Greetings from Boise

By Rep. Mark Sauter, R-Sandpoint Reader Contributor

We are being told the 2023 legislative session is beginning to end. However, I’m not yet convinced we will be done on Friday, March 24. Our voting time on the floor of the House has more than doubled in the past two weeks.

The property tax relief bill is almost through the approval process. It should provide relief for many. The drafters of House Bill 292 took pieces of several tax bills and the insight of many, then turned it into a significant piece of legislation. The bill returns up to $355 million to property owners in 2023.

The actual legislation takes 4.5% of the revenues from state sales tax and divides it among homeowners. It also divides approximately $100 million of revenues (from various sources) and distributes it among school districts to reduce bonds. Finally, it takes the state funds not used for the state budgeting process