried SB 33 in the House, which limits property tax assessment increases and allows local governments to utilize sales taxes to provide additional tax relief for Georgia homeowners.

"Georgians are feeling the pressure of rising costs, and they've asked for real, practical relief-and we remained laser focused this session on delivering just that," said Rep. Blackmon. "Senate Bill 33 included a key priority of the House and Speaker Jon Burns, and I was honored to work alongside him and our legislative colleagues to get it across the finish line and signed into law. While this legislation delivers meaningful relief for Georgia homeowners and taxpayers, we know there is still more work to be done, and we remain committed to pursuing additional reforms with greater tax relief for Georgians. With House Bill 463, we are also fulfilling Governor Kemp's promise to accelerate the largest state income tax cut in Georgia history, bringing the rate below five percent three years ahead of schedule. As chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee, it is especially important to me that we continue advancing responsible tax policy, and these measures reflect our continued commitment to putting hardworking Georgia taxpayers first."

HB 463 lowers Georgia's income tax rate from 5.19 percent to 4.99 percent, beginning January 1, 2026. It also includes provisions for additional annual reductions of the state income tax rate, raises the retirement income exclusion to $70,000 beginning in 2027 and introduces tax exclusions for qualified overtime compensation and cash tips through 2028.

SB 33 establishes a new Local Homestead Option Sales Tax, a one percent sales tax that local governments may choose to adopt via referendum to provide homeowner tax relief and improve local fiscal management. The legislation also streamlines how local governments use collected revenue, ensures school tax calculations properly reflect homestead exemptions and protects taxpayers from retroactive ad valorem tax assessments resulting from mistakenly applied homestead exemptions.

The full text of HB 463 may be found here, and the full text of SB 33 may be found here.

Representative Shaw Blackmon represents the citizens of District 146, which includes a portion of Houston County. He was first elected to the House of Representatives in 2015 and currently serves as the Chairman of the Ways & Means Committee. He also serves on the Governmental Affairs, Insurance, Rules, Rural Development and Technology and Infrastructure Innovation committees, as well as the Special Committee on Resource Management. Additionally, he serves as an Ex-Officio member of the Appropriations and MARTOC committees.

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