House approves tax credit to help live organ donors cover expenses

The Utah House on the morning calendar passed first substitute Senate Bill 164, establishing a nonrefundable individual income tax credit intended to reimburse live organ donors for expenses tied to donation.

Representative Hardy, the House sponsor, said the bill responds to a significant waiting-list burden: nationally, roughly 90,000 people wait for transplants (about 64,000 waiting for kidneys), and in Utah some 243 people are on the waiting list with 121 awaiting kidney transplants. Hardy told the chamber donors often face 3–5 weeks of recovery and out-of-pocket costs including travel, meals and lost wages. "This nonrefundable credit for live organ donation expenses" would help remove a financial barrier, she said.

Colleagues offered support from personal experience. Representative Dayton said relatives had donated kidneys and praised measures that make donation easier on families; Representative Ehr argued the bill could have positive fiscal implications by returning productive people to the workforce.

Voting was then opened; the clerk reported S.B. 164 received 70 yes votes and 0 no votes. The bill will be signed by the Speaker and referred to the Senate for the President’s signature.

The bill’s floor discussion included numerical context about waiting lists and recovery time; specific credit amounts, eligibility rules and long-term fiscal impacts were not detailed on the floor and will be determined in bill text and fiscal analysis.