City Schools of Decatur officials are celebrating the passage of a bill providing tax exemptions to senior residents, saying it will slow growth in the city and the school district.
Under SB 343, residents 65 and over would be exempt from paying the school ad valorem tax on their homes. Seniors should save an estimated $993 per $100,000 house.
"The school board has been and remains committed to providing tax relief for all seniors," City Schools of Decatur said in a statement. "The purpose of the senior exemption is two-fold. The primary purpose is to help seniors retire in place, at home in Decatur. A secondary purpose is to slow growth in our schools. Experience has shown that when seniors move out, families move in."
The cost of the exemption is projected at about $1 million, district officials said Friday. According to a section on the City Schools of Decatur website that answers questions on the bill, the city's Board of Education supported the 5-year life span for the exemption to give time to assess actual costs. The projected cost isn't certain because data needed to make an accurate projection dosn't exist, and data collected over five years would allow for better projections.
“Passage of Decatur’s senior homestead exemption was no small feat,” Decatur Board of Education Chairwoman Annie Caiola said. “It just goes to show what our community is capable of when we work together.”
During the process, seniors expressed concern they might be hit with higher taxes at the end of the five-year period. The district, according to its website, likely would forgo re-establishing a senior tax by examining income caps, assessment limits or other tiered tax relief.
Gov. Nathan Deal now has to sign the city’s five homestead exemption bills in time for them to be voted on as part of a referendum on the Nov. 8 ballot.
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