Per-jurisdiction status (confirmed)
Each county lists every relevant taxing unit — the county government (BOC), the county-wide school district, each incorporated city, and any independent school district. Status is confirmed from Board of Tax Assessors public records, county commission minutes, school board votes, and city council resolutions for tax year 2025.
In = stayed in HB 581, cap appliesOut = opted out, traditional math
Fulton County8 jurisdictionsFully opted out
- Fulton County government
- Out
- Fulton County Schools
- Out
- City of Atlanta
- Out
- Atlanta Public SchoolsIndependent school district serving Atlanta
- Out
- City of Sandy Springs
- Out
- City of Roswell
- Out
- City of Alpharetta
- Out
- City of Johns Creek
- Out
DeKalb County8 jurisdictionsFully opted out
- DeKalb County government
- Out
- DeKalb County Schools
- Out
- City of Decatur
- Out
- City Schools of DecaturIndependent school district serving Decatur
- Out
- City of Dunwoody
- Out
- City of Brookhaven
- Out
- City of Stone Mountain
- Out
- City of Tucker
- Out
Gwinnett County7 jurisdictionsFully opted out
- Gwinnett County government
- Out
- Gwinnett County Schools
- Out
- City of Lawrenceville
- Out
- City of Duluth
- Out
- City of Suwanee
- Out
- City of Snellville
- Out
- City of Lilburn
- Out
Cobb County8 jurisdictionsFully opted out
- Cobb County government
- Out
- Cobb County Schools
- Out
- City of Marietta
- Out
- Marietta City SchoolsIndependent school district serving Marietta
- Out
- City of Smyrna
- Out
- City of Kennesaw
- Out
- City of Acworth
- Out
- City of Powder Springs
- Out
Douglas County3 jurisdictionsFully opted out
- Douglas County government
- Out
- Douglas County Schools
- Out
- City of Douglasville
- Out
Henry County6 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Henry County government
- In
- Henry County Schools
- Out
- City of McDonough
- In
- City of Stockbridge
- In
- City of Hampton
- In
- City of Locust Grove
- In
Paulding County3 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Paulding County government
- In
- Paulding County Schools
- Out
- City of Dallas
- In
Rockdale County3 jurisdictionsFully opted in (cap applies)
- Rockdale County government
- In
- Rockdale County Schools
- In
- City of Conyers
- In
Cherokee County3 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Cherokee County government
- In
- Cherokee County Schools
- Out
- City of Canton
- In
Forsyth County2 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Forsyth County government
- In
- Forsyth County Schools
- Out
Clayton County3 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Clayton County government
- Out
- Clayton County Schools
- Out
- City of Jonesboro
- In
Fayette County3 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Fayette County government
- In
- Fayette County Schools
- Out
- City of Fayetteville
- In
Coweta County3 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Coweta County government
- In
- Coweta County Schools
- Out
- City of Newnan
- In
Newton County3 jurisdictionsMixed — some out, some in
- Newton County government
- In
- Newton County Schools
- Out
- City of Covington
- In
Status confirmed for tax year 2025. Opt-out decisions vary widely across Georgia's 159 counties and the state does not maintain a central list — for any county outside this set, check your county's Board of Tax Assessors or county commission minutes from late 2024.
What HB 581 actually does — and what opting out changes
Georgia's standard formula multiplies fair market value by the 40% constitutional assessment ratio, subtracts exemptions, and applies the combined millage rate from your county, city, and school district. In a rising market — metro Atlanta median home values rose roughly 40% from 2020 to 2024 — that pass-through pushed bills up nearly as fast as values, even with stable millage. HB 581 was designed to interrupt that: for homesteaded primary residences in opted-in jurisdictions, year-over-year growth in taxable value is capped at the Inflation Index Rate published annually by the State Revenue Commissioner. The 2025 rate was 0%; the 2026 rate is 2.7% (December 2025 CPI-U). The cap resets when the property changes hands.
