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(a) The homestead of each resident of each independent school district and of each county school district within this state who is 62 years of age or older and, for the purposes of all tax years beginning on or after January 1, 2003, whose net income together with the net income of the spouse who also occupies and resides at such homestead, as net income is defined by Georgia law from all sources, except as otherwise provided in this subsection, does not exceed $10,000.00 for the immediately preceding taxable year for income tax purposes, is exempted from all ad valorem taxes for educational purposes levied by, for, or on behalf of any such school system, including taxes to retire school bond indebtedness. For the purposes of this subsection, net income shall not include income received as retirement, survivor, or disability benefits under the federal Social Security Act or under any other public or private retirement, disability, or pension system, except such income which is in excess of the maximum amount authorized to be paid to an individual and his or her spouse under the federal Social Security Act. Income from such sources in excess of such maximum amount shall be included as net income for the purposes of this subsection. The exemption shall not exceed $10,000.00 of the homestead’s assessed value. Except as otherwise specifically provided by law, the value of that property in excess of such exempted amount shall remain subject to taxation.
(b) (1) The exemption provided for in subsection (a) of this Code section shall not be granted unless an affidavit of the owner of the homestead, prepared upon forms prescribed by the commissioner for that purpose, is filed with either the tax receiver or tax commissioner, in the case of residents of county school districts, or with the governing authority of the owner’s city, in the case of residents of independent school districts.
(2) The affidavit shall in the first year for which the exemption is sought be filed on or before the last day for making a tax return and shall show the:
(A) Age of the owner on January 1 immediately preceding the filing of the affidavit;
(B) Total amount of net income received by the owner and spouse from all sources during the immediately preceding calendar year; and
(C) Such additional information as may be required by the commissioner.
(3) Copies of all affidavits received or extracts of the information contained in the affidavits shall be forwarded to the commissioner by the various taxing authorities with whom the affidavits are filed. The commissioner is authorized to compare such information with information contained in any income tax return, sales tax return, or other tax documents or records of the department and to report immediately to the appropriate county or city taxing authority any apparent discrepancies between the information contained in any affidavit and the information contained in any other tax records of the department.
(4) After the owner has filed the affidavit and has once been allowed the exemption provided for in this Code section, it shall not be necessary to make application and file the affidavit thereafter for any year and the exemption shall continue to be allowed to such owner; provided, however, that it shall be the duty of any such owner to notify the tax commissioner or tax receiver in the event the owner becomes ineligible for any reason for the exemption provided for in this Code section.
(c) The homestead exemption granted by this Code section shall extend to and shall apply to those properties the legal title to which is vested in one or more titleholders when such property is actually occupied as a residence by one or more of the titleholders who possess the qualifications provided in subsection (a) of this Code section and who claim the exemption in the manner provided for in this Code section. The exemption shall also extend to those homesteads the title to which is vested in a personal representative or trustee if one or more of the heirs or beneficiaries residing on the property possess the qualifications provided for and claim the exemption in the manner provided in this Code section.
(d) (1) The State Board of Education, when funds are specifically appropriated for the purpose of replacing revenue lost by local school systems as a result of this Code section, shall provide each school district in this state which, on July 1, 1974, had in effect a tax levy of 20 mills or more for educational purposes or was levying the maximum permissible tax authorized by law for educational purposes, with grants for educational purposes which shall equal the revenues lost by the school district due to the exemption provided by this Code section for property located within the school district.
