Georgia Courts to Give Less Deference to Tax Agency Guidance

Judges across Georgia will have broader authority to interpret the state tax code without deference to most state Department of Revenue guidance under a law signed by Gov. Brian Kemp on Thursday.

Kemp signed S.B. 185, which dilutes the principles of “Chevron deference” in state court tax cases and disputes before the Georgia Tax Tribunal. Chevron deference is a principle of administrative law compelling courts to defer to agency interpretations of ambiguous statutes that an agency must administer.

• The new law specifies that all questions of law decided by a Georgia court or the tax tribunal “be decided without ...