Latest news with #IdahoCenterforFiscalPolicy
Yahoo
08-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Idaho Child Tax Credit set to expire this year
The Idaho State Capitol building in Boise on Jan. 23, 2024. (Otto Kitsinger for Idaho Capital Sun) In the moments before the 2025 Idaho legislative session came to a close Friday, Republican legislative leaders called a press conference where they heralded the combined passage of more than $400 million worth of tax cuts this year. The cuts reduce the income tax rates Idahoans and businesses pay, shift money to a state fund used to to reduce property taxes, shift money to another state fund to pay down public school bond issues and levies that are paid for by property taxes and increase the grocery tax credit that is used to offset $155 worth of sales tax Idahoans pay on food. House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, said the overall downward trend is good for the state. But at the end of this year a different tax credit that has benefited Idaho families for seven years is set to expire with much less fanfare than the new cuts. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Before Jan. 1, the Idaho Child Tax Credit will expire. Passed by the 2018 Idaho Legislature – and co-sponsored by Moyle – the Idaho Child Tax Credit provides a $205 nonrefundable tax credit for each taxpayer's child under age 17. The Idaho Child Tax Credit law was written so that it would be in effect from Jan. 1, 2018 to before Jan. 1, 2026, and the Idaho Legislature did not extend it before adjourning the 2025 legislative session for the year. Although the new 2025 tax cuts are making headlines this week, analysts with the nonpartisan Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy said many Idaho families who don't own property won't experience overall tax relief this year because of the expiration of the Idaho Child Tax Credit. Dominated by a series of tax cuts, Idaho Legislature adjourns 2025 legislative session When taken into consideration with House Bill 40 and House Bill 231, Idaho families earning between $31,100 and $146,000 annually won't see any tax benefit, the Idaho Center For Fiscal Policy said in a report on its website. Idaho families making between $55,600 and $91,800 should expect to see an overall tax increase of about $100, the center wrote. 'Idaho lawmakers have made significant cuts to the state's income tax to provide tax relief to Idahoans this year, but with the expiration of our state Child Tax Credit, most families won't experience any tax relief,' May Roberts, a policy analyst at the Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy, wrote in a statement. Roberts said Idaho legislators could have taken action to ensure low and middle class families aren't left behind by renewing the Idaho Child Tax Credit, incorporating an income cap, and making the credit refundable. For Idaho homeowners and property owners, House Bill 304 provides an additional $100 million in state revenue meant to reduce property taxes and pay down school bonds and levies, which was not included in the Idaho Center For Fiscal Policy reports. The 2018 Idaho Legislature created the Idaho Child Tax Credit through the income tax conformity bill House Bill 463, and then came back and expanded the amount of the credit to $205 per child through House Bill 675 that same year. CONTACT US The Idaho House of Representatives voted unanimously to pass House Bill 675, which included legislative intent language spelling out the Idaho Legislature's priorities. The language says that it is the Idaho Legislature's intent to take an anticipated increase in sales tax revenues collections stemming from a new law collecting Idaho sales tax from out-of-state retailers, and apply toward income tax relief for Idaho families. But, now seven years later, the Idaho Legislature's intent appears to have changed. During a press conference Friday, Moyle told the Sun legislators that the expiration of the Idaho Child Tax Credit was brought up this year, but legislators chose to focus on cutting taxes in other areas. 'I think we were more focused on tax relief for everybody with the income (tax) that covered everybody, the property (tax) that covered everybody and the schools and the sales tax,' Moyle said. 'So we were more focused on those areas that touched everybody.' House Majority Leader Jason Monks, R-Meridian, agreed with Moyle. 'We knew about it, it was coming up, but we had other priorities,' Monks said. 'As the speaker mentioned, we were going to address those big issues that we've been hearing from our constituents and from the people of Idaho to address. They want property tax relief and they want tax relief, and that's what we provided for them.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
05-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Idaho Senate passes bill to cut income taxes, reduce state revenue by $253 million
