The recent announcement by Gov. Sonny Perdue to withhold the state’s annual rebate from the Homestead Tax Relief Grant credits as a way of combatting the state’s shrinking revenues made its way to the Coweta County Commission agenda Sept. 2. Commissioners decided to mail tax bills as usual in the hopes that legislators can successfully address the issue in January. If the credit is withheld, the county will have to send an additional bill to property owners in 2009 on behalf of the county and school board to recoup approximately $6 million that would normally be rebated by the state.

County Administrator Theron Gay told the commissioners the county had received an Aug. 4 letter from Association of County Commissioners of Georgia (ACCG) relating to the issue. ACCG recommended that counties hold off on printing and sending tax bills until the organization could determine the future status of HTRG, Gay said.

Gay said the impact to property owners would amount to approximately $200-300 for homesteaded property. The impact to county government would be between $2 million and $4 million to the school board. Additionally, like most counties in Georgia, Coweta had already submitted its tax digest by the Aug. 1 deadline and is in process of generating property tax bills. Perdue waited until after Aug. 1 deadline to announce that the credits would be withheld.

After discussing the issue. the commissioners decided to go ahead and send the tax bills. Included with the bill will be a letter to explain what might happen if the rebate to the counties is not forthcoming. If that occurs, commissioners will have to make a decision on a course of action. Worst case, the county would have to send another tax bill to recover the funds the rebate would have covered.

The commissioners said the letter will also request that property owners contact their legislators take their concerns to the General Assembly in January. Commissioners Paul Poole and Tim Higgins said they expected that citizens will make their feelings known.

The Homestead Tax Relief Grant exemption first began under Gov. Roy Barnes as part of the Taxpayers Bill of Rights.