Georgia 2024 ballot measures

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In 2024, three statewide ballot measures were on the ballot in Georgia for the election on November 5.

On the ballot

Type	Title	Description	Result	Yes Votes	No Votes
LRCA	Amendment 1	Provide for a local option homestead property tax exemption and allow a county, municipality, or school system to opt out of the exemption	a	3,094,322 (63%)	1,823,529 (37%)
LRCA	Amendment 2	Create the Georgia Tax Court with statewide jurisdiction as provided by law	a	2,525,406 (52%)	2,341,612 (48%)
LRSS	Referendum A	Increase the personal property tax exemption from $7,500 to $20,000	a	3,223,888 (64%)	1,775,768 (36%)

Political party advisory questions

See also: Georgia Political Party Advisory Questions (May 2024)

The Republican Party and Democratic Party placed nonbinding advisory questions on the May 21, 2024, statewide primary ballots. Republican ballots featured eight questions, and Democratic ballots featured nine questions.

Click here to read more about the nonbinding questions.

Getting measures on the ballot

In Georgia, citizens do not have the power to initiate ballot measures at the state level.

Legislatively referred constitutional amendments

See also: Legislatively referred constitutional amendment

A two-thirds (66.67%) vote is required during one legislative session for the Georgia State Legislature to place an amendment on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 120 votes in the Georgia House of Representatives and 38 votes in the Georgia State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Amendments do not require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

Legislatively referred state statutes

See also: Legislatively referred state statute

In Georgia, voter approval is required for legislation concerning property tax exemptions. A two-thirds (66.67%) vote is required during one legislative session for the Georgia State Legislature to place a state statute on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 120 votes in the Georgia House of Representatives and 38 votes in the Georgia State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Statutes require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

Advisory questions

See also: Advisory question

A simple majority vote is required during one legislative session for the Georgia State Legislature to place an advisory question on the ballot. That amounts to a minimum of 91 votes in the Georgia House of Representatives and 29 votes in the Georgia State Senate, assuming no vacancies. Advisory questions require the governor's signature to be referred to the ballot.

Historical facts

See also: List of Georgia ballot measures and History of Initiative & Referendum in Georgia

In Georgia, a total of 132 ballot measures appeared on statewide ballots between 1985 and 2022. Of that number, 109 ballot measures were approved, and 27 ballot measures were defeated.

Georgia statewide ballot measures, 1985-2024
Total number	Annual average	Annual minimum	Annual maximum	Approved		Defeated
				#	%	#	%
136	3	0	11	109	80.15	27	19.85

Not on the ballot

Type	Title	Subject	Description	Status
LRSS	Statewide Homestead Property Tax Exemption Increase Measure (HB 1019)	Taxes and Property	Increase the statewide homestead property tax exemption
LRSS	Expand Disabled Veteran Homestead Exemption to Spouses and Minor Children Measure (HB 871)	Taxes and Property	Extend the homestead property tax exemption to an un-remarried spouse or minor child upon the death of a disabled veteran receiving said exemption
LRCA	Timber Tax Reduction Amendment	Taxes	Reduces the tax on timber at the time of harvest or sale and provides for state appropriations to counties, municipalities, and school districts affected by the tax revenue reduction
LRCA	Local Government Loan Payments Amendment (HR 804)	State and local government budgets, spending and finance	Requires loans incurred by counties and other local governments to be paid in full within 12 months (rather than by December 31 of the calendar year)
LRCA	Sports Betting Legalization Amendment (SR 579)	Gambling	Authorize the state legislature to provide for sports betting with 80% of revenues dedicated to pre-kindergarten education and college scholarships
LRCA	Waiver for Delinquent Local Property Taxes Amendment (SR 82)	Property and Taxes	Allow delinquent local ad valorem property taxes, penalties, and interest to be waived by the tax commissioner
LRCA	Create Human Trafficking Victims Fund Amendment (SR 616)	Civil and criminal trials and Healthcare	Create the Human Trafficking Victims Fund funded through additional penalties assessed on those found guilty of human trafficking to pay for services for victims of sexual exploitation
LRCA	Volunteer Program for Senior Tax Credit Amendment (HR 1021)	Taxes	Allow local governments and school districts to offer local property tax credits to seniors for volunteer service
LRCA	Development Impact Fees to Fund Education Facilities Amendment (SR 189)	State and local government budgets, spending and finance and Education	Allow local boards of education to impose and collect development impact fees subject to local voter approval and use the proceeds to pay for part of the costs associated with educational facilities

State profile

Demographic data for Georgia
	Georgia	U.S.
Total population:	10,199,398	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	57,513	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	60.2%	73.6%
Black/African American:	30.9%	12.6%
Asian:	3.6%	5.1%
Native American:	0.3%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.1%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	9.1%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	85.4%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	28.8%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$49,620	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	21.1%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in Georgia. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in Georgia

Georgia voted Republican in five out of the six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in Georgia, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. Georgia had five Retained Pivot Counties, 2.76 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More Georgia coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in Georgia
• United States congressional delegations from Georgia
• Public policy in Georgia
• Endorsers in Georgia
• Georgia fact checks
• More...

See also

• 2024 ballot measures
• List of Georgia ballot measures
• History of Initiative & Referendum in Georgia
• Campaign finance requirements for Georgia ballot measures

External links

• Georgia Secretary of State