Committee approves bill requiring school-related QTR disclosure on property-tax statements

The House Ways and Means Committee approved an amendment and returned House Bill 2920 with a due-pass recommendation, directing property-tax bills for properties located in school districts that receive state aid to separately display the qualifying tax rate (the state-set component) and the local school district's levied rate.

Sponsor remarks described the measure as a transparency reform to help taxpayers understand which portion of a school property-tax bill is driven by state-set qualifying tax rate (QTR) calculations. Ways and Means staff described the chair’s amendment, which prescribes minimum format standards for the disclosure and corrects statutory citations for the appropriate tax-rate lines on the bill.

Witnesses for transparency and tax-research organizations supported the change. The Arizona Tax Research Association’s president told the committee the disclosure would help taxpayers identify which changes are controlled at the state level and which are set by local school boards and taxing jurisdictions.

Opponents on the committee said the change could create confusion without accompanying public education. One member asked for additional outreach before broadening bill content, but supporters replied that the measure was simply an informational requirement and that county assessors and bill designers already communicate with taxpayers.

The committee returned HB2920 with a due-pass-as-amended recommendation (recorded vote 5–4). If enacted, the bill would require the Department of Revenue and county assessors to adopt the new format standards and include the qualifying tax rate in property-tax statements sent to owners in affected districts.