Georgia 2026 Constitutional Amendments & Ballot Measures Explained: Plain-English Voter Guide

When voters in Appling, Evans, Jeff Davis, and Tattnall Counties head into the voting booth this fall, they will decide more than just candidate races. Georgia voters will also decide three proposed state constitutional amendments passed by the Georgia General Assembly.

Because ballot language is often dense and legalistic, this guide breaks down each measure in plain English: what the amendment legally does, what a “YES” or “NO” vote means, the arguments on both sides, and the practical implications for rural Southeast Georgia.

2026 General Election: Key Dates & Deadlines

Below are the verified statutory dates and deadlines governing the 2026 General Election in Georgia:

Amendment 1: Increasing the Agricultural & Timber Conservation Property Tax Cap

• Authorizing Resolution: House Resolution 32 (HR 32)
• Official Ballot Text: “Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to increase the maximum acreage of bona fide agricultural and timber property that may be classified as conservation use property from 2,000 acres to 4,000 acres?“

1. What It Does

In simple terms: Georgia’s Conservation Use Value Assessment (CUVA) program allows qualifying farmland and timberland to be taxed based on its actual agricultural or forestry use, rather than what a real estate developer might pay for the land. In exchange for this lower assessment, the landowner signs a binding 10-year covenant agreeing not to develop the property.

Under current Georgia law, an individual or business entity is capped at enrolling 2,000 acres in CUVA. Any land owned beyond 2,000 acres is taxed at full commercial market value. Amendment 1 doubles that cap to 4,000 acres.

2. What Your Vote Means

• A “YES” Vote: Approves doubling the cap. Landowners and timber growers can enroll up to 4,000 acres in CUVA, allowing larger tracts of working land to qualify for current-use property tax assessments.
• A “NO” Vote: Leaves the existing 2,000-acre cap in place. Any acreage owned by a single entity beyond 2,000 acres will continue to be taxed at full market value.

3. Why Supporters Favor It

Supporters, including agricultural associations and timber groups, argue that rising land appraisals in rural Georgia place an unsustainable burden on large family farms and working timber tracts. When contiguous acreage is reassessed at market development values, annual property tax bills can spike, potentially forcing families to subdivide or sell off historic land holdings.

Raising the cap gives agricultural landowners greater predictability to maintain productive working lands and keep generational family farms intact.

4. What Critics & Skeptics Object To

Critics, including some rural county commissioners and public school advocates, caution about the local tax digest tradeoff. Because CUVA reduces taxable property values, expanding exemptions lowers the local tax base that counties and school systems rely on to fund classrooms, road maintenance, and sheriff departments. When substantial acreage is exempted, county governments may face pressure to raise millage rates on remaining homes and local storefronts.

Opponents also note the distribution of benefits. Because the current 2,000-acre cap already covers most small homesteads, the primary beneficiaries of doubling the cap to 4,000 acres are larger commercial timber operators and substantial agricultural landholders.

5. What It Means in District 157

In Appling, Evans, Jeff Davis, and Tattnall Counties, agriculture and timber form the core of the local economy. For multi-generational farming operations and commercial tree growers, Amendment 1 offers tangible property tax relief.

At the same time, rural school boards and county commissions will have to monitor their local digests closely. Local officials must ensure essential public services remain fully funded without shifting higher tax burdens onto homeowners and small Main Street businesses.

Amendment 2: Requiring Nonpartisan Elections for Probate Court Judges

• Authorizing Resolution: House Resolution 251 (HR 251)
• Official Ballot Text: “Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to require that all probate court judges in the state be elected on a nonpartisan basis?“

1. What It Does

Georgia already requires Superior Court judges and appellate judges to run on nonpartisan ballots without political party labels (Democrat or Republican). However, probate court judges have historically been exempt from this statewide constitutional rule.

Probate judges handle essential, sensitive civic affairs in rural county courthouses: probating wills, administering family estates, appointing guardians for incapacitated adults, issuing marriage licenses, and in certain rural counties without state courts, hearing traffic violations and local misdemeanors.

While many Georgia counties have already adopted nonpartisan probate elections through individual local legislation, Amendment 2 creates a single statewide standard requiring all probate court judges to run on nonpartisan ballots.

2. What Your Vote Means

• A “YES” Vote: Removes political party labels from all probate court judge elections across all 159 Georgia counties, making them uniform nonpartisan races.
• A “NO” Vote: Keeps the current system. Counties that have not passed specific local laws to make their probate elections nonpartisan will continue electing probate judges through partisan party primaries.

3. Why Supporters Favor It

Supporters argue that party affiliation has no legitimate bearing on probating a will, settling an estate, or issuing a marriage license. When rural residents walk into the probate courthouse, they are often dealing with the death of a parent or navigating sensitive family challenges.

