Forsyth County Schools hold third hearing on whether to opt out of state’s HB 581; no vote taken

Forsyth County School leaders and board members held a third required public hearing to consider whether to opt out of Georgia House Bill 581 and keep the county’s locally adopted House Bill 717, staff said.

School CFO Larry Hamill told the board that HB 717 — a locally developed floating homestead exemption that caps reassessment increases at 4% annually — gives the district more predictability for budgeting than the statewide HB 581, which ties homestead protections to an inflation measure set by the Georgia Department of Revenue and has no expiration date.

Hamill said, “Forsyth County Schools has and will continue to provide a senior school property tax exemption for homestead owners aged 65.” He added that the two exemptions are “very, very similar” in taxpayer benefit but that HB 581’s CPI link and permanence create uncertainty for planning.

Why it matters: The central choice before the board is between two homestead-exemption approaches that both limit big year‑to‑year swings in school tax bills but differ in how the cap is calculated and how long it lasts. Board members and staff emphasized that the senior (65+) full school tax abatement will not change regardless of the board’s choice, and that the difference in taxpayer savings between the two measures averages in the hundreds of dollars over long periods, not thousands.

Staff presentation and fiscal context

Hamill and other staff outlined local fiscal factors that informed the board’s earlier adoption of HB 717 and the school system’s financial position. Hamill said Forsyth County’s maintenance and operations millage is 15.208 and the debt millage is 1.418. He noted the district has lowered millage rates by roughly three mills over the last three years and maintains high ratings, including a five‑star state financial efficiency rating and a triple‑A bond rating.

Hamill and other board members described a history of historically high reassessment values in 2022–23 that drove the local effort for a fixed 4% cap. They said HB 717 was developed locally with the county’s legislative delegation and approved by Forsyth County voters in 2024; staff described HB 717 as a 10‑year test period for the local cap. The Georgia General Assembly subsequently passed HB 581, and voters statewide approved a related referendum.

Key differences staff highlighted

- HB 717: local, fixed 4% cap on reassessment increases (described by staff as providing greater predictability); approved locally via referendum and set up to be evaluated over a multi‑year period. - HB 581: statewide, CPI‑linked cap that applies to counties, municipalities and school systems; no expiration date and the precise CPI measure (national, state or Atlanta metro) will be determined by the Georgia Department of Revenue, creating year‑to‑year variability for budgeting, staff said.

Hamill said, “HB 581 creates uncertainty for the budgeting process from year to year,” and warned the lack of an expiration could make it difficult to adjust if the state formula produced negative effects for local operations.

Other fiscal points raised

Board members and staff discussed Forsyth County’s share of state funding and equalization. Speakers said the district receives about 45% of its funding from the state’s Quality Basic Education (QBE) formula and that the state’s equalization calculation effectively redirects the first five mills of local collections when distributing state funding; staff cited roughly $99 million as the amount affected in the prior year. Those remarks were offered as context for why local revenue predictability matters to the district’s ability to hire staff and plan capital projects.

Public participation and next steps

No members of the public signed up to speak at the hearing. The board closed the formal public‑hearing portion after staff and board remarks and did not take a formal vote on whether to opt out of HB 581 during this session. The board chair said the upcoming meeting will decide between the two homestead exemptions; staff emphasized the decision is between two measures that staff described as “robust” protections for taxpayers.

Votes at this meeting

- Motion to approve the meeting agenda: moved by Mr. Grimes, seconded by Mr. McCall; outcome: unanimous approval (no roll‑call tally given in transcript). - Motion to adjourn the hearing: moved by Mrs. Hoyes, seconded by Mr. Grimes; outcome: unanimous approval (no roll‑call tally given in transcript).

Reporters’ note: Board members and staff repeatedly cautioned that online postings had spread misleading information about the scope of any change; staff stressed that the district cannot eliminate the 65+ full school tax abatement absent a public referendum.

Ending: The public hearing was adjourned with no formal board decision; the board indicated a decision about opting out of HB 581 will be made at an upcoming meeting.