ATLANTA — In response to the widespread devastation of Hurricane Helene to Georgia’s farming and timber industries, several state senators filed legislation to provide relief to those impacted by the storm’s damage.
Senate Bill 52, the Timberlands Recovery, Exemption and Earnings Stability, or TREES, Act, would provide for economic relief and exemptions on taxes to those working in the Georgia timber industry.
According to the Georgia Forestry Commission, and cited by the state legislature, the timber industry saw as much as $1.3 billion in losses from Hurricane Helene as of November 2024.
Due to how long it takes for timber to provide any return on investment, as a result of the time it literally takes trees to grow, the Georgia General Assembly may provide grants, tax relief and other recovery assistance for those in the disaster areas.
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“It is the intent of the General Assembly to authorize local governing authorities to provide temporary tax relief from the taxes levied pursuant to Code 48-5-7.5 so that the timber industry, and the businesses and families that provide timber products to such industry, will realize a reduced cost for growing new product and recovering from the devastating effects of Hurricane Helene,” the bill text reads.
Under the provisions of the proposal, local governing authorities will be able to grant temporary tax relief for the end of 2024 and each quarter of 2025 to eligible businesses and families, insofar as the taxes that would be levied fro standing timber.
The tax relief allowed by the legislation would be “paid from funds of the eligible governing authority to which the taxes were or were to have been paid,” the bill says.
To offset these costs, governing authorities will be able to offset the loss of revenue by requesting grants from the Georgia Tax Commissioner’s office, citing the bill proposal.
The tax relief will not be able to exceed what the fair market value of harvested or sold timber would be, and the value of that must still be added to the local tax digests for calculation related to school funding, according to the legislative text.
If voted to pass by both the Georgia House of Representatives and the Georgia Senate, and then signed into law by Gov. Brian Kemp, the bill would take effect immediately, helping to provide relief to members of Georgia’s timber industry.
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