1. Money  Does Georgia Collect an Estate Tax?  Georgia Estate
Tax Used to Mean a Pick Up Tax or Sponge Tax    While Georgia is
not known to be one of the most tax-friendly states for
retirees, Georgia is one of the majority of states that
currently do not collect an estate tax at the state level. A few
years ago, however, things were different before major changes
took effect with regard to federal estate tax laws. What do
federal estate tax laws have to do with Georgia state estate
taxes? Prior to January 1, 2005, Georgia actually did collect a
separate estate tax at the state level, called a "pick up tax"
or "sponge tax," that was equal to a portion of the overall
federal estate tax bill.  What is the Pick Up Tax or Sponge Tax?
So what does this mean in plain English? It means that a portion
of the federal estate tax was actually taken away from the IRS
and instead paid to the decedent's state taxing authority. As
such, prior to January 1, 2005, if a deceased Georgia resident
owed federal estate taxes, th