Georgia House Bill HB361

Georgia 2025-2026 Regular Session

• Introduced: 2/10/25

Caption

Income tax; exempt all retirement income received as retirement benefits in the armed forces of the United States or the reserve components

Summary

House Bill 361 amends Georgia’s income tax code to expand the exclusion for military retirement benefits. Under current law as reflected in the bill text, certain military retirement income is partially excluded from taxable income; HB361 would revise that treatment so that all income received as retirement benefits from service in the U.S. armed forces or reserve components is exempt from Georgia income tax for eligible individuals. The bill also preserves the existing structure for married couples filing jointly, allowing each qualifying spouse to claim the exclusion separately. The measure is prospective only. It would take effect on July 1, 2025, and apply to taxable years beginning on or after January 1, 2026. The bill also repeals conflicting laws to ensure the new exemption controls over prior inconsistent provisions in Georgia’s income tax statutes.

Impact

HB361 would amend Code Section 48-7-27 in Title 48 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, which governs computation of taxable net income. Its practical effect is to reduce Georgia taxable income for retirees receiving military retirement pay, potentially lowering state income tax liability for veterans and some surviving spouses or military families who qualify under the statute. Because the bill broadens an existing exclusion into a full exemption for covered military retirement benefits, it would also reduce state revenue to the extent those benefits are currently taxed.

Sentiment

The available context shows no committee transcript or recorded votes, so there is no documented debate or formal vote history to indicate strong support or opposition. Based on the bill’s subject matter and sponsor list, the measure appears to be framed as a tax relief bill for military retirees and is likely intended to be favorable to veterans and service members. However, without hearing records, the overall sentiment can only be characterized as neutral-to-supportive by inference rather than by documented discussion.

Contention

No specific points of contention are documented in the provided materials. Potential issues that could arise from the bill’s language include the revenue impact on the state budget, whether the exemption should apply to all military retirement income or only up to a capped amount, and how the change interacts with existing income tax exclusions. Another possible area of concern is equity among different categories of retirees, since the bill provides a targeted tax benefit to military retirement recipients rather than to all retirement income recipients.