A bill led by State Rep. Rob Leverett in the Georgia House seeks to establish a school tax homestead exemption for Madison County’s senior residents, as reported by the Georgia State House.
Titled HB1515 and introduced on Wednesday, March 4 during the 2026 regular session of the 158th General Assembly, the measure is formally described as: ’Madison County; school district ad valorem tax; provide homestead exemption’.
The following summary is based on the actual bill text and may involve clarification for better understanding.
The bill would allow residents of the Madison County school district who are at least 70 years old to receive a $75,000 homestead exemption from school district ad valorem taxes used for educational purposes, not including taxes related to bonded debt. Seniors who qualify must apply with the county tax commissioner; once approved, the exemption would automatically renew as long as the home remains their main residence. Recipients must notify officials if eligibility is lost. This exemption would substitute for any other school tax homestead exemption on the property and would take effect beginning with tax years starting on or after Jan. 1, 2027, provided it is approved by voters in a November 2026 referendum and no contradictory statewide constitutional amendment is enacted.
Rep. Alan Powell (Republican-33rd) serves as a co-sponsor of the bill.
So far this session, Leverett has sponsored 22 additional bills, 7 of which have been enacted.
Leverett earned a BA from Dartmouth College in 1986 and a JD from the University of Georgia.
A Republican, Leverett was elected to the Georgia State House in 2023 to represent House District 123, succeeding former Rep. Mark Newton.
Georgia’s legislative process starts when a legislator—often at the request of a constituent—works with the Office of Legislative Counsel to draft a bill. The bill is then filed with the Clerk of the House or Secretary of the Senate for a first reading and referral to a committee, where detail work and hearings occur. If it passes, the bill moves to the chamber floor for a third reading, debate, and vote. Passage by both chambers is required, with different versions sometimes resolved by a conference committee, before it is presented to the governor. The governor has six days during session or 40 days post-adjournment (Sine Die) to sign, veto, or allow the bill to become law without a signature. The Georgia General Assembly convenes annually for a 40-day session starting on the second Monday in January.
| Bill Number | Date Introduced | Short Description |
|---|---|---|
| HB1484 | 03/03/2026 | Bowman, City of; levy an excise tax |
| HB1475 | 02/26/2026 | Commerce and trade; benefits from governmental programs or civil or military service; provisions |
| HB1446 | 02/24/2026 | Health; transfer responsibility for oversight of emergency medical services from Department of Public Health to Georgia Emergency Medical Services and Trauma Council |
| HB1407 | 02/20/2026 | Civil Practice Act; scheduling of civil trials; provide |
| HB1364 | 02/18/2026 | Property; nonjudicial foreclosures on time-share estates; provisions |
| HB1195 | 02/04/2026 | Veterinarians; practice and provision of veterinary teletriage and veterinary telemedicine; revise provisions |
| HB1194 | 02/04/2026 | Insurance; clarify periods of time for transportation network company services |
| HB1111 | 01/29/2026 | Sales and use tax; new special purpose local option sales tax dedicated to certain healthcare purposes; provide |
| HB1084 | 01/29/2026 | Madison County; Probate Court; authorize assessment and collection of a technology fee |
| HB1083 | 01/29/2026 | Madison County; Magistrate Court; authorize assessment and collection of a technology fee |
| HB999 | 01/15/2026 | Magistrate courts; collecting sums and fees authorized by law; revise provisions |
| HB998 | 01/15/2026 | Public utilities; authorize certain Tier 2 local exchange companies to elect to become subject to rate of return regulation |
| HB997 | 01/15/2026 | Penal institutions; limit time that Department of Community Supervision can hold certain inmates in a county facility |
| HB530 | 02/19/2025 | Courts; authorization for electronic filing of pleadings in probate court; provide |
| HB406 | 02/11/2025 | Judicial Retirement System; increase retirement age of superior court judges first taking office on or after July 1, 2026 |
| HB377 | 02/10/2025 | Buildings and housing; manufactured homes; provisions |
| HB339 | 02/06/2025 | Motor vehicles; exempt ride share drivers or ride share network services from definition of motor carrier |
| HB327 | 02/06/2025 | Official Code of Georgia Annotated; amend various titles |
| HB86 | 01/16/2025 | Public officers and employees; calculating and setting the salaries of certain state officials; revise provisions |
| HB85 | 01/16/2025 | Superior Court Judicial Compensation Reform Act; enact |
| HB37 | 01/14/2025 | Education; require local school systems to notify employees regarding social security withholdings and eligibility for certain benefits |
| HB36 | 01/14/2025 | Guardian and ward; revise list of providers who are authorized to participate in the processes for appointment of a guardian for an adult |
Details for this story were sourced from the Georgia State House. Additional data is available here.
