# Georgia HB 476: Watson-Stephens-Petrea-Franklin Tax Relief Act; enact

Georgia HB 476, Watson-Stephens-Petrea-Franklin Tax Relief Act; enact, is a 2025-2026 Regular Session House bill sponsored by Lehman Franklin (Republican), Jesse Petrea (Republican), Ron Stephens (Republican); status signed, last action 2025-05-09 (House Date Signed by Governor); PRIA reads it as touching household money (as of 2026-10-12).

- Canonical: https://policyrisk.com/state-bill/GA-HB476-2025-2026
- 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 476
- State: Georgia
- Session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
- Title: Watson-Stephens-Petrea-Franklin Tax Relief Act; enact
- Status: signed
- Chamber: House
- Introduced: 2025-02-18
- Last action: 2025-05-09, House Date Signed by Governor
- Sponsors: Lehman Franklin (Republican), Jesse Petrea (Republican), Ron Stephens (Republican)
- Cosponsors: 0
- Subjects: Intragovernmental Coordination, State and Local Governmental Operations, Local Bill
- Touches household money: yes
- Roll calls: 2 (221 yes, 1 no in all)
- Economic provisions PRIA read: 1

## Summary

No summary available.

## Bill overview: provisions PRIA read

- School tax relief for Bryan County homeowners: benefit, high. The law creates a Bryan County homestead tax break for tax years beginning January 1, 2026. It takes effect only with approval from more than half of votes cast in the November 4, 2025 referendum. If voters reject it or the election is not held, the exemption never starts and the act is repealed af…

## Sponsors and cosponsors

- Sponsor: Lehman Franklin (Republican), House
- Sponsor: Jesse Petrea (Republican), House
- Sponsor: Ron Stephens (Republican), House

## Roll call votes

| Date | Chamber | Motion | Result | Yes | No | Other |
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
| 2025-02-28 | Senate | LOCAL CONSENT CALENDAR | pass | 51 | 1 | 2 |
| 2025-02-21 | House | Local Calendar | pass | 170 | 0 | 7 |

## Actions (13)

- 2025-05-09: House Date Signed by Governor (House)
- 2025-05-09: Act 102
- 2025-05-09: Effective Date
- 2025-04-07: House Sent to Governor (House)
- 2025-02-28: Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
- 2025-02-28: Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
- 2025-02-24: Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- 2025-02-21: House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- 2025-02-21: House Third Readers (House)
- 2025-02-21: House Passed/Adopted (House)
- 2025-02-20: House Second Readers (House)
- 2025-02-19: House First Readers (House)
- 2025-02-18: House Hopper (House)

## Bill text

- HB 476/AP* (v5): [PDF](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/234689)

## 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 476/AP* (v5) (PDF)](https://www.legis.ga.gov/api/legislation/document/20252026/234689)

## 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-HB476-2025-2026 (as of 2026-10-12).