State senators listen to legislative proceedings from the Idaho Senate floor on Jan. 7, 2025. (Pat Sutphin for the Idaho Capital Sun) The Idaho Senate, in a 27-8 vote, passed a bill on Tuesday to cut Idaho's income tax rate, reducing state revenue by $253 million. House Bill 40, sponsored by Sen. Doug Ricks, R-Rexburg, would do three things to cut taxes in Idaho, including: Reduce income tax for individuals and corporations from 5.695% to 5.3%, costing $240 million annually; Expand the income tax exemption to military pensions, at a cost of $12 million; Eliminate capital gains tax for gold bullion sales, at a cost of $1 million. House Bill 40 is one of three bills introduced this legislative session to cut taxes, the Idaho Capital Sun previously reported. Other bills aimed to cut taxes include House Bill 61, which would increase the sales tax credit on groceries for Idaho taxpayers from $120 a year to $155, and House Bill 74 which would offer $100 million of property tax relief to Idahoans. If all three bills are passed into law, it would offer up to $403 million in reductions to state revenues, more than the $100 million in tax reductions Idaho Gov. Brad Little called for in his State of the State address at the start of the legislative session. Ricks said the bill would help Idaho families pay less in taxes, keep their money and ultimately stimulate the economy. But opponents criticized it as irresponsible under times of economic uncertainty nationwide. The Idaho Senate voted largely along party lines to advance the bill. Sen. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, was the first to speak against the bill. She said the bill is 'irresponsible,' and would betray working families in a time of economic uncertainty. 'Here we go, chopping off this revenue (when) we couldn't even pay our employees,' Wintrow said, recalling that it took weeks for legislators to agree on a pay raise rate for state employees. 'We thought about it for weeks and then we gave them a buck to a buck 55. When they see that, how are they going to feel?' Wintrow cited a study from the nonpartisan Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy, which said an Idaho family earning between $55,000 and $91,000 would expect to see a tax break of about $127 under House Bill 40. Idaho Gov. Brad Little concerned about magnitude of tax cuts that reduce state revenue 'I don't know last time you went to the grocery, but I could barely get out with $127,' Wintrow said. Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon, was one of two Republicans to vote against the bill — the other being Sen. Jim Woodward, R-Sagle. While Guthrie said he supports tax cuts, House Bill 40 does not meet his requirements for balance and fairness. 'We are in some unique times that carry with them some incredible unknown. We must think beyond today,' Guthrie told the floor, noting the federal government has aggressively cut federal employees, federal programs and implemented significant tariffs on countries including Mexico, Canada and China. 'I'm not here to say that the actions at the federal level are a good or bad thing, and what kind of effect it'll have on our economy,' Guthrie said. 'Who knows? But the point is, we are in uncertain times.' In response to concerns about an economic recession, legislators supporting the bill said letting Idahoans keep money would boost the economy. 'If there are hard economic times for the people of Idaho, the best thing this body can do is cut as many taxes and fees as possible,' freshman Sen. Joshua Kohl, R-Twin Falls, said. House Bill 40 already passed the Idaho House of Representatives in a 63-7 vote. It now heads to Gov. Brad Little's desk, who can sign it into law, allow it to pass without his signature or veto it. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
13-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Revised grocery tax credit bill advances in Idaho Legislature
Shoppers make their way through a store aisle at a Walmart. (Marty Schladen/Ohio Capital Journal) The Idaho House Revenue and Taxation Committee on Thursday recommended advancing a slightly revised version of a bill to increase the tax credit Idaho taxpayers receive for buying groceries. The new bill, House Bill 231, is a slightly modified version of House Bill 61, the original grocery tax credit bill that legislators introduced on Jan. 27. Both bills increase the annual tax credit that Idahoans receive each year from $120 to $155. The only difference is the new version inserts the word 'retail' before the word 'seller' on three different occasions. House Majority Leader Jason Monks, R-Meridian, sponsored both bills. On Thursday, the House Revenue and Taxation Committee voted to hold the original bill, House Bill 61. Committee members then voted to introduce the new bill, House Bill 231, and recommended sending it straight to the second reading calendar on the floor of the Idaho House of Representatives. Monks said the point of the bill is to provide an across-the-board increase in the tax credit for groceries to combat inflation. Idaho does charge sales tax on groceries, but all Idaho taxpayers and their dependents receive a tax credit intended to offset that tax. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX Monks and other Republican legislative leaders said they prefer offering the tax credit to Idahoans rather than repealing the sales tax on food outright because it allows the state to still collect revenue from the sales tax that tourists and other out-of-state visitors pay. Currently, seniors 65 and older receive a grocery tax credit of $140 a year, while the rest of the population receives $120 a year. If the new bill is passed into law, everyone would receive the same $155 credit. CONTACT US 'We've seen a lot of increases in inflation over the last several years,' Monks said. 'Food has gotten much more expensive. The price of eggs, chicken eggs, has gotten much more expensive.' 