Short answer: If voters approved them, the earliest bill either new Fayette County homestead exemption could reduce is the tax-year 2027 bill. The Tax Commissioner says bills normally arrive around mid-September. The exemption could still be $0 that year, depending on how collections compare with 2025 and on a strict threshold in the bill text.
Fayette County voters decided two separate homestead exemption questions on the November 3, 2026 general-election ballot. BallotReady lists the school-tax measure (HB 1582) as Question 2 and the county-tax measure (HB 1583) as Question 3. Results had not been reported or certified when this article was written on election day. Everything below describes what would happen if a measure is approved.
What the two questions would do
Both bills create a "floating" homestead exemption paid for by property-tax collections above 2025 levels. Each year, any qualifying extra money would be set aside and turned into one dollar amount of exemption, applied equally to every exempt homestead. The school version (HB 1582) covers Fayette County school district taxes for educational purposes. The county version (HB 1583) covers Fayette County taxes for county purposes.
Both measures moved through the legislature without opposition. According to Georgia Commons, both passed the House 153-0 on March 27, 2026 and the Senate 49-0 on April 2, 2026. The Governor signed both on May 12, 2026. HB 1582 became Act 686 and HB 1583 became Act 687. HB 1583's primary sponsor is Rep. Josh Bonner (R, HD-73), with co-sponsors Karen Mathiak, Derrick Jackson and Debra Bazemore.
The school question, as BallotReady lists it, reads:
"Shall the Act be approved which provides a homestead exemption from Fayette County school district ad valorem taxes for educational purposes in a floating proportional amount based upon the amount of property taxes collected in a particular tax year that exceeds the value of property taxes collected in tax year 2025?"
The county question uses parallel wording for "Fayette County ad valorem taxes for county purposes."
This is not an assessment freeze. The exemption removes a set dollar amount of value from taxation. As the HB 1583 text puts it, "The value of that property in excess of such exempted amount shall remain subject to taxation." Your home's value can still rise, and the rest of it is still taxed.
The school bill is narrow in scope. Per the HB 1582 text, it does not apply to state taxes, county taxes for county purposes, municipal taxes, or independent school district taxes, and it "shall be in addition to and not in lieu of any other homestead exemption."
How this differs from exemptions Fayette already has
Fayette homeowners already have floating exemptions, but they work differently. According to Fayette County government, voters approved HB 1166, an additional school homestead exemption, in November 2020, and HB 581 in November 2024. The county notes that "The Fayette County BOE opted out of HB 581 in favor of the existing HB 1166 exemption." The county describes both as based on the difference between a home's current value and a base-year value. HB 1582 and HB 1583 are based on tax collections instead.
The timeline, step by step
Step 1: November 3, 2026, the vote
Each question passes by a simple majority of votes cast. The two questions are separate, so one can pass while the other fails. If a question is rejected, that exemption never takes effect, and the act is automatically repealed on the 365th day after the election.
Step 2: Tax year 2026, the first comparison year
Both bills use tax year 2025 as the base year. From the county bill: "In any tax year subsequent to the base year, the tax commissioner of Fayette County shall determine the amount of ad valorem taxes for county purposes collected from all properties that is in excess of the ad valorem taxes for county purposes collected from all properties in the base year." The school bill uses parallel wording.
Money that qualifies is set aside "to offset the cost of the exemption provided by this Act in the next subsequent tax year." Our reading of the text: 2026 is the first year after the base year, so 2026 collections are the earliest that could fund the exemption, and that money would be used in tax year 2027.
Step 3: January 1, 2027, the exemption begins
Both bills say: "Such homestead exemption shall commence on January 1, 2027." Separately, the Fayette County Assessors' Office says "All exemptions require that the owner occupy the home on January 1 of the current tax year." If you're buying in Fayette, that January 1 date matters for which tax year you qualify in.
Step 4: The 2027 digest is approved, and the dollar amount is set
Once the tax digest for the year is approved, a local body sets the amount. For county taxes, HB 1583 says: "As soon as the tax digest for the next subsequent tax year is approved, the governing authority of Fayette County in coordination with the tax commissioner of Fayette County, shall calculate the dollar value to be equally applied to all properties receiving the exemption." HB 1582 gives the same job to the Fayette County Board of Education for school taxes.
Three things to know about that decision:
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It's discretionary. "The value of the exemption to be provided each year shall be at the discretion of the governing authority."
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It's capped. The amount can be less than the set-aside funds but cannot exceed them. The Tax Commissioner passes along the segregated amount "plus any interest earned on such segregated funds."
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Leftovers don't roll forward to homeowners. Any unused money goes to the general fund.
