The sales tax rate will remain at 8 percent in Baldwin County, at least through 2027.
The Georgia General Assembly over the weekend failed to approve the Baldwin County Board of Commissioners’ request for an LHOST ballot referendum during a special called session in Atlanta. The county government’s plan was to include the new sales tax referendum on the November general election ballot, but now that won’t happen.
LHOST, short for Local Homestead Option Sales Tax, was designed to to help offset property tax bills on “homesteads” (owner-occupied properties). In Baldwin County, the additional penny-on-the-dollar sales tax would’ve generated roughly $9 million per year.
Baldwin was one of 67 counties asking permission from the General Assembly for an LHOST ballot referendum. In the end, however, Republicans failed to achieve a “two-thirds super majority” to pass the measure. Democrat lawmakers framed LHOST as a “regressive tax.”
“Whereas, the proposed tax structure provides relief exclusively to those who are fortunate enough to own homes, it simultaneously forces the thousands of Georgia families who rent to subsidize that relief through higher prices on everyday goods,” wrote the House Democrat Caucus in a joint statement. “Therefore, the House Democratic Caucus stands united against these regressive measures that shift the tax burden onto working-class families.”
Here’s a breakdown of the current eight percent sales tax rate in Baldwin County:
• Georgia State Sales Tax – four percent
• Local Option Sales Tax – one percent
• Special Local Option Sales Tax – one percent
• ESPLOST – one percent
• TSPLOST – one percent