06 LC 25
4348
House
Bill 1281
By:
Representative Smith of the
113th
A
BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
AN ACT
To
amend Article 1 of Chapter 5 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to general provisions relative to ad valorem taxation of
property, so as to change certain provisions relating to certification of
assessed taxable value of property and method of computation, resolution or
ordinance required for millage rate, and advertisement of intent to increase
property tax; to provide an effective date; to provide for applicability; to
repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes.
BE
IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION
1.
Article
1 of Chapter 5 of Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating
to general provisions relative to ad valorem taxation of property, is amended by
striking Code Section 48-5-32.1, relating to certification of assessed taxable
value of property and method of computation, resolution or ordinance required
for millage rate, and advertisement of intent to increase property tax, and
inserting in lieu thereof the following:
∀48-5-32.1.
(a)
As used in this Code section, the term:
(1)
'Ad valorem tax' or 'property tax' means a tax imposed upon the assessed value
of real property.
(2)
'Certified tax digest' means the total net assessed value on the annual property
tax digest certified by the tax commissioner of a taxing jurisdiction to the
department and authorized by the commissioner for the collection of taxes, or,
in the case where the governing authority of a county whose digest has not been
approved by the commissioner has petitioned the superior court of the county for
an order authorizing the immediate and temporary collection of taxes, the
temporary digest so authorized.
(3)
'Levying authority' means a county, a municipality, or a consolidated
city-county governing authority or other governing authority of a political
subdivision of this state that exercises the power to levy ad valorem taxes to
carry out the governing
authoritýs
purposes.
(4)
'Mill' means one one-thousandth of a United States dollar.
(5)
'Millage' or 'millage rate' means the levy, in mills, which is established by
the governing authority for purposes of financing, in whole or in part, the
taxing
jurisdictiońs
expenses for their fiscal year.
(6)
'Millage equivalent' means the number of mills which would result when the total
net assessed value added by reassessments is divided by the certified tax digest
and the result is multiplied by the previous
yeaŕs
millage rate.
(7)
'Net assessed value' means the taxable assessed value of property after all
exemptions.
(8)
'Recommending authority' means a county, independent, or area school board of
education that exercises the power to cause the levying authority to levy ad
valorem taxes to carry out the purposes of such board of education.
(9)
'Roll-back rate' means the previous
yeaŕs
millage rate minus the millage equivalent of the total net assessed value added
by reassessments; provided, however, that if the taxing jurisdiction has created
a redevelopment area under the provisions of Chapter 44 of Title 36 and the
roll-back rate that would otherwise result is lower than the minimum millage
permissible under such chapter, the roll-back rate shall mean such minimum
millage.
(10)
'Taxing jurisdiction' means all the real property subject to the levy of a
specific levying authority or the recommended levy of a specific recommending
authority.
(11)
'Total net assessed value added by reassessments' means the total net assessed
value added to the certified tax digest as a result of revaluation of existing
real property that has not been improved since the previous tax digest
year.
(b)
At the time of certification of the digest, the tax receiver or tax commissioner
shall also certify to the recommending authority and levying authority of each
taxing jurisdiction the total net assessed value added by reassessments
contained in the certified tax digest for that tax digest year of the taxing
jurisdiction.
(c)(1)
Whenever a recommending authority or levying authority shall propose to adopt a
millage rate which does not exceed the roll-back rate, it shall adopt that
millage rate at an advertised public meeting and at a time and place which is
convenient to the taxpayers of the taxing jurisdiction, in accordance with the
procedures specified under Code Section 48-5-32.
(2)
In those instances in which the recommending authority or levying authority
proposes to establish any millage rate which would require increases beyond the
roll-back rate, the recommending authority or levying authority shall advertise
its intent to do so and shall conduct at least three public hearings thereon, at
least one of which shall commence between the hours of 6:00 P.M. and 7:00 P.M.,
inclusive, on a business weekday. The recommending authority or levying
authority shall place an advertisement in a newspaper of general circulation
serving the residents of the unit of local government, which shall read as
follows:
'NOTICE OF PROPERTY TAX INCREASE
The
(name of
recommending authority or levying
authority) has tentatively adopted a
millage rate which will require an increase in property taxes by
(percentage
increase over roll-back rate)
percent.