Step 5: The 2027 tax bill
On our reading, the tax-year 2027 bill is the earliest one either exemption could reduce. The Tax Commissioner's payment-site FAQ says taxpayers "should receive your tax bills around the middle of September" and that "Your taxes are due sixty (60) days from the date the original bills were mailed." Statewide, the Georgia Department of Revenue lists December 20 as the default due date, though local governments can move it to December 1 or November 15 or use installment billing. We aren't giving a specific 2027 date because that bill hasn't been scheduled.
The catch: the 100 percent threshold
Here is the key sentence from HB 1583, section (3)(B), word for word:
"If the excess amount of ad valorem taxes for county purposes collected from all properties in a particular tax year exceeds 100 percent of the ad valorem taxes for county purposes collected from all properties in the base year, the full value of such tax collections exceeding such amount shall be segregated from all other proceeds ... and such segregated funds shall be maintained to offset the cost of the exemption provided by this Act in the next subsequent tax year."
And the zero-dollar rule in (3)(C): if the excess "is negative or does not exceed 100 percent of the ad valorem taxes for county purposes collected from all properties in the base year, the value of the homestead exemption provided by this Act for the next subsequent tax year shall be zero dollars." HB 1582 has the same structure for school taxes.
Read literally, the excess over 2025 must itself be larger than 2025 collections. That would mean collections more than doubling before any money is set aside. That's why we aren't projecting a dollar figure for 2027 or any later year. Under the text as written, a $0 exemption in the early years is a real possibility.
How the dollar amount would work (hypothetical numbers)
The following numbers are made up to show the math. They are not Fayette County figures.
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Cap: set-aside excess collections plus interest.
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Per-home tax reduction: the amount the board chooses to use, divided by the number of exempt homesteads.
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Exempted value: that tax reduction divided by (millage rate ÷ 1,000).
Example: a board uses $1,000,000 across 20,000 exempt homesteads. That's $50 per home. At a hypothetical 20 mills, $50 of tax equals $2,500 of assessed value exempted ($50 ÷ 0.020).
Because every homestead gets the same dollar amount, the benefit is proportionally bigger for lower-value homes. A $50 reduction is 2.5 percent of a $2,000 tax bill but less than 1 percent of a $6,000 bill.
For a real-world sense of scale, Fayette County News reported the City of Fayetteville's illustration for its own, separate floating exemption: $250,000 spread across 4,400 properties comes to a $56.82 credit per homestead, lowering an example $6,011 net tax bill to $5,955.
Do you need to file anything?
School exemption (HB 1582): The bill text says the owner "files an application with the tax commissioner of Fayette County." The bill sets no filing deadline. According to Georgia Commons' summary, the exemption then continues while the property remains your homestead, and you must report it if you become ineligible.
County exemption (HB 1583): The new subsection contains no application language. It says: "Each resident of Fayette County is granted an exemption on such person's homestead."
General Fayette homestead rules, per the Assessors' Office:
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You must occupy the home on January 1 of the tax year.
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You can apply in person at the Assessors' Office or online.
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Bring a recorded warranty deed or settlement statement, plus a Georgia driver's license showing your current address.
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Taxpayers "can now apply for the homestead exemption beyond the historic deadline of April 1st," up to the end of the 45-day assessment-appeal window.
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"You are not required to file annually."
If either measure passes and you already have a homestead exemption, call the Tax Commissioner or the Assessors' Office before January 1, 2027 and ask what, if anything, you need to file for the new exemption. Get the answer from them directly.
What it means for your mortgage escrow
Nothing changes on your 2026 tax bill or your current escrow payment because of these questions. If an exemption lowers a 2027 bill, the savings would usually reach you through your lender's escrow analysis after the bill is paid, as a lower monthly escrow amount or a surplus, depending on timing. Don't cut your housing budget based on savings that haven't been set and could be $0.
Don't confuse it with the Fayetteville city question
Fayetteville residents also saw a separate city floating exemption, HB 1581, on the November 3 ballot, per Fayette County News. It affects city taxes only. It does not reduce county or school taxes.
Who to contact
Fayette County Tax Commissioner (Kristie King), 140 W. Stonewall Ave., Fayetteville, GA 30214, (770) 461-3652. Payment and bill information is on the Tax Commissioner's payment site.
Related reading
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Will FHA's Draft Repair Rules Help Buyers of Older Macon Homes?
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Could Amendment 1 on the Georgia Ballot Raise Your Property Taxes?
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What Fannin and Gilmer Flood Victims Should Ask Their Mortgage Servicer
Sources
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County Property Tax Facts: Fayette, Georgia Department of Revenue
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Fayetteville Talks HB 1581 Ahead of November Election, Fayette County News (Sept. 30, 2026)
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