Opting out cancels the cap — but only for the jurisdiction that opted out. In a mixed county where, say, the school district opted out but the county and city stayed in, your annual bill has two different math paths: the school portion uses traditional 40% × FMV minus $2,000 homestead, while the county and city portions use the HB 581 capped taxable value. The $2,000 statewide homestead exemption still applies on all portions, and so do any local senior, veteran, or disability exemptions you already qualify for.
Rationale cited for opting out
Counties and school districts that opted out generally cited revenue mechanics. Local governments and school districts in Georgia are constitutionally required to balance budgets, and they rely on year-over-year growth in the assessment base to fund salaries, contracts, and capital projects. HB 581 caps that growth at inflation, and the law includes no state-level mechanism to reimburse the difference.
School districts cited this dynamic most often in public hearings. Teacher salaries and operating costs have historically risen faster than CPI, so capping revenue growth at inflation creates a divergence between cost growth and revenue growth. The Tax Foundation found that 68% of public school districts statewide opted out — a higher rate than counties (30%) or cities (26%) — reflecting this pressure.
Effect on tax bills
Where a jurisdiction opted out, that portion of your taxable value continues to rise with market appreciation — the CPI cap does not apply. Other protections from before HB 581 remain in place: the $2,000 statewide homestead exemption on primary residences, plus any local senior age-65, veteran, disability, or pre-existing floating homesteads that homeowners already qualified for. Cobb and DeKalb offer large senior exemptions; Fulton stacks additional homestead amounts inside the City of Atlanta; Douglas exempts qualifying age-62 seniors from the school millage entirely (conditions apply). None of those mechanisms were modified by the opt-out.
Where a jurisdiction stayed in HB 581, the cap binds based on when the homeowner acquired homestead status. Owners who had homestead status in 2024 use the 2024 assessed value as their base year; the cap then applies CPI growth annually from there. Owners who buy in 2025 use their 2025 assessed value as the base year, so the cap effectively doesn't bind in year one — the protection accrues in subsequent years.
Property tax appeals are unchanged by HB 581 status. Georgia homeowners continue to have 45 days from the date on the annual assessment notice to file Form PT-311A. The Georgia property tax appeal calculator covers the appeal math and process.
Where opt-out status is published
Opt-out decisions can be revisited annually through tax year 2029. They are adopted through public hearings (typically November or December for the following tax year) and published in three places:
- County Board of Tax Assessors sites — opt-out resolutions are posted when adopted. Each Atlanta-area county maintains a searchable resolution archive.
- County commission, school board, and city council meeting minutes from late prior year, which include the public hearing record for opt-out resolutions.
- Local news coverage from the Atlanta Journal-Constitution, Georgia Public Broadcasting, and county-level outlets.
When a jurisdiction reverses an opt-out, the floating homestead applies going forward, but the cap resets to that year's assessed value as the new base year — it does not back-date to earlier values.
Frequently asked questions
What is HB 581 and when did it take effect?
Georgia House Bill 581, known as the Save Our Homes Act, took effect on January 1, 2025. It creates a statewide floating homestead exemption that caps annual growth in a homestead's taxable value at the rate of inflation (measured by the Consumer Price Index — published by the State Revenue Commissioner each January). The 2025 inflation index rate was 0%; the 2026 rate is 2.7%. The law was framed as protection for long-term homeowners against rapid assessment growth in hot real-estate markets.
Which Georgia counties opted out of HB 581?
Of the Georgia counties our calculator currently covers: Fulton, DeKalb, Gwinnett, Cobb, Douglas are fully opted out (county government, school district, and every incorporated city); Henry, Paulding, Cherokee, Forsyth, Clayton, Fayette, Coweta, Newton have a mixed status (one or more jurisdictions opted out, others stayed in); Rockdale are fully opted in (the cap applies to the entire bill). Across all 159 Georgia counties, the Tax Foundation reports 316 local government entities opted out — 47 county governments, 123 school districts, and 141 cities. Mixed-status counties are common, especially where school boards opted out while county commissions stayed in.
