Press Releases

Mayor’s Office of Communications
55 Trinity Avenue, Suite 2500 • Atlanta, Georgia 30303

Mayor Dickens and City Council Introduce ‘Blight Tax’ to Crack Down on Absentee Property Owners

Enabling a local “Blight Tax” would change the economics of land speculation, promoting healthy neighborhoods and affordable housing.

ATLANTA—Mayor Andre Dickens, working closely with Councilmember Byron Amos, introduced legislation to create a new ‘Blight Tax’ to crack down on neglected properties that contribute to blighted conditions and disinvestment in Atlanta neighborhoods.

The ordinance would allow the City to utilize a program approved by Georgia voters in recent years to push property owners to remediate or redevelop blighted properties. If approved, the legislation would empower the municipal court to impose a “Blight Tax” on neglected properties, fundamentally changing the economics of neglectful land speculation. Occupied properties would be exempt from the program, ensuring no residents are involuntarily displaced.

“Since taking office, our Administration has moved with urgency to address substandard housing and root out negligent property owners,” said Mayor Dickens. “This new policy will equip the City with a powerful tool for cracking down on corporate, absentee owners who treat property as a cheap investment vehicle rather than part of the fabric of our communities.”

Blight taxes have been successfully implemented in communities around the state and the country as a surgical, judicial enforcement tool for chronically vacant and neglected properties that might otherwise sit vacant for decades, hampering communities in the process.

The new Blight Tax would allow municipal courts to increase specific blighted properties’ tax bills by up to 25 times the current City tax rate. As an added incentive, once a blighted property is remediated and returned to productive use, it may be eligible for a discounted tax rate. For large-scale properties that significantly impact their surrounding neighborhood, property owners must first agree to a detailed redevelopment plan that addresses neighborhood objectives around connectivity, transportation and public amenities that benefit the entire community.

“This legislation addresses a key concern for District 3 residents, who have for too long been subjected to neglected, blighted properties whose owners are content to wait to cash in,” said District 3 Councilmember Byron Amos. “The Blight Tax will give us much greater leverage in persuading these owners to clean up their property or sell them to a better steward who will.”

The new Blight Tax is the latest in a number of initiatives put in place by Mayor Dickens since taking office. Since January of 2022, the Administration launched the City’s first Housing Help Center, established funds to assist legacy residents remain in the communities they built and set up an eviction diversion program for low-income families who are at risk of displacement. Learn more about the Administration’s housing initiatives online here.

###

For more information about the City of Atlanta, please visit www.atlantaga.gov or watch City Channel 26. Follow the City of Atlanta on Facebook and Twitter @CityofAtlanta.