The Hall County Board of Commissioners’ (HCBOC) first of three scheduled public hearings on opting out of Georgia’s new tax reform bill, House Bill 581, is schedule Thursday night.
It will be held at the government center at 6:00 as part of the commission’s regular meeting.
Others are planned Feb. 24 at the government center at 3:00 and Feb. 27 at 6:00.
Other local governing bodies in Hall County and the rest of the state have already voted to opt out or are considering doing so. (For that part of the story, go to the WGTJ website and under “Search” type Opt.}
“After careful evaluation of House Bill 581, Hall County Government is considering opting out of the statewide homestead exemption,” Hall County Administrator Zach Propes has said. “Should the Board of Commissioners choose to opt out of House Bill 581, Hall County will follow the local 3% maximum cap moving forward, which would eliminate the drastic increases in property taxes due to market value fluctuations as we’ve seen over the past few years.”
Hall County is one of the few counties in the state of Georgia with local legislation capping property assessments in addition to the statewide bill, as Hall County voters passed both referendums on the Nov. 5 General Election ballot.
“By following the local 3% exemption, we would streamline the annual assessment process and eliminate administrative burdens, such as time and cost,” Propes added. “Our goal is to be an efficient and financially prudent government while also honoring the voters by implementing the intent of eliminating drastic property tax increases due to market value adjustments, and the local 3% exemption would accomplish both for Hall County.”