Idaho’s $200 million tax cut plan designed to offset the Republican tax overhaul that President Donald Trump signed into law in December is headed to the floor of the Idaho House.
The plan, passed Monday by the House Revenue and Taxation Committee, would reduce personal income and corporate tax rates, and create a $130 Idaho child tax credit.
Lawmakers are feeling pressure to pass some sort of sweeping tax relief plan this year because currently taxpayers are estimated to pay roughly $100 million more in taxes due to the federal tax plan’s changes.
The Idaho plan was approved in committee with only Boise Democratic Representatives Mat Erpelding and John Gannon voting against. Erpelding, the House Minority Leader, has called for investing in education and infrastructure, rather than the tax cut proposal. Erpelding used Kansas as a cautionary tale.
Kansas dramatically cut income taxes in 2012, in what Governor Sam Brownback promoted as a “shot of adrenaline” to the state’s economy, but instead, revenues shrank, the state’s bond rating plummeted, and Kansas was forced to cut funding for education and infrastructure.
Last year, the Republican-controlled Kansas Legislature voted to roll back the tax cuts, but the state still faces a huge budget gap over the next two years. (AP, Spokesman-Review)
