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Georgia Referendum A, Homestead Municipal Property Tax Exemption Measure (2018)
- General election: Nov. 6
- Voter registration deadline: Oct. 9[1]
- Early voting: Oct. 15 - Nov. 2
- Absentee voting deadline: Nov. 6
- Online registration: Yes
- Same-day registration: No
- Voter ID: Photo ID required
- Poll times: 7:00 a.m. to 7:00 p.m.
| Georgia Referendum A | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Election date November 6, 2018 | |
| Topic Taxes | |
Status Approved | |
| Type State statute | Origin State legislature |
Georgia Referendum A, the Homestead Municipal Property Tax Exemption Amendment, was on the ballot in Georgia as a legislatively referred state statute on November 6, 2018. It was approved.
| A "yes" vote supported this measure to provide for a homestead property tax exemption in certain municipalities equal to the difference between the home's assessed value for the current year and the adjusted base year value of the home. |
| A "no" vote opposed this measure to provide for a homestead property tax exemption in certain municipalities equal to the difference between the home's assessed value for the current year and the adjusted base year value of the home. |
Election results
|
Georgia Referendum A |
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Result | Votes | Percentage | ||
|
|
2,060,127 | 57.09% | ||
| No | 1,548,608 | 42.91% | ||
Text of measure
Ballot title
The ballot title for Referendum A was as follows:[2]
| “ |
Do you approve a new homestead exemption in a municipal corporation that is located in more than one county, that levies a sales tax for the purposes of a metropolitan area system of public transportation, and that has within its boundaries an independent school system, from ad valorem taxes for municipal purposes in the amount of the difference between the current year assessed value of a home and the adjusted base year value, provided that the lowest base year value will be adjusted yearly by 2.6 percent? [3] |
” |
Ballot summary
The ballot summary for Referendum A was as follows:[2]
| “ |
This proposal authorizes a new homestead exemption from ad valorem taxes for municipal purposes in an amount equal to the amount by which the current year assessed value of a homestead exceeds the adjusted base year value of such homestead. This exemption would only apply to persons residing in a municipal corporation that is located in more than one county, that levies a sales tax for the purposes of a metropolitan area system of public transportation, and that has within its boundaries an independent school system. It enacts Code Section 48-5-44.1 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated. If approved by a majority of the voters, the Act becomes effective on January 1, 2019, and applies to all tax years beginning on or after that date. [3] |
” |
Full text
The full text of Referendum A is available here.
Readability score
- See also: Ballot measure readability scores, 2018
| Using the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL and Flesch Reading Ease (FRE) formulas, Ballotpedia scored the readability of the ballot title and summary for this measure. Readability scores are designed to indicate the reading difficulty of text. The Flesch-Kincaid formulas account for the number of words, syllables, and sentences in a text; they do not account for the difficulty of the ideas in the text. The state legislature wrote the ballot language for this measure.
In 2018, for the 167 statewide measures on the ballot, the average ballot title or question was written at a level appropriate for those with between 19 and 20 years of U.S. formal education (graduate school-level of education), according to the FKGL formula. Read Ballotpedia's entire 2018 ballot language readability report here. |
Campaign finance
Ballotpedia did not identify any committees registered in support of or in opposition to the measure.
Path to the ballot
Article VII, Section II, Paragraph II(a) of the Georgia Constitution requires the legislature to pass any proposed tax exemptions by a two-thirds (66.67%) vote in each chamber. Legislative approval of a proposal refers it to the ballot, where simple majority voter approval is required.
This referendum was put on the ballot by the approval of House Bill 820. The state House approved the measure on February 28, 2018. On March 19, 2018, the state Senate unanimously approved an amended version of the bill. On March 29, 2018, the state House concurred the Senate's amended version in a vote of 158 to six. Gov. Nathan Deal (R) signed the bill on May 3, 2018.[2]
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See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 The registration deadline was extended to October 16, 2018, in Clay, Grady, Randolph, and Turner counties by executive order of Gov. Nathan Deal in response to Hurricane Michael.
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Georgia State Legislature, "House Bill 820," accessed August 29, 2018
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
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