Committee advances bill to simplify property assessment notices and homestead rules

Legislators on the Senate Finance Committee advanced SB566, a rewrite of the notice‑of‑assessment sent to property owners that aims to make the form clearer about the prior year value, current year value, exemptions applied and how to appeal.

The sponsor said the bill focuses the notice on intended information — property value and exemptions — and removes ambiguous language that resulted from prior changes. Section 1 would require corrected notices not to reset appeal deadlines if the error was a formatting or publication issue beyond a county’s control. The sponsor said the measure is intended to avoid penalizing taxpayers for technical errors and to reduce confusion.

County assessors and the Georgia Association of Assessing Officials supported the effort. James Oakes, chief appraiser in Paulding County and legislative director for the Georgia Association of Assessing Officials, told the committee counties frequently encounter Department of Revenue denials because legal advertisements did not meet formatting or placement requirements; the bill would give DOR limited discretion to accept corrected submissions when counties can show they complied.

Senators asked whether the notice should include prior years’ actual tax bills so recipients can see how their tax amount compares year to year; sponsors said the notice is an assessment notice and millage rates are published with the tax bill itself, so the form does not include prior tax bills. Committee members also raised concerns about small counties losing local newspapers and whether website postings could satisfy the legal-ad requirement; witnesses said that question may require a separate bill.

The committee voted to advance SB566 by voice vote and sent it to the next committee.