Committee holds House Bill 412, introduces RS 32-715 to lock timing of $100 million property tax relief

The Idaho House Revenue and Taxation Committee on March 21, 2025 voted to hold House Bill 412 for further consideration and introduced RS 32-715 to clarify the timing and accounting for a $100 million property tax relief transfer.

Representative Jeff Ehlers, R‑Meridian, told the committee that House Bill 412 collects several technical tax corrections and clarifications tied to other tax bills this session, including House Bill 40 (income tax relief), House Bill 304 (property tax relief) and House Bill 354. He said the measures are intended to make definitions and timing clearer and to align practice between state finance offices.

Ehlers said the proposal revises definitions around military benefits, adds explicit language about income tax rates for particular years, standardizes statutes of limitations for sales and income tax audits to three years when a taxpayer reasonably believed no return was due, and preserves unlimited lookback where fraud is alleged. He also said the bill clarifies when the Idaho State Tax Commission may charge interest during audits so taxpayers are not unfairly charged while the commission delays action. "When the ball is in their court, in the tax commission court, they shouldn't be allowed to tax you interest," Ehlers said.

Ehlers described an accounting change affecting how a $330,000,000 entry is shown in state revenue and appropriations. He said the change will treat that amount as gross revenue with the $330,000,000 then shown as an expenditure appropriation so Department of Finance and Management (DFM) and the Legislative Services Office (LSO) "are speaking the same language" about revenue figures.

On the related RS 32-715, Ehlers said he redrafted the fiscal note to clarify timing between fiscal and calendar years. He told the committee that the $100 million property tax relief will be included in fiscal year 2026 accounting but that the relief will be delivered to taxpayers in calendar year 2025. "All you care about is when do I get my hundred million dollars in property tax relief. It will...occur in calendar year 2025," Ehlers said, adding the RS explicitly requires the transfer "no later than August 31, 2025" so local taxing districts can include the funds in their budgets and reflect the relief on 2025 property tax bills.

Representative Shepherd moved to hold House Bill 412; the motion carried with a voice vote. No public testimony was offered on HB 412 at the meeting. Representative Jason Monks moved to introduce RS 32-715 and recommend it be placed on the second reading calendar; that motion also passed, and Representative Ehlers will serve as floor sponsor for the RS.

Supporters described the RS as a clarification of prior bills, while members who asked questions sought assurance the accounting and transfer language would not permit the money to be diverted. Representative Birch asked whether the RS language could make it easier for the $330,000,000 to be routed away from the intended education appropriations; Ehlers replied that LSO helped craft the language and that it uses the same phrasing the legislature has historically used for K‑12 public school support (citing Idaho Code regarding public schools educational support).

The committee scheduled a public hearing on the items for April 12, 2025. Formal actions taken in the meeting were (1) the committee held House Bill 412 and (2) introduced RS 32-715 and recommended it to the second reading calendar.

The committee adjourned after completing the day's agenda; the RS will proceed to the House with a recommendation from the committee.