Tax collections in Georgia decreased by about 4 percent in February. The change was driven by sharp decreases in the state’s income tax revenues following Republican-led tax cuts, though Georgia simultaneously saw increased revenue from sales taxes and taxes on corporations.
A press release from the office of Governor Brian Kemp notes the state’s tax revenues fell 4.3 percent in February while the year’s tax collections are down 3.1 percent to date.
Read the full story
An automobile parts developer and manufacturer plans to spend more than $72 million on a new manufacturing facility in Liberty County.
However, it is unclear what incentives economic development officials provided to Seohan Auto Georgia and the cost to Georgia taxpayers.
Read the full story
Georgia taxpayers have the eighth-best return on their “investment.”
WalletHub used 29 metrics to analyze the efficiency of state-government services across five categories: education, the economy, health, safety and infrastructure and pollution, to develop the rankings.
Read the full story
Gov. Brian Kemp signed into law a bill this week that would provide $1 billion in tax rebates for Georgia income tax filers.
House Bill 162 provides a special state income tax refund for Georgians who filed returns in both the 2021 and 2022 taxable years. It marks the second year in a row that Georgia taxpayers will receive a rebate.
Read the full story
Georgia taxpayers are on the hook to cover the bulk of the state’s cost to defend a lawsuit that alleged voter suppression in the 2018 election, state officials confirmed this week.
Fair Fight Action, founded by failed Democratic gubernatorial candidate Stacey Abrams, and other groups filed a lawsuit in November 2018, alleging Georgia’s election processes denied thousands of residents the ability to vote. The allegations centered on Georgia’s absentee ballot procedures, voter registration and voter list management practices.
Read the full story
A full-service window replacement company plans to build its first manufacturing facility in Georgia. However, it’s unclear whether Georgia taxpayers will be on the hook for any part of it.
Renewal by Andersen, a division of Bayport, Minnesota-based Andersen Corporation, said it would spend more than $420 million on the manufacturing facility. Economic development officials said the company would create 900 new jobs as part of the project at The Cubes at Locust Grove in Henry County.
Read the full story
Georgia taxpayers are on the hook to cover more than $1 million in workforce training for a global beauty company opening a Savannah-area facility.
On Wednesday, state officials confirmed KISS USA, a global beauty company, will spend $121 million on a Bryan County facility. Company officials said they plan to create more than 395 new jobs at the facility at The Cubes at Interstate Centre II.
Read the full story
A Texas-based millwork manufacturer plans to spend millions on a new facility outside Athens, and Georgia taxpayers will cover the cost of workforce training.
San Antonio-based Steves & Sons plans to invest more than $100 million over the next three years on a new 310,000-square-foot facility in Jackson County. It plans to produce molded door skins annually for new housing construction, repair and remodeling. According to a release, the company will create 170 jobs as part of the project.
Read the full story
An aerospace company offering “sustainable urban air mobility” plans to spend $118 million on electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft manufacturing facility in Newton County.
Unsurprisingly, state officials would not say whether Georgia taxpayers will cover the cost of any incentives for the company.
Read the full story
A global agriscience technology manufacturer plans to invest nearly $35 million to launch a campus in Jasper County.
Profile Products, based in Buffalo Grove, Illinois, plans to produce wood-based erosion control technologies and horticulture substrates at the new plant. The company, which employs more than 500 globally, plans to create 80 new jobs as part of the project.
Read the full story
Georgia governments and development authorities offered Hyundai Motor Group more than $1.8 billion in incentives.
In May, Hyundai said it had selected Georgia for its first fully dedicated electric vehicle and battery manufacturing facility. The plan calls for Hyundai to invest more than $5.5 billion in building the facility in the 2,923-acre Bryan County Megasite along Interstate 16, while non-affiliated Hyundai suppliers plan to invest roughly $1 billion in the project.
Read the full story
Georgia’s school choice programs saved taxpayers at least $605 million in fiscal year 2018, an updated analysis by EdChoice found.
EdChoice examined the fiscal effects of 40 private educational choice programs in 19 states and the District of Columbia. The nonprofit found the Georgia Special Needs Scholarship Program and the Georgia Qualified Education Expense Tax Credit saved taxpayers between $605 million and $1.1 billion in fiscal 2018.
Each taxpayer saved money on the sum they would have paid in taxes for each student enrolled in the program to attend public schools. The programs saved each taxpayer between $4,355 to $8,013 per student, according to the report.
Read the full story
The Georgia Senate has approved a bill that collectively would cut income taxes for individuals by more than $600 million over the next five years.
House Bill 593, dubbed the Tax Relief Act of 2021, raises the standard deduction on state income tax returns for a single taxpayer by $800 to $5,400 and by $1,100 to $7,100 for a married couple filing a joint return, starting in the 2022 tax year.
Read the full story