The Columbia County Board of Education voted unanimously on Tuesday night to hold a series of public hearings that will launch the process of potentially opting out of a homestead property tax exemption.
This tax exemption is associated with Georgia House Bill 581, which was signed into law by Governor Brian Kemp on April 18 and approved for implementation in November.
The Statewide Adjusted Base Year Ad Valorem Homestead Exemption will cap property taxes on homesteads.
School districts across Georgia have until March 1 to complete the opt-out process.
The public hearings, which were approved on Tuesday night, will serve as a framework for discussions around opting out of the exemption. But, a formal decision about opting out has not yet been made.
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“What we did tonight was to provide the board an opportunity to have that discussion, and they approved a resolution to set three public hearings to have a discussion around the possibility of opting out,” said Superintendent Dr. Steven Flynt.
“I don’t know how they will vote on that,” he continued, “but as of right now, we’ve set the process to have that discussion and to have public input for that.”
Public hearings
The vote made on Tuesday was a resolution of approval of public hearings of intent, an approval of a set of three public hearings which will be held to further discuss the potential opt-out.
Public meeting hearing dates will be held on Monday, Jan. 27 at 8 a.m., Tuesday, Jan. 28 at 6 p.m. and Wednesday, Jan. 29 at 8 a.m.
