Georgia
affordable
housing
developers
revived
an
effort
to
amend
the
state
constitution
to
shield
their
properties
from
steep
property
tax
hikes.

State
Rep.
Shaw
Blackmon,
chairman
of
the
House
Ways
&
Means
Committee,
and
State
Rep.
Rob
Leverett
officially
introduced
a
constitutional

amendment
on
Monday.
It
proposes
treating
low-income
housing
tax
credit
properties
as
a
separate
property
class
for

ad
valorem
tax
purposes.

The
Georgia
debate
resurfaces
as
housing
affordability
soars
to
the
top
of
November’s
mid-term
ballots
nationwide.
Illinois,
Indiana,
Florida,
Pennsylvania,
California
and
other
states
are
trying
to
pass
housing
reforms
or
tweak
recent
laws
to
lower
regulatory
barriers.
Parallel
to
the
state
efforts,
dozens
of
municipalities
also
have
engaged
in
similar
endeavors
to
break
down
barriers
to
more
affordable
housing
access.

Advocates
say
the
amendment
move
is
urgent
after
years
of
steep
property
tax
increases
across
Georgia.
In
some
counties,
valuations
have
exceeded
property
revenue
by
100%
to
200%,
according
to
the

Georgia
Affordable
Housing
Coalition.

Low-income
housing
tax
credit
properties
cannot
increase
rents
to
cover
those
costs.
Developers
argue
the
current
system
threatens
project
solvency
and
long-term
affordability.
Meanwhile,
Georgia
has
a
shortage
of
more
than
200,000
affordable
units,
according
to
estimates.

“This
isn’t
just
a
housing
issue—it’s
an
economic
issue,”
Ken
Blankenship,
president
of
the
Georgia
Affordable
Housing
Coalition,
said
in
a
statement.
“When
affordable
housing
is
jeopardized
by
high
property
taxation,
employers
are
forced
to
delay
expansion
or
reduce
operations
because
workers
can’t
afford
to
live
nearby.
Every
community
in
Georgia
ultimately
feels
the
consequences.”

Proposed
LIHTC
cut
alarms
affordable
housing
advocates

Debate
over
the
amendment
runs
in
step
with
a

push
in
the
Georgia
General
Assembly
to
reduce
the
state’s
low-income
housing
tax
credit
match
with
the
federal
LIHTC
by
50%
next
year.
Lawmakers
would
end
the
match
entirely
in
2031.
State
lawmakers
are
pushing
for
the
LIHTC
support
cuts
as
a
revenue
offset
to
lower
personal
and
corporate
tax
rates.

Housing
groups
warn
that
the
proposed
legislation’s
initial
50%
cut
raises
foreclosure
risks.
They
say
eliminating
the
state
tax
credit
program
would
slow
needed
production.

Georgia
created
the
tax
credit
program
in
2001.
According
to
housing
advocates,
state
and
federal
credits
helped
finance
or
preserve
more
than
123,000
affordable
homes
over
the
25-year-period.

Georgia
is
one
of
a
few
states
whose
LIHTC
structure
provides
a
full,
dollar-for-dollar
match
with
the
federal
credit.
Similarly,
Oklahoma,
Indiana
and
Nebraska
also
have
a
dollar-for-dollar
match,
but
with
conditions.

“Georgia
has
one
of
the
best
tax
credits
in
the
country,”
Matt
Bedsole,
CEO
of

Invest
Chattanooga
and
a
former
affordable
housing
adviser
to
Atlanta
Mayor
Andre
Dickens,
told

The
Builder’s
Daily.

The
tax
credit
legislation
is
now
being
hashed
out
in
the
Georgia
House
after
earlier
Senate
approval.
A
similar
bill
died
two
years
ago
after
the
House
made
changes
and
the
Senate
never
voted
on
the
revised
measure.
In
that
same
legislative
session,
the
sponsors
of
the
latest
constitutional
amendment
introduced
an
identical
measure.
However,
its
path
ended
once
the
committee
passed
the
measure.
It
never
made
it
to
the
House
floor
for
a
vote.