Section 48-5-33 - Temporary tax relief to buildings in disaster area; assessment; local authority; appeals(a) As used in this Code section, the term:(1) "Disaster area" means that portion of any county which is wholly or partially located in a nationally declared disaster area under the federal Robert T. Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act, 42 U.S.C. Sections 5121-5207.(2) "Eligible damaged tax parcel" means any tax parcel that contains a building located wholly or partially in a disaster area, which building has been determined by the appropriate local emergency management director to have incurred a degree of damage as a result of the disaster sufficient to qualify as "major."(3) "Eligible destroyed tax parcel" means any tax parcel that contains a building located wholly or partially in a disaster area, which building has been determined by the appropriate local emergency management director to have incurred a degree of damage as a result of the disaster sufficient to qualify as "destroyed."(4) "Eligible tax parcel" means any eligible damaged tax parcel and any eligible destroyed tax parcel.(5) "Governing authority" means the governing authority of the appropriate county, consolidated government, or municipality or the governing body of the appropriate county or independent board of education.(6) "Local emergency management director" means:(A) The director of the local organization for emergency management for the county appointed pursuant to subsection (a) of Code Section 38-3-27, or the designee thereof. This subparagraph shall apply to the county, consolidated government, county board of education, municipality, and independent board of education except as otherwise provided under subparagraph (B) of this paragraph; or(B) In the event that the governing authority of a municipality has elected to implement its own local organization for emergency management under subsection (a) of Code Section 38-3-27, the director of the local organization for emergency management for the municipality, or the designee thereof. This subparagraph shall apply to such municipality and any independent board of education thereof.(b) Pursuant to Article VII, Section I, Paragraph III(h) of the Constitution of Georgia, this Code section provides an optional mechanism to grant temporary tax relief to buildings located in a disaster area that have been destroyed or severely damaged as a result of the disaster.(c)(1) Each local emergency management director shall establish and maintain rules for the purposes of this Code section, which may use the most recent edition of the Federal Emergency Management Agency Preliminary Damage Assessment Guide, or any other similar guide established by the federal government, if such director determines that such federal guide reflects appropriately the effects of damage assessment on persons in the State of Georgia. Such rules shall set forth the conditions for a building to be determined to have incurred a degree of damage sufficient to qualify as "major" or "destroyed."(2) During the normal course of the disaster response operations of the local emergency management director, such director shall travel through the disaster area and identify and make a determination regarding all buildings that have incurred a degree of damage sufficient to qualify as "major" or "destroyed" as a result of the disaster.(3) Such determinations shall be consolidated into a written damage report containing the location or physical address and damage status of each building which shall be provided to the tax commissioner of each county wholly or partially containing the disaster area. Such damage report shall not contain any tangible personal property or any real property other than a building.(4) Each such tax commissioner shall use such damage report to determine the proper parcel numbers and shall provide aggregated data of all eligible tax parcels to each affected governing authority whose jurisdiction wholly or partially contains the associated disaster area.(d)(1) Following receipt of an applicable damage report, a governing authority shall be authorized, but not required, to adopt a resolution consenting to provide temporary tax relief pursuant to this Code section to eligible tax parcels or eligible destroyed tax parcels for the taxable year in which such disaster occurred. If such governing authority consents to such temporary tax relief, the resolution shall state the total dollar amount of ad valorem property tax relief to be granted throughout its jurisdiction and the method by which the total value of such relief shall be applied throughout the jurisdiction. Such method may exclude eligible damaged tax parcels or provide that eligible damaged tax parcels and eligible destroyed tax parcels shall receive differing amounts, but, in any event, shall grant relief through either:(A) A reduction or reductions in the millage rate, which shall be applied as follows: (i) A single rate reduction amount applied equally among all eligible tax parcels or, if eligible damaged tax parcels are excluded, among all eligible destroyed tax parcels; or(ii) Two rate reduction amounts with one applied equally among all eligible destroyed tax parcels and the other applied equally among all eligible damaged tax parcels; or(B) A flat dollar amount or amounts to be credited as follows:(i) One flat dollar amount to be credited equally for all eligible tax parcels or, if eligible damaged tax parcels are excluded, among all eligible destroyed tax parcels; or(ii) Two flat dollar amounts with one applied equally among all eligible destroyed tax parcels and the other applied equally among all eligible damaged tax parcels.(2) Upon the adoption of such resolution, such eligible tax parcels or eligible destroyed tax parcels shall automatically qualify to receive such temporary tax relief without need of application or action therefor by the owner.(3) No governing authority shall be bound or limited by the determination of another governing authority and the determination of one shall be independent of the others.(4) If a governing authority consents to such temporary tax relief, the resolution shall specify that for such tax year, the taxpayer shall be authorized either to receive a tax credit on the taxpayer's tax bill or the taxpayer shall be authorized to claim a refund in the same manner as otherwise provided under Code Section 48-5-380.(e) Any credits, reductions, or refunds approved or allowed under this Code section shall be paid from funds of the county, consolidated government, municipality, or county or independent board of education to which the taxes were or were to have been paid.(f) Any owner of real property that contains a building shall have a right to appeal in writing to the local emergency management director if such owner, in good faith, believes that such owner's property was overlooked or missed by such director and that it is an eligible tax parcel or that such owner's property was improperly given a classification other than as an eligible tax parcel. Such director as soon as practicable shall make an on-site determination. If the director agrees with such owner, an amendment to the written report under paragraph (3) of subsection (c) of this Code section shall be filed by the director with the tax commissioner who shall update the information required under paragraph (4) of subsection (c) of this Code section and provide such update to the appropriate governing authorities. The determination of such director shall be final.Added by 2023 Ga. Laws 3,§ 1, eff. 3/16/2023.