From the Executive Director: Week of March 15
As we head down the homestretch of the legislative session, county officials must stand vigilant and be prepared to reach out to their legislators. The legislature has set a target date of March 26 to wrap up (most) of their work. I say most, because unlike in previous years, the legislature is poised to recess …
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From the Executive Director: Week of March 8
We’re (potentially) entering the home stretch of the legislative session. The end of this week marks the transmittal deadline. Each year the legislature sets a deadline for all bills introduced in one chamber to be transmitted to the other chamber. Think of it as an aspirational goal, kind of like a New Year’s resolution. The …
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From the Executive Director: Week of March 1
Balancing Tax Relief and Funding for Local Services The Legislature is still slowly moving towards a series of proposals to provide tax relief and fund infrastructure projects. I expect a new tax relief package to be introduced in the next week or two that will reduce income tax rates and provide ongoing funding from the …
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From the Executive Director: Week of February 22
This past week was a busy one at the Capitol, especially for counties. In addition to Senate Bill 1108 clearing the Senate State Affairs Committee on a 6-3 vote (with Senators Lakey, Nye, and Rabe voting no), two other bills were introduced which would impact county budgets. The House Revenue and Taxation Committee introduced House …
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From the Executive Director: Week of February 8
Over the last few weeks, we’ve seen three bills introduced related to property taxes and local government budgets: Senate Bills 1021 and 1048 and House Bill 73. We’re likely to see new bills introduced over the next two weeks. I want to express my appreciation for your attentiveness in reviewing the proposals, letting IAC know …
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What to Watch: Week of February 1
IAC expects at least two bills from the Property Taxes and Revenue Expenditures Study Committee to be introduced this week. One bill seeks to establish a uniform local government accounting and financial reporting manual which will be overseen by a legislative oversight committee and administered by the State Controller’s Office. The proposal will also establish …
From the Executive Director: Week of February 1
By now most of you are aware of Senate Bill 1021 that would impose additional caps on annual local government property tax budget increases. Depending on the level of growth measured by new construction, a county would be able to increase its annual property tax budget by between 3-4%. The new budget caps could be …
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What to Watch: Week of January 25
County officials should keep eyes on three items this week. First, The Senate Local Government and Taxation Committee will likely meet on either Wednesday (27th) or Thursday (28th) to hear Senate Bill 1021. Senate Bill 1021 proposes an annual cap on local government property tax increases of 3% for those entities that have new construction …
From the Executive Director: Week of January 25
Property tax reform is on deck in the Idaho Senate. Last week, the Senate Local Government and Taxation Committee introduced legislation to impose additional limitations on annual property tax budget increases. Simply put, Senate Bill 1021 proposes capping annual property tax budget increases in counties with less than 2% new construction growth at 3%. For …
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From the Executive Director: Week of January 18, 2021
In the coming days (and the weeks that follow) the Legislature is set to introduce a series of property tax reform bills with the aim of further restricting local government property tax budget increases. When the dust settles, a bill will be introduced to cap annual property tax budget increases at around 4% (inclusive of …
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