# Georgia HB 1598: Laurens County; school district ad valorem tax; provide homestead exemption

Georgia HB 1598, Laurens County; school district ad valorem tax; provide homestead exemption, is a 2025-2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Matt Hatchett (Republican); status signed, last action 2026-05-12 (House Date Signed by Governor); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1598-2025-2026
- As of: 2026-10-12
- Plain-text twin of the page above; the HTML and this file carry the same facts.

## Facts
- Bill: Georgia HB 1598
- State: Georgia
- Session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
- Title: Laurens County; school district ad valorem tax; provide homestead exemption
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2026-03-23
- Last action: 2026-05-12, House Date Signed by Governor
- Sponsor: Matt Hatchett (Republican)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: Intragovernmental Coordination, State and Local Governmental Operations, Local Bill
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 2 (202 yes, 0 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 1

## Summary

No summary available.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- Laurens seniors 80+ get school tax relief: benefit, high. The law creates a Laurens County school district property tax exemption that requires local voter approval. With approval, it applies to tax years beginning January 1, 2027. Residents must be 80 or older by January 1 of the year they apply. The exemption covers the full assessed value of their qual…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Matt Hatchett (Republican), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2026-04-02 | Senate | LOCAL CONSENT CALENDAR | pass | 49 | 0 | 5 |
| 2026-03-27 | House | Local Calendar | pass | 153 | 0 | 24 |

## Actions (13)

- 2026-05-12: House Date Signed by Governor (House)
- 2026-05-12: Act 692
- 2026-05-12: Effective Date
- 2026-04-10: House Sent to Governor (House)
- 2026-04-02: Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
- 2026-04-02: Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
- 2026-03-27: House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- 2026-03-27: House Third Readers (House)
- 2026-03-27: House Passed/Adopted (House)
- 2026-03-27: Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- 2026-03-25: House Second Readers (House)
- 2026-03-23: House Hopper (House)
- 2026-03-23: House First Readers (House)

## Bill text

- HB 1598/AP* (v4): [PDF](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/248727)

## Related bills

- SB 160: Reckless Stunt Driving; a motor vehicle involved in a second offense of reckless stunt driving; replace the forfeiture penalty (signed)
- SB 384: Motor Vehicle; optional five-year motor vehicle registration and revalidation for certain motor vehicles; provide (signed)
- SB 76: License Plates; specialty license plate benefitting the Georgia Veterans Service Foundation; establish (signed)
- SB 406: "Georgia Property Owners' Bill of Rights Act"; enact (signed)
- HB 1391: Specialty license plates; honor public safety officers; establish (signed)
- HB 1344: Georgia Insurance Affordability and Claims Integrity Act; enact (signed)

## Sources
- [HB 1598/AP* (v4) (PDF)](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/248727)

## Related
- [SB 160: Reckless Stunt Driving; a motor vehicle involved in a second offense of reckles…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB160-2025-2026)
- [SB 384: Motor Vehicle; optional five-year motor vehicle registration and revalidation f…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB384-2025-2026)
- [SB 76: License Plates; specialty license plate benefitting the Georgia Veterans Servic…](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB76-2025-2026)
- [SB 406: "Georgia Property Owners' Bill of Rights Act"; enact](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-SB406-2025-2026)
- [HB 1391: Specialty license plates; honor public safety officers; establish](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1391-2025-2026)
- [HB 1344: Georgia Insurance Affordability and Claims Integrity Act; enact](https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1344-2025-2026)
- [Georgia bills](https://policyrisk.com/states/georgia/bills)
- [Georgia state hub](https://policyrisk.com/states/georgia)
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Source: PRIA, https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB1598-2025-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).