Senate scraps year-round appeal proposal

Senate Bill 346, which would make significant changes to property assessments and the appeals process in Georgia, was favorably reported out by committee yesterday.

But the proposed bill has been amended to remove a key provision from the bill.  Rather than allowing for year-round appeals, the bill would simply extend the current 30-day appeal window to a 45-day window.

The proposed requirements for counties to send assessment notices to property owners annually (which would give owners more frequent opportunity to appeal) and setting the sale price of a home as the maximum fair market value for one year following the sale remain in the bill.

While the substitute language makes the overall bill less controversial, The Chattanooga Times Free Press reports today that there are still lingering concerns by county officials that the state proposal puts new administrative requirements on local governments without funding them.

GPB had reported earlier this month that the property assessment bill would be withdrawn pending the state’s February revenues. That appears to have been an inaccurate prediction since the numbers announced today are abysmal and most of the original measures in SB 346 are still on the table.