Millions of Georgians may soon get a tax rebate of up to $500 from the state’s record budget surplus. Governor Brian Kemp has proposed sending a one-time tax rebate from Georgia of up to $500 using $1 billion of the state’s $6.6 billion budget surplus.
One-Time Tax Rebate From Georgia: Who Could Get It?
Last week, the Georgia state House approved the tax rebate proposal with a vote of 170 to 1, and now the proposal needs to be approved by the state Senate.
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As of now, not many details are known about this one-time tax rebate from Georgia. However, we do know that the tax rebate is based on House Bill 1302, which gave Georgians a rebate of up to $500 last year.
Last year’s bill provided married couples (filing together) with a rebate of up to $500, heads of households with up to $375, and single adults with up to $250. The rebate was available to Georgians who filed their tax returns in 2020 and 2021. Those who filed the return electronically got a direct deposit, while others received a paper check.
Apart from the one-time tax rebate from Georgia, Gov. Kemp also talked about a $1 billion property tax relief scheme that has already been approved by the state House. The property tax relief scheme, if it becomes law, would provide homeowners with $500 in property tax rebate.
“These actions will put real money back in the pockets of hardworking Georgians facing unforeseen jumps in property values and record-high inflation,” Gov. Kemp said at the time of introducing the proposal last month.
Spare Cash May Not Be Needed For Tax Rebates
Georgia witnessed an increase in revenue of $36.6 billion for the year ending June 30, up from the initial projection of $30.2 billion. However, as per the numbers released last month, the tax receipts were about $1 billion above that projection. Now, the state expects to collect $32.6 billion this year, i.e., a surplus of $2.4 billion.
Georgia’s projected surplus would add to the state’s $6.6 billion in spare cash. Thus, it could mean that Gov. Kemp won’t need to use the spare cash to send $1 billion in income tax rebates and $1.1 billion in property tax rebates to homeowners.
In addition to tax rebates, Gov. Kemp also wants to provide new $50,000 safety grants to every public school, totaling $115.7 million. Also, the governor wants to set aside $25 million in the form of one-time grants to offset learning loss and $15 million to encourage classroom aides to become teachers.
Separately, Gov. Kemp also plans to use $1.1 billion from the budget surplus to pay for road maintenance and $166.7 million on the Regional Economic Business Assistance program. The proposal also calls for using $100 million to help regional school districts in covering the increasing cost of employee health insurance.
