Idaho House passes bill to give tax deduction to employers

BOISE — Employers would receive a tax deduction for contributions to education accounts for their employees or employees’ families, under legislation approved by the Idaho House on Monday.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Paul Amador, R-Coeur d’Alene, passed 57-12, on a near party-line vote.

Idaho already has a tax-deductible account for individuals, so they can set aside money for educational expenses for themselves or their family.

Amador’s bill would extend eligibility for the program to private companies. Employers could receive a tax credit equal to 20 percent of their annual contribution, up to a maximum of $500 per employee, per year.

The estimated cost of the legislation, at least initially, is $100,000.

Rep. Lauren Necochea, D-Boise, objected to the legislation, saying it takes money out of the state general fund — which benefits all Idahoans — and lets employers redirect it to the benefit of their employees.

People who work for nonprofit companies, schools and state agencies also wouldn’t benefit from it, she noted.

The bill now heads to the Senate for further action.

Other bills that were addressed Monday include:

A plan to review higher education funding in Idaho passed the House on a 43-25 vote.

The resolution, which is sponsored by Rep. Paul Amador, R-Coeur d’Alene, and Sen. Abby Lee, R-Fruitland, proposes that an interim committee be established to examine the funding issue and provide recommendations.

Amador noted that public higher education institutions in Idaho currently receive state funding for occupancy costs — money that covers operating costs on new facilities — and for the Enrollment Workload Adjustment, which is based on factors such as enrollment levels and the number and type of degrees and credits they issue each year.

“Over time, we’ve seen years where those two components are fully funded, where they’re partially funded or where they aren’t funded at all,” Amador said.

An interim committee would be a step toward developing a more predictable funding mechanism, he said. The Legislature is also interested in rewarding institutions for certain outcomes, such as improved retention rates or reducing the time needed to complete a degree.

“This (interim committee) is a great opportunity for this body to take a leadership role in advancing higher education funding,” Amador said.

Rep. Bill Goesling, R-Moscow, opposed the resolution, as did Reps. Priscilla Giddings, R-White Bird, and Paul Shepherd, R-Riggins.

Goesling noted that the governor already convened a working group to look at this same issue. The eight college, university and community college presidents are also working together to address the issue of higher education affordability. He thought they could come up with better recommendations than an interim committee that only meets a few times over the summer and fall.

The bill now goes to the Senate for further action.

Free speech concerns prompted some modest opposition to legislation that restricts homeowner associations from banning political signs or certain flags.

The bill, sponsored by Rep. Caroline Troy, R-Genesee, passed the House on a 63-7 vote and now goes to the Senate for further action.

The legislation prohibits the associations from enforcing covenants that ban displays of political signs, although it does allow them to adopt reasonable rules regarding the timing, number and placement of such signs.

The bill also provides that homeowners have a right to display the U.S. flag, Idaho flag, MIA flag and flag of any branch of the U.S. armed services.

House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel, D-Boise, was sympathetic to the aims of the legislation, but felt it placed inappropriate boundaries on free speech.

“I don’t think it’s OK for the government to say what kind of speech is OK,” Rubel said. “It’s not OK to say you can show flags, but only these kinds. Once the government allows flags to be displayed, it has to allow pirate flags or whatever someone wants.”

House lawmakers gave near-unanimous support to a disabled veteran property tax exemption sponsored by Rep. Priscilla Giddings, R-White Bird.

Giddings sponsored legislation in 2018 that created a special, $1,320 property tax exemption for veterans with a 100 percent service-related disability.

This year’s bill extends that exemption to veterans who may have something less than a 100 percent disability rating, but who are paid at 100 percent because they’re unemployable.

“We think this will add another 1,000 veterans who would be eligible for some property tax relief,” Giddings said.

The bill passed 69-1 and moved on to the Senate. The only lawmaker to oppose the legislation was Rep. Chad Christensen, R-Ammon.

Spence may be contacted at bspence@lmtribune.com or (208) 791-9168.