Capitol Beat is a nonprofit news service operated by the Georgia Press Educational Foundation that provides coverage of state government to newspapers throughout Georgia. For more information visit capitol-beat.org.
The Georgia Senate gave final passage to an election-year tax cut bill Wednesday, sending it on to Gov. Brian Kemp’s desk for his signature.
The legislation, which was proposed by the governor, will accelerate a state income tax reduction that took effect this year, rolling back the income tax rate from 5.49% to 5.39%. The bill will save Georgia taxpayers about $1.1 billion this year, Sen. Bo Hatchett, Kemp’s Senate floor leader, said before Wednesday’s vote.
“We are continuing to conservatively manage our budget and put money back in the pockets of our taxpayers,” said Hatchett, R-Cornelia.
While the measure cleared the Georgia House of Representatives unanimously last month, 12 Democratic senators voted against the bill on Wednesday. Forty senators supported it.
Dave Williams has covered state government and politics in Georgia since 1999 and for several years before that, covered Georgia’s congressional delegation in Washington, D.C. He began his career in radio news in Florida and Upstate New York.
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