The 3 Statewide Georgia Ballot Initiatives For Dummies
Let's Start Here
Welcome to my newsletter, King Williams. I am a documentary filmmaker, journalist, podcast host, and author in Atlanta, Georgia. This newsletter covers Atlanta's hidden connections and everything else.
The 2024 Election Is Here
Once again, it’s election season in Georgia, and the stakes couldn’t be bigger.
There are three statewide ballots today and two transit votes:
Georgia Creation of Tax Court Amendment
Local Option Homestead Property Tax Exemption Amendment
Personal Property Tax Exemption Increase Measure
Cobb and Gwinnett’s Transit Expansion Vote
Early Voting Starts Today
There are locations in all 159 Georgia counties. It ends on Friday, November 1st. To find options for your county, please visit the early voting website here.
Absentee Ballots
Those needing to vote absentee must request a ballot between now and October 25. Delivery delays may occur, and all ballots must be returned by November 5th*. Suppose the ballot is not delivered on time. In that case, a direct call to your local county and/or the Secretary of State’s office may be needed, as well as appearing at an early voting site or local site on election day.
*This post originally stated November 8th as the last day to turn in an absentee ballot, that was incorrect. The correct date is Tuesday, November 5th by the close of the polls.
Voter Registration Status
Due to recent changes in the law, anyone can challenge the status of someone’s voter eligibility. As a result, please check directly with the Secretary of State’s Office before going out to vote; the website is the best means to do so.
1. Georgia Creation of Tax Court Amendment
This ballot amendment would create a secondary court system solely for tax issues. The move would separate all tax matters, residential and commercial, into a new, separate court focused explicitly on taxation-related topics.
How it appears:
"Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to provide for the Georgia Tax Court to be vested with the judicial power of the state and to have venue, judges, and jurisdiction concurrent with superior courts?"
-sourcing via Atlanta Civic Circle and The AJC’s 2024 voter guide
A ‘NO’ vote would keep all tax matters within the current court system. A ‘YES’ vote would start the creation of a new, separate state tax court.
2. Local Option Homestead Property Tax Exemption Amendment
This measure is deliberately worded to gain a ‘YES’ vote. The vote would create a system where property taxes are capped statewide.
How it appears:
"Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to authorize the General Assembly to provide by general law for a state-wide homestead exemption that serves to limit increases in the assessed value of homesteads, but which any county, consolidated government, municipality, or local school system may opt out of upon the completion of certain procedures?"
-sourcing via Atlanta Civic Circle and The AJC’s 2024 voter guide
While this is meant to seem a benefit, it’s a wealth transfer from local governments to already wealthy individuals. The proposal would cap how much a local government can place on property taxes, including when a home is sold. This would directly lead to greater wealth retention for already affluent homeowners yearly and if there were a sale on the house.
The move would also directly defund public schools of all types. It is a backdoor move to retain wealth and continue the Republican-led effort to defund public schools.
If the county wishes to opt-out, they have less than 60 days to do so beginning January 1st, 2025, if the move passes. But that would also give state legislatures time to come up with new laws during the legislative session to once again circumvent counties who opt out and force them to comply—unless it’s defeated during this election cycle.
A ‘NO’ vote would not support this tax exemption. A ‘YES’ vote would start the statewide homeowner’s exemption beginning January 1st, 2025.
3. Personal Property Tax Exemption Increase Measure
This vote would allow some personal property (this does not include motor vehicles, trailers, or mobile homes) to avoid a more significant threshold of taxation benefits—up to $20,000. But it would start defunding a source of local county and city revenue, leading to a more substantial push for adding more taxes around homes and businesses.
How it appears:
"Do you approve the Act that increases an exemption from property tax for all tangible personal property from $7,500 to $20,000?"
-sourcing via Atlanta Civic Circle and The AJC’s 2024 voter guide
The vote is primarily for business machinery, farm machinery, and other personal, semi-professional, and professional items. Like the statewide homeowner's exemption, this exemption would also directly reduce the amount of funds going to schools.
A ‘NO’ vote would stop this measure and maintain the current deduction levels of $7,500. A ‘YES’ vote would expand the exemption.
4. Cobb and Gwinnett Transit Expansion Vote
Why do Cobb and Gwinnett counties have votes on expanding transit? In short, racism. Historically, the changes to state law to keep ‘poor black people’ in Atlanta began in the 1960s with racialized and class-based opposition tactics to stop the regional effectiveness of MARTA, the regional mass transit system. And Atlanta has been paying for it ever since.
Gwinnett and Cobb have some of the worst gridlock in the nation, and the only move to expand roadways hasn’t worked in 30 years. The counties need transit to relieve congestion, but the racial and class-based opposition is still strong. The 2024 vote is an attempt to finally address this issue.
Cobb’s Transit Vote
Cobb is attempting to start rolling the ball on building a substantive transit network. The county reached the limits of its suburban-centric designs over twenty years ago and is slowly moving towards a future where less traffic congestion can be addressed. The vote would be for a 1% sales tax, with the proceeds going directly to mass transit in the county.
A transit network would also be an additional economic driver, as the county could propose greater density plans for a county that could lose out on higher net-worth residents. Transit-adjacent places have continued to outpace overall regional economic growth since 2000.
Some parts of the county that have embraced some density, such as The Battery/Cumberland Mall, Downtown Marietta, Vinings, and around Kennesaw State University, need transit to attract workers and maintain growth. Others, such as Mableton and incorporated West/South Cobb, would need it to ensure that issues related to suburban poverty and isolationism don’t arise, as some parts of the county could become an island of problems without adequate job access, something mass transit provides.
A ‘NO’ vote maintains the current status quo. A ‘YES’ vote would start the process of gaining transit.
Gwinnett’s Transit Vote
Gwinnett is attempting to start the process of expanding a greater coverage area for its bus network in the county. For a county of over 1 million people, the existing transit system has been effective for only about 10,000 people. The move would set up a future where the county could avoid some of Cobb's problems and keep it competitive for corporate/white-collar jobs, as companies such as NCR have left the county for transit-rich Midtown Atlanta.
Gwinnett’s other problem is a growing base of older residents needing a system to replace their personal vehicle needs, which would reduce traffic. There is also a large, non-English-speaking, and English-as-a-second-language population who would be big beneficiaries of a more robust transit system. Gwinnett is the most diverse county in Georgia, but its transit options are still based on a time when it was near majority white and anti-transit. But that has changed a lot since then.
There is also a growing population of lower-income people who live and work in the county but are mostly limited to the confines of their localities, which could lead to greater suburban poverty without transit access.
Two recent attempts to pass transit in Gwinett have failed by the thinnest of margins. This would be the third attempt.
A ‘NO’ vote would maintain the status quo, while a ‘YES’ vote would start the transit network expansion.
Conclusion
There’s more to this year’s election than just Harris vs Trump. The 2024 vote is setting up the Atlanta of the 2030s from questions on property taxes, establishing a new court system, and expanding transit in Metro Atlanta; the future starts now on the ballot.
You and your vote matter; use it wisely!
-KJW
A great breakdown and a Mark Kendall video? Top notch.
Video is a classic, thanks for the rundown!