From the Executive Director: Week of January 10

All Eyes on Budget Surplus As the 2022 Legislative Session officially begins, the Legislature is poised to tackle legislation ranging from vaccines mandates to election security to housing, but the real question on everyone’s mind is what the Legislature will do with the state’s historical budget surplus which now exceeds $1.6 billion. Look for policy …

Summary of Gov. Little’s State of the State Address and How It May Impact Counties

Governor Brad Little proposes big investments in transportation and education alongside tax cuts. The proposed budget would pay off state building debt and bolster rainy-day funds by adding more than $1 billion to the bank. It would also aim to spend $1.1 billion over the next five years on Idaho education. The Governor also proposed …

2022 IAC Legislative Priorities

Property tax continues to be a hot button issue across the state. The IAC Legislative Committee recognizes there are only two ways to provide property tax relief to homeowners: First, expand property tax exemptions for homeowners which results in a property tax shift to businesses and farms. Second, provide other non-property tax revenue sources in …

County Property Tax Budgets

IAC has been reviewing property tax budget data for the 2021 tax year from information recently released by the Idaho State Tax Commission. The data reveals that local taxing districts levied just over $2.1 billion in property taxes for tax year 2021 (county fiscal year 2022). From this amount, counties budgeted just over $560 million, …

County Officials Invited to Attend Property Tax Summit on January 7

We know that property tax relief is poised to be one of the biggest issues before the legislature in 2022. We also know most Idahoans, including many legislators, do not understand the nuances of how the property tax system works. To that end, the Idaho Association of County Assessors, in partnership with IAC and the …

IAC Members Set Legislative Policy Priorities

At the IAC Annual Conference, the IAC membership debated important policy matters related to county governance. This year, the membership considered eight member-initiated legislative proposals. IAC steering committees advanced seven of the eight resolutions to the full membership for consideration. After robust debate, the membership adopted the seven legislative resolutions. The adopted resolutions are: IGA-01: …

The Property Taxes & Revenue Expenditures Study Committee Holds First Interim Meeting

The Property Taxes and Revenue Expenditures Study Committee held its first interim meeting on Friday, August 27, in Boise. Information about the interim committee including committee members, agenda topics and materials (coming soon) can be found here. The interim committee listened to an update from the State Controller’s Office regarding the implementation of House Bill …

Redrawing of Idaho’s Legislative Districts Set to Begin

Idaho’s Citizen Commission for Reapportionment has been officially organized by Secretary of State Lawerence Denney. The Commission is an independent, bipartisan committee formed every 10 years to redraw Idaho’s congressional and legislative district boundaries. The Committee is composed of three democrats and three republicans with the sign off of at least four commissioners necessary for …

Legislative Council Establishes Summer Interim Committees

The Legislative Council met on Tuesday, July 13th to formalize interim committees. Due to the extended legislative session, interim committees will begin meeting later than in previous years. In total, the Legislative Council authorized seven interim committees and two study committees. IAC will monitor four of the committees: – Committee on Federalism – Committee on …

Redistricting Commission Appointments Complete

Every 10 years, Idaho legislative districts are required to readjust based on the latest census by a redistricting commission made up of three Republicans and three Democrats. The committee members are chosen by the Senate Pro Tem, Speaker of the House, Idaho Republican Party Chair, Senate Minority Leader, House Minority Leader and the Idaho Democrat …