Commissioners review tax‑relief option and hazard‑mitigation buyouts after 2024 declared disasters

County attorney Jeff Akins and Emergency Management Director Corey Kemp briefed the Bulloch County Board of Commissioners on two related post‑disaster tools: (1) the temporary ad‑valorem tax relief authorized by OCGA 48‑5‑33 for parcels that sustained major damage or were destroyed in a federally declared disaster year, and (2) FEMA/GEMA hazard‑mitigation acquisition grants that buy out repeatedly flooded homes and convert the land to permanent open space.

Tax‑relief overview and staff recommendation

Akins summarized OCGA 48‑5‑33, enacted as House Bill 311 (2023), which allows governing authorities whose jurisdiction lies within a federally declared disaster area to adopt a resolution providing temporary property‑tax relief for the tax year in which the disaster occurred. The statute requires the local emergency management director to identify buildings that qualify as “major damage” or “destroyed” and requires the tax commissioner to aggregate eligible parcel data for governing authorities.

Akins and staff said the relief is optional for the county; it can be granted either by reducing the county millage rate for eligible parcels or by issuing a…