GWINNETT COUNTY, Ga. — Gwinnett County leaders say they’re trying to protect homeowners from paying higher taxes by opting out of Georgia’s homestead exemption law, but some say they don’t think it’s the right call.
On Tuesday, the county followed the example of many other metro Atlanta counties and school districts by opting out of House Bill 581, which was previously approved by Georgia voters.
But Channel 2 Gwinnett County Bureau Chief Matt Johnson learned some homeowners told that they don’t want county leaders ignoring the will of the people.
[DOWNLOAD: Free WSB-TV News app for alerts as news breaks]
House Bill 581 created a floating homestead exemption, which means a home’s taxable value can only go up based on inflation, not market value.
The bill is meant to provide relief for homeowners, but county officials say Gwinnett County already has a tax break that works better.
The county’s Value Offset Exemption has been in place for over 20 years. It freezes a home’s taxable value for county taxes, even as market values rise.
“The county’s VOE has saved Gwinnett homeowners more than a billion dollars on the Gwinnett County portion of their property tax bills,” Deputy County Attorney Jenny Carter said.
RELATED STORIES:
- City of Atlanta to opt out of statewide homestead exemption program
- Georgia lawmakers file bill to extend opt-out deadline for homestead exemptions
- Starting on New Year’s Day, multiple new Georgia tax laws take effect for 2025
But some residents are arguing that opting out of the law bypasses the voice of Georgia voters.
“They don’t want three of you or five of you to cancel their votes, that’s not right,” taxpayer Don Tam told county commissioners.
“It doesn’t pick winners and losers where some of you can choose to opt out of the will of the people,” taxpayer Lisa Rutherford said.
Others think sticking with the county’s plan is the right call.
“If this is truly, if opting out is going to do better for us, then I say that’s what we should do, thank you,” taxpayer Karen Carter said.
In the end, commissioners voted unanimously to opt out of the state plan.
[SIGN UP: WSB-TV Daily Headlines Newsletter]
©2025 Cox Media Group
