Idaho Tax Commission defends FAST system costs; says collections have exceeded ROI

The Idaho State Tax Commission told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on Feb. 18 that recent FAST tax‑management system work has produced a return on investment that exceeds initial projections and that continued investments are needed to maintain security and meet legislative and operational changes.

Jeff McCray, chairman of the Tax Commission, said the FAST project came in on time and the commission reverted $309,948 to the general fund at the close of FY24. He also reported total collections tied to the system since implementation of $34,287,416. “Since that time we've collected $34,287,416 so far — exceeded the ROI,” McCray told the committee and offered to provide the detailed ROI reports to staff.

Agency requests and rationale The commission requested several FY26 enhancements including replacement vehicles and ITS security and infrastructure investments. Analyst Christopher Lahoset summarized the request as roughly $1,143,100 in total if the enhancements are approved, including: - Vehicle purchases: $44,500 for a light‑duty truck and $297,000 for nine vehicle replacements. The light‑duty trucks support compliance teams that seize property (cars, trailers, ATVs) to satisfy tax debts, the analyst said. - ITS security and infrastructure: $300,700 for laptops, monitors, switches, servers and related security/infrastructure needs. - $28,500 requested for commissioner compensation change (calculated per governor’s 5% recommendation), which would require separate legislation to change commissioner pay.

Maintenance and contract inflation questions Senators asked about rising maintenance/support costs for FAST. Senator Cook asked whether maintenance and security should instead be covered by statewide security programs (for example, Swicap). Chairman McCray said FAST is a stand‑alone system and that ongoing licensing, development to keep up with legislative changes (the commission cited HB 445 changes last year as an example), and security updates drive costs. Analysts did not provide a detailed line‑item breakdown for the contract‑inflation increases at the hearing but said the commission could follow up with details.

Transparency and next steps Lawmakers asked for supplemental documentation on vehicle miles/models and the agency supplied those files to the committee SharePoint, the analyst said. Chairman McCray said the collection gains and the FY24 reversion demonstrate the system’s value and asked for continued support for maintaining technology and staff to run it.

Why it matters The Tax Commission’s operational systems underpin state revenue administration and enforcement. Committee members stressed oversight on recurring maintenance costs and asked the agency for more granular breakdowns of ITS contract inflation and vehicle needs so they can evaluate ongoing appropriations.