§ 58-109. Residential homestead exemption; application forms; claim and return; renewal; eligibility; application of exemption.

(a)

For purposes of this section, the term:

(1)

Ad valorem taxes for county purposes means all ad valorem taxes for county purposes levied by, for or on behalf of Fulton County, but not including taxes to retire bonded indebtedness.

(2)

Homestead means homestead as defined and qualified in O.C.G.A. § 48-5-40.

(b)

Each resident of Fulton County is granted an exemption on that person's homestead from all Fulton County ad valorem taxes for county purposes in the amount of $15,000.00 of the assessed value of that homestead.

(c)

The Tax Commissioner of Fulton County or the designee thereof shall provide application forms for the exemption granted by this section, shall require such information as may be necessary to determine the eligibility of the owner for the exemption, and may require periodic certification by the owner that the owner occupies the residence as a homestead.

(d)

The exemption shall be claimed and returned as provided in O.C.G.A. § 48-5-50.1. The exemption shall be automatically renewed from year to year as long as the owner occupies the residence as a homestead and the owner certifies when requested by the Tax Commissioner of Fulton County that the owner occupies the residence as a homestead. It shall be the duty of any person granted the homestead exemption under this section to notify the Tax Commissioner of Fulton County or the designee thereof in the event that person for any reason becomes ineligible for that exemption. Any person who, as of January 1 of the year immediately preceding the year the homestead exemption provided under this section first becomes applicable, has applied for and is eligible for a homestead exemption from Fulton County ad valorem taxes, shall be eligible for the exemption granted under this section without further application if that person has applied for and been eligible for the immediately preceding year for such exemption.

(e)

The exemption granted by this section shall not apply to or affect any state taxes, municipal taxes or Fulton County School District taxes for educational purposes. The homestead exemption granted by this section shall be in lieu of and not in addition to any other homestead exemption applicable to Fulton County ad valorem taxes for county purposes. A person entitled to an exemption under a local law or local constitutional amendment in an amount greater than this exemption shall be entitled to such exemption in lieu of the exemption granted by this section.

(f)

The exemption granted by this section shall apply to all taxable years beginning on or after January 1 of the year in which the amount of the Fulton County tax digest attributable to the residential classification increases by 30 percent or more over the amount of the 1990 Fulton County tax digest attributable to the residential classification.

(1992 Ga. Laws (Act No. 1274), page 6583, §§ 1—6)

Editor's note

The editor has treated the above act as superseding 1992 Ga. Laws (Act No. 1272), page 6563. Such latter act was approved at referendum but provided for a lower exemption.