House committee introduces bill to cut Idaho income tax rates

The Idaho House Revenue and Taxation Committee on Thursday introduced RS 32,013, a bill from Speaker Mike Moyle proposing reductions to individual and corporate income tax rates and exemptions for some military retirement income. Committee members voted to introduce the bill after a short debate and questions about the fiscal note.

Moyle (Speaker Mike Moyle, Representative, District 10) told the committee the proposal would lower individual and corporate income tax rates from the current level to 5.3 percent and estimated roughly $240,000,000 in savings from that rate cut. He described the measure as part of a broader push for tax relief this legislative session and said other bills on sales and property taxes would follow. "We've been trying to do all we can to give money back," Moyle said.

Moyle also proposed expanding a retirement-income exemption for some veterans and military retirees, saying the change would lower the qualifying age and extend exemptions for some disabled veterans. He estimated that exemption would cost about $12,000,000. The bill also would exempt certain transactions involving gold and silver from capital-gains treatment, which Moyle said would support Idaho's mining and bullion industries.

Committee members asked questions about the bill's draft materials and fiscal information. Representative Gannon raised a technical concern about the bill's explanatory paperwork, requesting that the fiscal note language be corrected to reflect reductions to both individual and corporate rates: "I think the fiscal note needs to be corrected. It says reduce flat corporate, I think it's reduce flat individual and corporate income tax rate." Moyle said he was open to that correction and to providing a revised statement of probable (SOP) before the hearing.

Representative Birch opposed the motion to introduce, saying the committee lacked a broader fiscal analysis necessary to judge affordability: "My concern is a fiscal analysis, what's missing is a fiscal analysis at a broader scale." Birch said he would not support introducing the bill until the committee had more information about fiscal obligations.

Representative Raybould moved to introduce RS 32,013. The committee voted to introduce the bill by voice vote; the chair noted one member declined to have a negative vote recorded. The motion carried and RS 32,013 was officially introduced.

RS 32,013 remains at the committee-introduction stage; Moyle said additional tax-relief proposals on sales and property taxes will come before the committee in the coming days. The committee scheduled its next meeting for 9 a.m. Friday.