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Bill would equalize sales tax treatment for water authorities and districts, sponsor says it could lower rates
Summary
Representative Kendra Moore presented a bill to remove sales tax burdens that apply to water authorities but not to water districts; sponsor said equalizing treatment could save an authority about $430,000 annually in a high‑tax county and reduce upward pressure on rates.
Representative Kendra Moore presented House Bill 16‑87 to align sales tax treatment for water authorities with that of water districts. Moore told the committee that both entities provide similar wholesale and transmission services and are organized as non‑profit entities; under current law water districts are exempt from sales tax while water authorities generally are not. Moore said removing the sales tax burden for authorities would yield cost savings that could be passed to customers and could reduce future rate increases.
Moore used Benton County as an example, saying a 9.5% combined sales tax there could equate to roughly $430,000 in annual savings for an authority on taxable purchases, money that could be used for capital improvements without raising rates. Committee members asked no substantive questions; no witnesses testified for or against the bill in the transcript and no committee vote was recorded.
