City School of Decatur’s Senior Homestead Exemption Committee held it’s first meeting last week, nearly seven weeks after naming its nine-person collective.
A major reason for that delay, of course, was the COVID-19 outbreak. But now that it’s finally commenced, the committee appears to face some profound challenges and uncertainties.
Last fall Decatur’s school board determined that a revision was mandatory for the current homestead exemption, which began in Jan. 2017, and where residents 65 and over were given full exemption of all school taxes. But a study completed last October by Georgia State University’s Andrew Young School Center for State & Local Finance, determined that exemption was costing the district way too much money.
Before the exemption took effect, CSD estimated it would lose $1.2 million in revenue annually. But the GSU study showed the district losing $3.41 million in 2018 and $3.24 million in 2017. The board has stated unequivocally it wants the new exemption constructed so that losses hover around the original $1.2 million projection.
This could mean changing any combination of criteria allowing for eligibility, including raising the minimum age to 70, factoring in the worth of a senior’s property, or consideration of the senior’s income level.
The original exemption had a five-year sunset, meaning it expires Dec. 31, 2021. For a revised exemption to take effect in Jan. 2022, CSD must introduce new legislation to the state’s General Assembly during the 2021 session.
This is where it could get tricky.
The steering committee is charged with presenting recommendation to the board by Sept. 1, a deadline made particularly tight considering how long it took the group to first meet. All meetings, at least in the foreseeable future, are conducted virtually, which is simply not the same as debating issues in person, face to face.
Also the charge directs the committee to “design and implement a public involvement process,” which appears logistically difficult, or at least limited, during the social distancing duration.
Also, the General Assembly’s timeline is suspended. The Legislature halted its 2020 session on March 13 (crossover day) and there is no current date for resumption. There’s also no way of knowing if the 2021 session will begin on time. One thing that appears unyielding for now is that Dec. 2021 expiration date for the original exemption.
The official charge is as straightforward as it is complex: “ … to help seniors retire in place while promoting age, race and income diversity in Decatur.”
James Herndon, the school board member in charge of meetings (a group chair hasn’t yet been selected), anticipates the nine steering committee members, including former mayors Bill Floyd and Elizabeth Wilson, will be quick studies.
“We’ve got a great committee, we just want to put them on the same page,” Herndon told the AJC. “We want an exemption that works, whose costs are not out of hand, and that represents the values of Decatur. I think one of our next steps is to find out, where in the state of Georgia, a [school tax] exemption has worked.”