What does "mixed" status actually mean for my bill?
In a mixed county, HB 581's floating cap applies to some portions of your bill but not others. The most common mixed pattern is schools-only-out: the county government and your city stayed in HB 581 (so those portions of your bill are capped at 2024 base year × inflation), but the school district opted out (so the school portion uses traditional math — 40% assessment ratio applied to current market value). Henry, Paulding, and similar counties follow this pattern. Your annual notice from the county Board of Tax Assessors should itemize which portion uses which math.
Where is opt-out status published for each county?
Opt-out status is published by each county individually — typically on the Board of Tax Assessors website and in county commission meeting minutes from late 2024. The state does not maintain a central public-facing list. The counties on this page have confirmed status from Board of Tax Assessors public records, county commission minutes, school board votes, and city council resolutions. Status for other counties is available through county-level sources, and opt-out decisions can be revisited annually for tax years 2026 through 2029.
What does opt-out mean for my property tax bill?
If your county (or school district, or city) opted out, the HB 581 floating homestead cap does not apply to that portion of your bill. That portion uses traditional math: fair market value × 40% assessment ratio, minus the standard $2,000 statewide homestead exemption, times the relevant millage rate. Long-term, this means homeowners in opted-out jurisdictions may see larger year-over-year tax-bill increases during rapid market appreciation than homeowners in jurisdictions that stayed in HB 581. Local senior, veteran, and disability exemptions you already qualify for continue to apply regardless of HB 581 status.
What rationale did metro counties cite for opting out?
The public rationale across opted-out metro commissions was substantially similar: HB 581 caps revenue growth without providing a state-level reimbursement mechanism. Local governments and school districts that rely on year-over-year growth in the assessment base to fund salaries, contracts, and capital projects projected structural shortfalls without that growth. The Fulton, DeKalb, and Henry school boards cited the impact of capped school millage on operating budgets in their adopted resolutions, often noting that teacher salaries and operating costs typically rise faster than CPI.
Can my county reverse its decision in future years?
Yes. HB 581 opt-out and opt-in decisions can be revisited each year through the same public-hearing process. HB 92 (signed April 2025) extended the rescission window through tax year 2029, so any local government that initially opted out can change course annually until then. Check the relevant Board of Tax Assessors site each spring before annual notices mail.
What protections remain for homeowners in opted-out counties?
Three mechanisms remain unchanged by the opt-out. The $2,000 statewide standard homestead exemption applies to primary residences; local senior age-65, disability, and veteran exemptions continue to apply where homeowners qualify (these are typically larger than the statewide $2,000 minimum); and the appeal process remains available — Georgia homeowners have 45 days from the date on their annual assessment notice to file Form PT-311A. Cobb and DeKalb have particularly large senior exemptions, Fulton stacks additional homestead amounts inside the City of Atlanta, and Douglas exempts qualifying age-62 seniors from the school portion of the bill entirely (conditions apply).
Sources
- Georgia General Assembly — House Bill 581 (2024 Session). Text and implementation details at legis.ga.gov.
- Georgia Department of Revenue — Property Tax Administration guidance, including the annual Inflation Index Rate bulletin. dor.georgia.gov.
- Tax Foundation — Localities Opt Out of Georgia's New Homestead Tax Exemption (April 2025). Statewide totals and category breakdowns sourced from Georgia Secretary of State filings. taxfoundation.org.
- County Board of Tax Assessors public records and city / school board resolutions adopted Nov 2024 – Feb 2025 for the counties listed above.
- U.S. Census Bureau ACS 5-year estimates — median home values and median real estate taxes paid, used for the worked examples and effective-rate references.
This page provides editorial context and planning estimates only. Opt-out status and tax mechanics can change year to year. For the official position for any specific year, contact your county Board of Tax Assessors directly.