Up To $500 In Tax Rebates Approved By GA Lawmakers

ATLANTA, GA — The Georgia House on Wednesday green-lit an amended budget that would send up to $500 in rebates to taxpayers and advanced a bill that would cut the state income tax.

House representatives have voted 169-2 to give House Bill 973 its final push during a busy legislative session, sending the amended Fiscal Year 2026 budget to Gov. Brian Kemp's desk.

HB 973's sponsors were Reps. Jon Burns, Jan Jones, Matt Hatchett and Chuck Estration.

The bill includes $1 billion in tax rebates and $2,000 in state employee bonuses. The homeowner’s property tax relief grant proposed by the House is also embedded in the budget.

"Today, we saw major legislative action on my top priorities - saving taxpayers money and investing in a safer, more prosperous Georgia," Kemp tweeted Wednesday. "The Amended FY26 budget will provide $2 Billion in income tax and property tax relief, endow the first state needs-based scholarship of its kind, make historic investments in transportation and much more."

Kemp first announced the surplus rebates in his final State of the State address in January. He also revealed plans to slash the income tax rate to 4.99 percent.

On Wednesday, the House approved his measure by voting 106-66 for House Bill 1001. The legislation now heads to the Senate.

Kemp said the partial passage of HB 1001 is "a full three years ahead of schedule."

RELATED: $1B In Tax Rebates, $2K Teacher Bonuses Proposed In GA Budget

This will be his fourth time cutting taxes and sending tax rebates to Georgia residents. As in the past, single filers will receive $250 and married couples filing jointly will receive up to $500.

Previously, to receive the rebates, taxpayers would have had to file returns for the prior years. Refunds were allocated based on individual tax form instructions, either by direct deposit or mailed check.

Passing the budget was not without challenges. Capitol Beat reported the Senate initially sliced almost half of Kemp's state employee bonuses, but a conference committee was able to recover at least $600 million to fully fund the $2,000 supplements.

According to Capitol Beat, other additions proposed by Kemp were threatened, including $325 million for need-based scholarship program Georgia DREAMS and $50 million in community grants to combat homelessness. Both were restored.

“This budget responds to our citizens. We heard and answered calls from Georgians concerning traffic congestion. We heard and answered calls from state retirees related to cost-of-living increases," Georgia Sen. Blake Tillery, who carried the amended budget through the Senate, said in a news release.

"We heard and answered calls from our law enforcement communities who have been overrun with issues related to mental health. And we answered calls from middle class Georgians concerned with affordability by supporting efforts to return over $2 billion in tax dollars to hard working families.”