(2) The State Board of Education may promulgate reasonable rules to carry out this subsection. History. Ga. L. 1974, p. 183, §§ 1-4; Code 1933, § 91A-1117, enacted by Ga. L. 1978, p. 309, § 2; Ga. L. 1981, p. 1857, § 16; Ga. L. 1984, p. 1437, § 1; Ga. L. 1988, p. 2, § 2; Ga. L. 2001, p. 1092, § 1; Ga. L. 2010, p. 564, § 2/HB 963. Editor’s notes. Ga. L. 1988, p. 2, § 3, not codified by the General Assembly, required the Secretary of State to call and conduct a referendum for the approval or disapproval of this Act on the date of and in conjunction with the 1988 presidential preference primary. The referendum was held on March 8, 1988, and the amendment of this Code section was approved by a vote of 655,019 to 144,603. Further, Section 3 also provided: “If a taxpayer files a proper affidavit on or before the last day for filing his or her tax return in 1988, then Sections 1 and 2 of this Act shall apply with respect to such taxpayer’s 1988 and future ad valorem taxes; and otherwise Sections 1 and 2 of this Act shall apply to any taxpayer who has so filed a timely affidavit at any time thereafter. Nothing in this Act shall require any person who qualified for any homestead exemption under prior law to reapply in order to be allowed the exemption.” The state-wide referendum (Ga. L. 2001, p. 1092, § 1) which changed the income requirements for this ad valorem tax exemption was approved by a majority of the voters voting at the November, 2002 general election. OPINIONS OF THE ATTORNEY GENERAL Life tenant with remainderman responsible for ad valorem taxes. — Covenant contained in a deed conveying a life estate which makes the remainder interest responsible for paying the ad valorem taxes does not alter the ownership interests in the property for purposes of eligibility to claim the homestead exemptions allowed for the elderly. 1983 Op. Atty Gen. No. U83-71. Construction with homestead provisions in constitution. — Taxpayer who meets the qualifications of both this statute and Ga. Const. 1945, Art. VII, Sec. I, Para. IV (see now Ga. Const. 1983, Art. VII, Sec. II, Para. I-IV), relating to exemptions for persons 65 and over, would be entitled to an exemption of no more than $4,000.00 from state ad valorem taxes, $4,000.00 from county ad valorem taxes excluding those taxes levied for educational purposes, and $10,000.00 from ad valorem taxes levied for educational purposes. 1974 Op. Atty Gen. No. U74-83. Social security benefits are included in income for the purposes of determining a taxpayer’s entitlement to the homestead exemption granted in this statute. 1974 Op. Atty Gen. No. U74-83. Effect of claim of two or more similar exemptions. — If a taxpayer is qualified for and chooses to invoke the benefits of any one of the exemptions from any one of the types of ad valorem taxes, the taxpayer necessarily triggers the limitation clause of that exemption; any attempt to take two or more similar exemptions would violate the limitation clause of each of the exemptions and cannot be done. 1974 Op. Atty Gen. No. U74-83. Applicable levy under subsection (d). — If the governing authority of a county has not set a tax levy for 1974 prior to July 1, 1974, then that tax levy which was set in 1973 is the levy in effect for purposes of this statute. 1974 Op. Atty Gen. No. U74-73. Effect of levy recommended and requested but not adopted by county prior to July 1, 1974. — When a county board of education has recommended and requested a certain levy prior to July 1, 1974, but such recommendation and request has not been officially adopted by the county governing authority prior to that date, the levy recommended and requested by the board is not in effect for purposes of this statute. 1974 Op. Atty Gen. No. U74-73. RESEARCH REFERENCES Am. Jur. 2d. 40 Am. Jur. 2d, Homestead, § 13. C.J.S. 84 C.J.S., Taxation, § 419 et seq. ALR. Tax exemption of property as affecting its inclusion in determining requisite consent of property owners to annexation territory, local improvement, bond issue, and other public activity, 146 A.L.R. 1260. Validity of statute or ordinance giving property tax exemption or favorable property tax rate to older persons, 45 A.L.R.3d 1147. Construction of statute or ordinance giving property tax exemption or favorable property tax rate to older persons, 45 A.L.R.3d 1153. Prospective use for tax-exempt purposes as entitling property to tax exemption, 54 A.L.R.3d 9. Availability of tax exemption to property held on lease from exempt owner, 54 A.L.R.3d 402.