Proponents contend that taking party politics out of courthouse administration protects judicial neutrality, maintains public confidence, and prevents qualified local judges from having to align with partisan factions just to serve their community.

4. What Critics & Skeptics Object To

Skeptics and traditional election observers point out that party labels give voters a quick, useful piece of baseline information on the ballot. In down-ballot rural races where candidates rarely have large advertising budgets, party designations offer a familiar philosophical reference point.

Removing party affiliations can also make it harder for casual voters to research judicial candidates, potentially favoring well-connected local incumbents who already enjoy high name recognition.

5. What It Means in District 157

In Baxley, Claxton, Hazlehurst, and Reidsville, the probate judge is a familiar community figure. A statewide nonpartisan requirement would mean that every voter, regardless of whether they choose a Democratic or Republican ballot during spring primary season, would vote on the same nonpartisan judicial slate.

Amendment 3: Dedicated Next Generation 9-1-1 Emergency Trust Fund

• Authorizing Resolution: House Resolution 1243 (HR 1243)
• Official Ballot Text: “Shall the Constitution of Georgia be amended so as to authorize the General Assembly to dedicate revenues derived from fees assessed on emergency telephone communications services to a nonlapsing trust fund to be used exclusively for the expansion, maintenance, and operation of 9-1-1 systems in this state?“

1. What It Does

Georgians currently pay a dedicated fee on their monthly mobile and landline telephone bills (typically $1.50 per connection) intended to support emergency dispatch and 911 communications infrastructure.

However, under standard Georgia budgeting practices, state fee revenues are deposited into the general fund. During state budget shortfalls, lawmakers have historically held the legal authority to redirect or sweep these fee revenues into other state spending areas.

Amendment 3 authorizes the creation of the “Georgia Next Generation 9-1-1 Fund” as a constitutionally dedicated, nonlapsing trust. It requires that money collected from emergency telephone fees be spent exclusively on upgrading, operating, and maintaining emergency 911 dispatch networks.

2. What Your Vote Means

• A “YES” Vote: Authorizes the General Assembly to dedicate 911 telephone fees to a protected, nonlapsing trust fund that cannot legally be redirected to non-emergency state budget items.
• A “NO” Vote: Leaves 911 fee revenues subject to the standard legislative appropriations process, allowing lawmakers to continue redirecting fee collections into the general fund if needed during budget negotiations.

3. Why Supporters Favor It

Supporters emphasize that when citizens pay a designated fee on their monthly phone bill for emergency services, that revenue should be spent exclusively on emergency response.

Modernizing 911 dispatch networks to Next Generation standards requires significant capital investment, including digital mapping for rural roads, real-time GPS tracking for first responders, and interoperability between neighboring county dispatch centers. Dedicating these funds guarantees that local emergency personnel have dependable funding that cannot be swept into other state accounts during budget fights.

4. What Critics & Skeptics Object To

The primary objection comes from fiscal traditionalists in the legislature who argue against “earmarking” state revenues in the state constitution. When specific tax or fee streams are legally cordoned off, lawmakers lose flexibility to respond to unforeseen statewide emergencies, natural disasters, or severe economic recessions.

Critics argue that all state revenues should be debated and prioritized through the regular annual appropriations process rather than placed permanently beyond legislative review.

5. What It Means in District 157

In rural Southeast Georgia, where homes and farms are spread out across hundreds of square miles, emergency communications are a matter of life and death. The human reality of rural public safety is stark:

• When an emergency call comes in from a dirt road in Jeff Davis or Tattnall County, dispatchers must quickly coordinate across county lines.
• According to the American Ambulance Association, over 64 percent of Georgia counties face coverage gaps often described as “ambulance deserts,” where residents live 25 minutes or more from the nearest station.
• Georgia Department of Public Health (DPH) Region 9 reports show that hospital offload times regularly keep ambulances tied up at regional emergency departments for 25 to 30 minutes before returning to service.

Upgrading local dispatch technology ensures that first responders reach rural families as quickly as possible. For District 157, Amendment 3 ensures that emergency fees paid on rural phone bills stay dedicated to emergency response.

Official Early Voting Directory: District 157

Advance in-person voting runs from Tuesday, October 13 through Friday, October 30, 2026. Under Georgia SB 202 rules, absentee ballot drop boxes are located indoors inside central election offices and are open exclusively during voting hours.

Advance voting weekday hours run from 9:00 AM to 5:00 PM across all four counties. Mandatory Saturday voting is available on October 17 and October 24. Verify your specific polling precinct and download your sample ballot at the Georgia My Voter Page (mvp.sos.ga.gov).

Next Steps for District 157 Voters

Decisions made under Georgia’s Gold Dome on property tax caps, courtroom rules, and emergency dispatch funding directly affect our daily lives, emergency response times, and local tax bills. We believe voters deserve unvarnished truth, open debates, and transparent leadership.

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