ATLANTA, Ga. — The first question Georgia voters see on the Nov. 3 ballot asks whether to let bigger farm and timber owners into one of the state’s most widely used property tax breaks.
Amendment 1 would raise the cap on how much land one owner can enroll in the Conservation Use Valuation Assessment program, known as CUVA, from 2,000 acres to twice that. A yes vote doubles the limit; a no vote keeps it where it is.
CUVA lets owners of farmland, timberland and wildlife habitat pay tax on what the land produces rather than what a developer might pay for it. Enrolled land is assessed at 40% of the value of its present use. In return, owners sign a 10-year covenant to keep the property in qualifying use, and breaking it means paying back the tax savings plus possible penalties. The amendment leaves those rules alone.
The program dates to a 1990 constitutional amendment meant to help family farms hold on as land values rose, and the 2,000-acre limit has not changed since. The General Assembly sent the new measure to voters in 2025 with broad support from both parties.
The break is already large. According to the state Department of Revenue, nearly 200,000 parcels are enrolled, and about $330 million in taxes had to be covered by other property owners, such as homeowners and businesses, so local budgets would balance. The Georgia Farm Bureau puts the typical farm in the state at 253 acres, so the change aims at the biggest operations.
Backers say growing family farms need room to scale up and that some owners now split land among relatives or separate companies to stay under the cap. The Georgia Forestry Association said in a statement that a higher limit would give more families the choice to keep land in farming and forestry instead of selling. Skeptics question extending the break to larger operations, and the association representing counties has said the effect on local revenue is unclear.
Only individuals, family farm entities, estates, trusts and certain nonprofits can enroll; large corporations and outside investors cannot.
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