(The Center Square) – A group of Georgia Republicans has proposed a bill to exempt law enforcement officers from paying state income taxes.
Rep. Rick Williams, R-Milledgeville, the lead sponsor of House Bill 992, said the measure would help small municipalities and counties provide an incentive to law enforcement officers “without placing such a hardship on their budgets.”
Law enforcement agencies are filling only 93% of their positions available, according to the Police Executive Research Forum. Hiring has slightly declined, and resignations and retirements have increased from fiscal year 2020 to fiscal 2021. The most significant increase over the year was among officers who resigned.
There was a 45% increase in the retirement rate among all police departments surveyed by the Police Executive Research Forum in June. Retirement rates were highest in small agencies.
According to the report, agencies with 50 to 249 officers experienced a 59% increase in retirements, and agencies with fewer than 50 officers had a 49% increase in retirements. In agencies with 250 to 499 officers, the retirement rate was 19%, the report showed, and the retirement rate increased by 27% in those with 500 or more officers.
Georgia Department of Public Safety Chief of Staff Maj. Joshua Lamb told a legislative panel in September higher salaries were “mandatory” to recruit and keep current law enforcement employees. Lamb said the department had a 22% turnover rate, and annual job applications have decreased by 60% over the past three years.
Gov. Brian Kemp gave law enforcement agencies around the state federal COVID-19 relief funding to provide $1,000 bonuses for officers and other first responders that same month. The Senate unanimously approved a measure Friday to allow Georgians to get a tax credit for donating to law enforcement agencies. The agencies can use the funding for hiring or pay raises.
Williams did not have an estimate on how much the measure would cost the state in tax revenue.
According to Indeed.com, the average base salary for a law enforcement officer is $41,519 a year. The state tax rate for an income that high is 5.75%, meaning that, on average, $2,387 of their public-funded salaries would be collected by the state for taxes.
NAACP Atlanta President Richard Rose said the bill is another piece of legislation this session that does nothing to help Georgians.
“This bill takes from the tax base and does nothing to solve the overall problem with law enforcement,” Rose said.
Lawmakers should be looking for other ways to incentivize the workforce, such as offering scholarships, student-loan debt forgiveness or other educational options, Rose said.
“If not, they will end up with the same bad and the same unqualified people,” Rose said.
Two other states, Kentucky and New Mexico, are considering similar proposals to exclude law enforcement officers from paying certain taxes. Some states currently provide tax breaks to police officers and other first responders.
HB 992 is assigned to the House Committee on Ways & Means. It must be approved in the House and the Senate before it is sent to the governor for final approval.
