Georgia: Tax Breaks for Disaster Aid
- May 1, 2014 | Gail Cole
Georgia’s Facilitating Business Rapid Response to State Declared Disasters Act of 2014, recently signed by Governor Nathan Deal (R), was created to encourage business to lend a helping hand when Georgia is struck by disaster. That encouragement comes in the form of immunity from tax liability.
In essence, the new law allows out-of-state businesses and out-of-state employees to perform “disaster or emergency related work” in Georgia without being “burdened by any requirements for certain tax liabilities incurred as a result of such activities … for a temporary period.” The law provides an exemption from “any state or local business licensing or registration requirements, any state or local employer income tax withholding, unemployment insurance, any state or local occupational licensing fees....”
Transaction taxes owed
However, such out-of-state businesses and employees are required to pay transaction taxes such as fuel taxes, hotel taxes, car rental taxes, and “sales and use taxes on materials or services subject to sales and use taxes… “ on “purchases for use or consumption in [Georgia] during the disaster or emergency period, unless such taxes are otherwise exempted pursuant to Chapter 8 or this title.”
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