GA SB306

County tax assessors must send covenant expiration notices via certified mail (changed from first-class mail) at least 60 days before conservation use property covenants expire.

If a property owner does not receive the required certified notice of impending expiration, the 10-year conservation use covenant automatically extends for one year.

Property owners whose covenants expired during the two years before July 1, 2025 may have their covenants reinstated if they continued qualifying for conservation use and the county cannot produce a record of certified notification.

Eligible property owners may appeal assessments for the affected period and receive refunds for taxes paid in excess of what would have been owed under the preferential assessment, with no additional fees or interest imposed.