All
concerned citizens are invited to the public hearing on this tax increase to be
held at (place
of meeting) on
(date and
time).
Times
and places of additional public hearings on this tax increase are:
at
(place of meeting) on (date and time)
.
.
.
.
.
at
(place of meeting) on (date and time)
This
tentative increase will result in a millage rate of (proposed millage rate)
mills, an increase of (millage rate increase above the rollback rate) mills.
Without this tentative tax increase, the millage rate will be no more than
(rollback millage rate) mills. The following table lists the dollar amounts of
the proposed tax increase for different property
valuations:
$75,000 $100,000 $125,000 $150,000 $175,000 $200,000
($
increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($
increase)
$225,000 $250,000 $275,000 $300,000 $325,000 $350,000
($
increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($
increase)
$375,000 $400,000 $450,000 $500,000 $600,000 $.
. .
($
increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($ increase) ($
increase)
A copy of the tentative budget may be obtained at (place where budget may be obtained) between the hours of (times when budget will be available for public inspection) or on the Internet at (URL for the tentative budget if it is provided on the Internet).'
Simultaneously
with this notice the recommending authority or levying authority shall provide a
press release to the local media.
(3)
The advertisement shall appear at least one week prior to each
hearing,
and
shall be prominently
displayed, be
not less than 30 square inches, and
shall
not be placed in that section of the newspaper where legal notices
appear.
(3.1)
Prior to or contemporaneous with the placement of the advertisement required
under paragraph (2) of this subsection, the recommending authority or levying
authority shall make its tentative budget available for public viewing at times
and places that are convenient to the public. The tentative budget must remain
available to the public during the period of public comment. If the recommending
authority or levying authority has a taxing jurisdiction containing 30,000 or
more people then that recommending authority or levying authority shall also
publish its tentative budget on the Internet in addition to making it available
for public viewing.
(4)
No recommending authority shall recommend and no levying authority shall levy a
millage rate in excess of the proposed millage rate as established pursuant to
paragraph (2) of this subsection without beginning anew the procedures and
hearings required by this Code section and those required by Code Section
48-5-32. The
commissioner shall not accept a digest for review or issue an order authorizing
the collection of taxes if the recommending authority or taxing authority has
established a millage rate that is in excess of the correct rollback without
complying fully with the procedures required by this Code section and Code
Section 48-5-32; provided, however, that the commissioner may accept such a
digest and issue an order authorizing the collection of taxes if he or she
determines that the discrepancy was a bona fide error in calculation and if the
increase in taxes does not exceed the amount of the advertised increase by more
than 3 percent of the advertised increase.
(5)
Any notice or hearing required under this Code section may be combined with any
notice or hearing required under Article 1 of Chapter 81 of Title 36 or Code
Section
48-5-32;
provided, however, that all of the requirements of this Code section with
respect to advertisement shall be met, and the space in the advertisement for
the hearings devoted to the requirements of this Code section shall meet the
requirements of paragraph (3) of this
subsection.
(d)
Nothing contained in this Code section shall serve to extend or authorize any
millage rate in excess of the maximum millage rate permitted by law or to
prevent the reduction of the millage rate.
(e)
The commissioner shall not accept for review the digest of any county which does
not submit simultaneously with such digest evidence of compliance with this Code
section by the levying authorities and recommending authorities with the
exception of municipal governing authorities. In the event a digest is not
accepted for review by the commissioner pursuant to this subsection, it shall be
accepted for review upon satisfactory submission by such authorities of such
evidence. The levies of each of the levying authorities other than the county
governing authority shall be invalid and unenforceable until such time as the
provisions of this Code section have been met.
(e.1)
In the event that the commissioner determines, after having issued an order
authorizing the collection of taxes, that the recommending authority or the
levying authority has not fully complied with all of the provisions of this Code
section, then the commissioner shall rescind the order authorizing the
collection of taxes and issue an order requiring that any taxes collected
pursuant to the rescinded order authorizing collection of taxes be returned to
the taxpayer.
(f)
The commissioner shall promulgate such rules and regulations as may be necessary
for the administration of this Code
section.∀
SECTION
2.
This
Act shall become effective on January 1, 2006, and shall apply to all tax years
beginning on or after such date.
SECTION
3.
All
laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed.