Rising property taxes in Georgia continue to dominate kitchen table conversations around the state. As such, expect proposals to rein in property taxes to be at the forefront of the 2026 legislative session.
Home values, which have continued to rise in the wake of the pandemic housing boom, are now being layered with increased millage rates as local expenditures continue to grow. This is chalked up generally to “inflation” and includes not only city and county governments, but local school systems.
Hearing this explanation typically causes voters to observe they have had to “tighten their belt” in recent years for their household budgets, and question why their county or school can’t do the same.
It’s fair to conclude that for years a general political calculus at least kept the millage rates in check: While local elected officials determined the millage rates, the unelected boards of assessors were in charge of the assessed value. Essentially, rising assessments could do the “dirty work” of generating higher revenues.
Thus, as personal and commercial values continued to rise, local taxation debates would inevitably shift to whether the rollback rate – the lower millage rate that would generate the same amount of property tax revenue as the previous year – should be enacted.
Learn more about this in this week’s commentary.
– Kyle Wingfield
Friday’s Freshest 🗞️
For over a decade, the push for educational freedom was spearheaded at the state level by advocates and policy makers. The landscape of the school choice movement will change significantly in January 2027, when the first federal tax credit scholarship goes into effect.
Washington is currently focused on whether to extend COVID-era Obamacare subsidy add-ons. Democrats demanded these supposedly temporary subsidies be extended, leading to the recent government shutdown.
The 50-year mortgage idea recently floated by the Trump administration grows out of the same motivation of the 30-year mortgage of the 1930s—to make home ownership more accessible to people who would otherwise be renters.But today, the main barrier is not how we finance homes—it’s that we don’t build enough of them.
If you’ve followed the conversation even casually, you’ve heard the claim: Large institutional investors are buying up homes, driving prices sky-high and locking families out of the market. But like most stories that sound that simple, this one has more layers. And it’s worth separating the easy headlines from what’s actually happening on the ground.
Here is a simple proposition: If a Georgia public school has an open seat, any Georgia student should be able to take it. This idea isn’t fringe or partisan and shouldn’t require a superintendent’s blessing.
Peach Picks 🍑
Most new laws from the 2025 legislative session took effect in July, but a handful of significant bills became law yesterday, on New Year’s day. They address shortages in accounting and dentistry, and they increase homeowner protections, among other things.
Gov. Kemp, in partnership with the Georgia Department of Community Health, announced that the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services has awarded the State of Georgia $218.8 million for the first of five years of the Georgia Rural Enhancement and Transformation of Health Program. Gov. Kemp claims that this comprehensive effort will strengthen rural healthcare systems and improve outcomes statewide while introducing innovation and greater flexibility into the health system.
From high-profile legal battles to economic and political shakeups, Georgia’s news cycle in 2025 was shaped by events with national and statewide implications. The Center Square’s year-end roundup highlights Georgia’s major stories that defined the year.
Beginning this month, purchasers of a “bronze” or “catastrophic coverage” policy through the Affordable Care Act exchange or equivalent are now deemed HSA qualified. This expands the potential audience of HSAs to millions of Americans.
Some Georgia lawmakers are pushing back against Big Tech’s influence on children. After legal missteps in an effort to restrain the industry, the state Senate got new recommendations this month from a study committee that heard grim stories about the impact of social media and other platforms.
Quotes Of Note 🌟
“Learn from yesterday, live for today, hope for tomorrow.” – Albert Einstein
“You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream.” – C.S. Lewis
“I’d rather regret the risks that didn’t work out than the chances I didn’t take at all.” – Simone Biles