Amendment 1: Maximum Acreage for Conservation Use Property
Statewide — all of Georgia
General election · Tuesday, November 3, 2026
- Referred to the ballot by the Georgia General Assembly, which approved House Resolution 32 in 2025 (per the Secretary of State summary as reported by News4JAX); Sen. Sam Watson (R-Moultrie) sponsored the resolution in the state Senate (AJC), where a constitutional amendment on the same change passed 51-1 on February 19, 2025 (Capitol Beat). A separate enabling bill sets the referendum for the November 2026 general election and an effective date of Jan. 1, 2027 if approved (Capitol Beat, on the Senate's first passage).[1][3][2]
The question on the ballot
Shall the Constitution of Georgia, for the purpose of protecting family farmland, be amended so as to increase the maximum acreage to qualify for assessment and taxation as a bona fide conservation use property from 2,000 acres to 4,000 acres?[1]
The amendment would raise from 2,000 to 4,000 acres the maximum acreage one owner may enroll as bona fide conservation use property under Georgia's Conservation Use Valuation Assessment (CUVA) program, in which qualifying farming, timber or conservation land is taxed at 40 percent of its current use value instead of its full value (AJC). The Secretary of State's summary says it amends Article VII, Section I, Paragraph III of the Georgia Constitution by revising subparagraph (e)(1). A separate enabling bill sets an effective date of January 1, 2027. No official fiscal estimate was retrieved; the AJC reported reservations that the change could cost local governments and schools property tax revenue.[1][2][3]
A YES vote means
Raises from 2,000 to 4,000 acres the maximum land an owner can enroll in Georgia's conservation use valuation program for agricultural and timber property.
A NO vote means
Keeps the 2,000-acre maximum for conservation use property assessment.
The law today
Georgia's Conservation Use Valuation Assessment (CUVA) program lets qualifying agricultural and timber land be assessed at its conservation use value rather than its potentially higher fair market value; the Constitution now caps this at 2,000 acres of a single owner. Owners must sign a covenant to keep the land in conservation use, and a breach within ten years results in recapture of the tax savings (Courier News; resolution text).[4][5]
Arguments made for
- Sen. Sam Watson (R-Moultrie), the chief sponsor, said on the Senate floor: "Agriculture has changed. Our family farms are getting much larger today."[2]
Arguments made against
- None found in public sources.
On record in support
On record in opposition
- None found in public sources.
Research notes & limits
The Georgia Secretary of State's 2026 Constitutional Summaries booklet (sos.ga.gov) returned 403 to automated requests and was not loaded; the ballot question and the Secretary of State's summary are taken from WJXT News4JAX's Oct. 8, 2026 voter guide, which quotes them, and the three-amendment slate is confirmed by that guide and the AJC (Aug. 10, 2026). Georgia has no citizen initiative and publishes no voter-pamphlet arguments. Amendments pass with a simple majority of those voting on the question. Watson's quote is from the Capitol Beat report of the 2025 Senate floor debate (original page loaded). No argument against was found; the AJC mentions unattributed reservations (possible revenue loss for local governments and schools; possible tax break for corporate farms) but quotes no opponent. House and Senate final-passage counts are omitted because they could be confirmed only through Ballotpedia, which could not be loaded. Enrichment: no organized opposition, campaign committee or official fiscal note for Amendment 1 was found (the Senate votes were 51-1 on the resolution and 47-3 on HB 90 per Capitol Beat and Georgia Farm Bureau). The Secretary of State's own booklet URL returns 403 to automated requests, so the identical booklet hosted by Gordon County is cited. Georgia Farm Bureau's legislative report is the group's own statement showing its stance.
Sources · 6
Researched 2026-10-19. Green citations are official government records.
- 1.2026 Voter's Guide: Georgia Constitutional Amendments · WJXT News4JAX · 2026-10-08 News report
- 2.State Senate passes farmland preservation constitutional change · Moultrie Observer / Capitol Beat News Service · 2025-02-19 News report
- 3.Here are state constitutional amendments Georgians will vote on in November · Atlanta Journal-Constitution · 2026-08-10 News report
- 4.Proposed Constitutional Amendments, General Election November 3, 2026 (Constitutional Summaries booklet; copy hosted by Gordon County) · Georgia Secretary of State / Attorney General / Legislative Counsel · 2026-09 Official record
- 5.Understanding the Three Constitutional Amendments on Georgia's Nov. 3 Ballot · Courier News · 2026-10-07 News report
- 6.Legislative Report Week 10 (2025) · Georgia Farm Bureau · 2025-03 Candidate's own words