Idaho committee holds House Bill 74 and advances RS 32,441 to second reading

BOISE, Idaho — The House Revenue and Taxation Committee on Feb. 21 voted to hold House Bill 74 in committee and, separately, introduced RS 32,441 and recommended it be sent to the second-reading calendar.

Representative Jason Monks, sponsor of both measures, told the committee the two items are intended to add $50 million to the state’s School Facilities Fund and $50 million to the Homeowners Property Tax Relief Account. "We used to have $50,000,000 that was ongoing to the school facilities fund and $50,000,000 1 time to the homeowners tax relief fund," Monks said, explaining the new draft statute (RS) would make both amounts ongoing.

The change would not increase the total dollar amount proposed for relief but would shift the homeowners allocation from a one-time payment to an ongoing distribution, Monks said. He described how the School Facilities Fund operates: funds first pay school bonds and levies and any remainder "comes out to the bottom" and can be used by districts for maintenance or capital projects.

Monks said the School Facilities Fund benefits all property taxpayers in a taxing area, while the homeowners account is distributed only to property owners who claim the homeowners (homestead) exemption. "A lot longer explanation than what this bill really did," Monks added, but he said the intent is property tax relief with a mechanism that also…