House will push to limit residential tax assessments, Richardson says

House Speaker Glenn Richardson says his chamber will push next year to limit increases in home assessments in hopes of holding down property taxes.

However, Richardson said Thursday that lawmakers probably also will eliminate or phase out property tax-relief grants that save homeowners about $200-$300 annually.

“We’re not so certain the homeowners tax-relief grant is really getting into peoples’ hands,” Richardson said after speaking at a luncheon hosted by the Georgia Public Policy Foundation, an Atlanta think tank. “We’re going to look at a way to probably bring that [grant program] to an end.

“Our hope is we can limit assessment increases and it doesn’t result in a tax increase.”

County officials said eliminating the $428 million grant program will mean bigger tax bills for homeowners.

“By removing that credit, you are guaranteeing those tax bills are going to go up by that amount,” said Clint Mueller of the Association County Commissioners of Georgia.

Richardson’s comments echo those made previously by Gov. Sonny Perdue, who noted that property taxes have continued to rise despite the grants. The grant appears as a credit on Georgians’ tax bills.

Lawmakers have objected to the idea of eliminating the grant money this fiscal year, which began July 1, because counties already have sent out tax bills.

If the grants are eliminated this year, counties would be likely to send out supplemental tax bills.

But this may wind up being the last year that property tax bills include the full credit.

Richardson said House Republicans will push a proposed constitutional amendment to essentially tie maximum property assessment increases to inflation.

The Georgia Senate passed a similar proposal during the 2008 session.

Even when cities, counties and school districts don’t raise tax rates, the assessed value of property can be increased by county officials. That means higher tax bills for homeowners.

Lawmakers argue that increasing property assessments allows city councils, county commissions and school boards to get more revenue without having to take the politically more difficult step of raising the tax rate.

“The rate of property taxes people are paying is rising at a rate greater than inflation, greater than the ability of property owners to pay, and we’re going to slow that down,” Richardson said in his Public Policy Foundation speech.

Mueller said county officials would prefer the state let counties decide on their own whether to limit assessment increases.

Kelly McCutchen, executive vice president of the foundation, also raised questions about assessment limits. He said it could merely shift higher assessments to slow-growth areas that have not seen big assessment increases in the past.

“We are more concerned with limiting the increase in spending and not shifting the burden around,” McCutchen said.