Revenue & Tax committee: quick list of bills the panel advanced and actions taken

The Senate Revenue & Tax Committee considered a series of bills after debate on SB 394. Most measures were considered with brief presentations and passed on committee motions; a few required agency or fiscal comments. Below are the bills taken up, short descriptions, and committee outcomes.

SB 408 — Exclude certain federal agriculture assistance from state income tax - Sponsor: Sen. Blake Johnson. - Summary: Exempts specified federal economic assistance and disaster payments to farmers from Arkansas individual income tax. - Fiscal note: DFA reviewed the bill and treated it as budget-neutral for the current forecast because the payments were not included in the forecast; revenue impact for collections classified as "indeterminate" in DFA work-up. - Committee action: Motion to report do-pass carried by voice vote.

SB 529 — Independent Tax Appeals Commission housekeeping and small-claims authority - Sponsor: Sen. Blake Johnson. - Summary: Technical and procedural clarifications to the Independent Tax Appeals Commission Act, including a small-claims process for disputes under a dollar threshold. - Fiscal note: DFA reported no state revenue impact; the bill is procedural. - Committee action: Motion to report do-pass carried by voice vote.

HB 1274 — County collector response times for title closings - Sponsor: Rep. Les Warren. - Summary: Requires county collectors to respond within three business days to requests for certified real-property-tax payoff amounts used in real-estate closings; if a…