Cutting Taxes and Supporting the Jewish Community
This past week has been an incredibly fulfilling and rewarding one in Atlanta as the House moved forward on several key priorities to improve the lives of Georgians across our great state. I’ve often said my mission as Speaker of the House is to make Georgia the best place to live, work and raise a family for generations to come—and I am certainly proud of the work we did this past week to move toward that goal.
On Tuesday, I had the privilege of speaking to the Georgia chapter of the Faith & Freedom Coalition—an outstanding organization that seeks to advance the virtues of faith, hard work, marriage, family, personal responsibility, and helping the most vulnerable among us. My remarks included a powerful quote from one of our greatest Presidents, Ronald Reagan, that still rings true today: “Freedom is a fragile thing and it’s never more than one generation away from extinction. It is not ours by way of inheritance; it must be fought for and defended constantly by each generation, for it comes only once to a people.” I will always stand up—and on principle—to defend our God-given rights and the freedoms we enjoy in the greatest state and country in the world.
On Wednesday, our House team announced major tax cut proposals that we believe will deliver much-needed relief to Georgians across our state. Joined by colleagues in the House, we unveiled plans to increase the child deduction from $3,000 to $4,000, double the homestead exemption from $2,000 to $4,000, and accelerate the state income tax cut from 5.75 percent to 5.39 percent. Together, these proposals will put more money back into the pockets of Georgia taxpayers and build on our state’s economic success—which stands in stark contrast to the dysfunction of Washington D.C.
Thursday was a very important and meaningful day. First, I had the honor of speaking to the Buckhead Coalition—a group of like-minded businesspeople, entrepreneurs, and job creators who live within Buckhead. My message discussed the ways we have worked with our partners at the local level to fight crime and increase public safety in Atlanta and across the state, and appreciated their warm welcome. That afternoon, the House reconvened to vote on final passage of HB 30—which defines antisemitism in our state and provides for criminal penalties if a crime is motivated by this type of hate. It was a priority of the House going back all the way to last year, and its final passage—with overwhelmingly bipartisan support—sent a clear message that hate will not be tolerated in our state. Thanks to Chairman John Carson and Rep. Esther Panitch for their tireless work to get this critical legislation across the finish line.
The House will continue to be about the people’s business—and I’m confident that we will continue to deliver meaningful results just as we did this past week that improve the lives of everyone across our state.
My Best,
Speaker Jon Burns