'It's frustrating, and our constituents are demanding that they see some kind of relief,' Monks added. The nonpartisan Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy wrote that increasing the grocery tax credit to $155 per year would help working class families as grocery prices increase. For families making less than $31,100 per year – the lowest 20% of income groups in Idaho – the tax cut for increasing the grocery tax credit to $155 per year would correspond to about .22% of their annual income, according to the Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy. Like the original bill, House Bill 231 also includes a provision that allows Idahoans to save and scan all of their grocery receipts and claim an itemized credit of up to $250 per year if they pay more than $155 per year in sales tax for groceries, Monks said. On the other hand, Idahoans would not have to take any additional steps to claim the $155 credit under House Bill 231 – it would be applied automatically as a refundable credit, which means Idahoans can receive the benefit even if they don't owe any state income taxes. During Thursday's hearing, Rep. John Gannon, D-Boise, made an unsuccessful effort to increase the amount of the grocery tax credit to $225 per year, but Monks called the change 'hostile' and Gannon's effort failed. The new, preferred grocery tax credit bill, House Bill 231, likely heads next to the full Idaho House of Representatives for consideration. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
Yahoo
30-01-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Income tax reduction bill heads to floor of Idaho House of Representatives
A mirror reflects Idaho House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, as he answers a reporter's question during a press conference on Jan. 6, 2025, at the Statehouse in Boise. (Pat Sutphin for the Idaho Capital Sun) A bill seeking to reduce Idaho's individual and corporate income tax rates from 5.695% to 5.3% is advancing to the floor of the Idaho House of Representatives. On Thursday, the Idaho Legislature's House Revenue and Taxation Committee voted to advance House Bill 40, which is sponsored by House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star. House Bill 40 is part of Moyles' effort to reduce taxes by more than $400 million this year through a combination of three different bills. 'All of you that know, know, that every year I bring a tax relief bill,' Moyle said Thursday at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise. 'Those of you that know me know that the only reason I ran for the Legislature is to cut taxes. This is probably the largest income tax relief we've ever provided or offered to the citizens of Idaho.' Rep. Steve Berch, D-Boise, opposed the bill after saying he is not sure if the state can afford to reduce revenue by more than $400 million through tax cuts and still pay for everything in the state budget and keep up with deferred maintenance at public schools. 'We don't have a revenue number and a budget yet to determine if we can, in fact, afford this bill,' Berch said. 'The future of the over $6 billion that we get from the federal government in the face of the Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE, and other executive orders – we don't know how that's going to impact the state of Idaho. That can have a huge impact.' Under House Bill 40, an Idaho family earning between $55,000 and $91,000 would expect to see a tax break of about $127, according to the nonpartisan Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy. Meanwhile, the top 1% of Idaho earners making $738,300 and above would receive a tax cut of about $5,358, according to the Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy. In addition to reducing the individual and corporate income tax rates, House Bill 40 makes two other changes. It expands the income tax exemption for military pensions. It eliminates the capital gains tax on the sale of gold bullion. Moyle said eliminating capital gains tax on gold bullion sales was deliberate. 'We're doing that because, quite frankly, we all know that nobody's paying taxes on it anyways,' Moyle said during Thursday's hearing. 'We can't track it. And we're also doing it because Idaho is a great state which is rich in resources, and we want to encourage more of that kind of activity, or commercial activity on those things here.' Idaho campaign finance records show that the North Carolina-based Sound Money Defense League spent $44,786 supporting Moyle's 2024 re-election effort. Campaign finance records show the Sound Money Defense League, which according to its website, aims to 'restore gold and silver to its historic role as America's constitutional money,' contributed the most money supporting Moyle. On its website, the Sound Money Defense League has a page highlighting Idaho gold and silver tax laws and says it 'is working closely with legislators and in-state allies to provide avenues of escape from the Federal Reserve's damaging inflationary monetary policy.' CONTACT US Campaign finance records do not list any other contributions from the Sound Money Defense League supporting Idaho political candidates other than Moyle. House Bill 40 is the first of three tax cut bills introduced in recent days in the Idaho House of Representatives. House Bill 74 is designed to reduce property taxes by providing a one-time transfer of $50 million to the state's homeowners property tax relief fund and another $50 million every year to help pay for local school construction and renovation projects that would otherwise be funded with property taxes. House Bill 61 would increase the tax credit for groceries from $120 a year to $155 a year for Idaho taxpayers House Bill 40, the income tax bill, heads next to the floor of the Idaho House of Representatives with the House Revenue and Taxation Committee's recommendation to pass it. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
