ATLANTA – State Representative Holt Persinger (R-Winder) recently introduced a package of legislation aimed at providing school property tax relief for senior citizens. Majority Leader Chuck Efstration and Majority Caucus Vice Chairman Houston Gaines – who make up the Barrow County delegation with Persinger – cosponsored the legislation. “With the cost-of-living soaring, Georgia families and senior citizens are finding it increasingly difficult to make ends meet,” said Rep. Persinger. “Basic necessities like housing, groceries and healthcare are becoming prohibitively expensive, forcing individuals and families to carefully budget and make tough financial decisions. With that, granting homestead exemptions from Barrow County School district ad valorem taxes to seniors is a practical move. With these proposed measures, it is my hope that Barrow’s seniors will be able to free up their finances to allocate their resources toward more pressing needs. These measures could ensure our seniors can live more comfortably and with greater peace of mind. I look forward to working alongside my legislative colleagues to continue the fight against rising inflation, and I thank the Barrow County School Board members, Assistant Superintendent of Business Services, Jennifer Houston and Tax Commissioner Jessica Garrett for all of their hard work and support in this proposed legislation.”
Rep. Persinger is proposing legislation that would grant each resident senior citizen of the Barrow County school district a homestead exemption of up to $140,000 from the school district’s ad valorem taxes to seniors age 62 or older. Additionally, Barrow seniors age 70 and older would be eligible to receive a homestead exemption in the full amount of the assessed value of their current homestead so long as the person’s income is less than $113,000.
These proposed homestead exemptions would apply to all taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2025, and each homestead exemption granted shall be in lieu of and not in addition to any other homestead exemption applicable to Barrow County school district ad valorem taxes that are used for educational purposes.
The full text of each proposed measure is attached.
Representative Holt Persinger represents the citizens of District 119, which includes portions of Barrow and Jackson counties. He was elected to the House of Representatives in 2023 and currently serves the Budget & Fiscal Affairs Oversight, Economic Development & Tourism and Natural Resources & Environment committees.
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