Stephens-Day creator proposes new homestead exemption for Chatham County School District
SAVANNAH, Ga. (WSAV) — It has been 25 years since Georgia Rep. Ron Stephens (R-164) created and co-authored the Stephens-Day homestead exemption, freezing property taxes for Chatham County homeowners.
The model still stands, and it freezes taxes for every municipality or district except school district.
Rep. Stephens' latest idea, now House Bill (HB) 782, would change that in the 2026 tax year if the people for it.
'It would make the county, school board, Port Wentworth, Garden City, Bloomingdale, Tybee Island, Vernonburg, all those of cities the same so they would know exactly what their property taxes are going be the next year, and it is essentially a freeze,' Stephens said.
He said the bill, known as the Chatham County Schools' Tax Relief Act, gives homeowners more predictability in their taxes, freezing them to what they were the previous year.
'We've gotten to the point, with this rapid growth in our area, that people are looking for some sort of predictability on their property taxes,' he said.
HB 782 must pass a vote in the Georgia House of Representatives and Senate before it makes the ballot this November.
'For the first time, if you vote for it, this November, for the first time in 2026, you're going to know exactly what your property taxes are going to be from the previous year,' said Stephens.
HB 782 will face its first hurdle in the house Tuesday.
Representatives Jesse Petrea (R-166), Carl Gilliard (D-162) and Bill Hitchens (R-161) are co-sponsoring the bill.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The Hill
4 hours ago
- The Hill
Rand Paul slams Graham's push for Russian sanctions as ‘self-defeating economic warfare'
Sen. Rand Paul (R-Ky.) slammed Sen. Lindsey Graham's (R-S.C.) push for Russian sanctions, calling his bill 'self-defeating economic warfare.' Graham's sanctions bill on Russia would impose a 500 percent tariff on imports from any country that buys Russian oil, gas, uranium and other products. The legislation has more than 80 co-sponsors in the Senate, potentially making it veto-proof. But GOP senators are waiting on President Trump to move ahead with the legislation, and Trump said this week he hasn't even looked at it. Trump has also said he doesn't want to undermine the chances of a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. Paul, in a series of posts on X on Saturday, said the bill would be ineffective and backfire against efforts to achieve peace, as the war between Russia and Ukraine continues in its fourth year. 'The Graham bill would derail President Trump's efforts to negotiate an end to the war in Ukraine. Self-defeating economic warfare is no way to achieve peace,' Paul said on X. 'This bill won't force China or India to change behavior, but it will impose an effective embargo on ourselves that will hurt American families,' he said. Paul also argued that the bill could hurt U.S. allies and raise gas prices. 'The Graham bill could raise tariffs on allies like Israel and Taiwan to 500 percent and potentially even higher. Why are we punishing our friends while pretending it'll hold Russia accountable? This isn't strategy—it's economic self-sabotage,' he wrote. 'Cutting off Russian oil takes a major source of supply off the market, resulting in higher gas prices. Analysts warned that a U.S. ban on Russian oil could cause prices to hit $160–$200 a barrel. That's $5+ gas at the pump,' he said. Graham, this past week, sought to address some of those concerns by proposing a carveout for his bill to exempt countries that aid in Ukraine's defense. The carveout could help insulate countries in Europe that still import Russian gas and have provided military support for Ukraine, as well as other U.S. partners that have straddled the line between maintaining ties with Moscow and providing assistance to Kyiv. 'A lot of countries still buy Russian oil and gas but less. Some European countries still have relationships with Russia, but they've been very helpful to Ukraine. So I want to carve them out,' Graham told reporters Wednesday. 'I tell China, if you don't want to have a 500 percent tariff, help Ukraine.'
Yahoo
6 hours ago
- Yahoo
Trump's ‘Big Beautiful Bill' Would Slash Medicaid & SNAP: 3 Moves Retirees Should Make Now
President Donald Trump's 'one big beautiful bill' has passed in the House and is now awaiting Senate approval. If passed, Trump's signature bill would extend the tax cuts granted by the 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act and add additional tax cuts. While this might be welcome news to many, the bill also includes changes to Medicaid and the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program (SNAP) that could threaten seniors' access to these programs. Find Out: Read Next: 'The 'one big beautiful bill' passed by the House of Representatives, if it were passed into law today, would cut Medicaid and SNAP by a combined $1 trillion,' said Chris Orestis, president of Retirement Genius. 'In addition, because of the increase to federal debt of as much as $5 trillion, the bill would trigger an automatic reduction in Medicare funding of $500 billion,' he continued. 'This would represent the largest cut to social services and health insurance for the poor, disabled, children and the elderly in U.S. history.' Here's a look at the changes retirees can make now to secure care and avoid benefit disruptions if the bill were to pass. Before changes go into effect, check with your healthcare providers to ensure there won't be any interruption to your care if there are cuts to Medicaid. 'Check with your healthcare provider to see if they might cut back on services or cease accepting Medicaid-funded patients, and contact any nursing home where you or a loved one may reside to find out if they will be reducing the number of patients they can support — or even [if they are] possibly planning to close,' Orestis said. Knowing this ahead of time will allow you to find alternative care providers before it's too late. Learn More: If you are reliant on SNAP, start searching for alternatives that may be able to provide food assistance in the event your benefits are reduced or cut. 'Make sure you know where there are local support services through community or faith-based organizations to replace lost access through SNAP,' Orestis said. Many retirees plan to 'spend down' their savings so that they qualify for Medicaid to pay for their long-term care. However, this may no longer be a viable option. 'If you are considering going onto Medicaid for long-term care and are preparing to engage the 'spend down' process to impoverish yourself and get below the poverty level to qualify, you may want to reconsider that strategy, and instead look to leverage private pay resources to pay for your care,' Orestis said. 'If you are on Medicaid, you will primarily be reliant on nursing homes for your care, and their ability to withstand these cuts will be very challenging and up in the air,' he continued. 'If you are private pay, you are in control and can decide where and when you will receive care, such as at home or an assisted living community not funded by Medicaid.' Strategies to stay private pay for long-term care would include long-term care insurance, annuities, a life insurance settlement, a reverse mortgage or VA benefits. Editor's note on political coverage: GOBankingRates is nonpartisan and strives to cover all aspects of the economy objectively and present balanced reports on politically focused finance stories. You can find more coverage of this topic on More From GOBankingRates Clever Ways To Save Money That Actually Work in 2025 This article originally appeared on Trump's 'Big Beautiful Bill' Would Slash Medicaid & SNAP: 3 Moves Retirees Should Make Now
Wall Street Journal
6 hours ago
- Wall Street Journal
GOP Senators' Competing Demands Risk Pulling Trump Megabill Apart
WASHINGTON—Senate Majority Leader John Thune (R., S.D.) is trying to release this week a revised version of President Trump's 'big, beautiful bill.' But as he races to pass the legislation ahead of Republicans' self-imposed July 4 deadline, he has got about as many problems as there are GOP senators, with lawmakers battling over the additional borrowing and spending cuts that will be used to finance tax relief, plus spending on the border and military.
