The Idaho House has voted to prevent taxing districts from rerunning failed bond measures for at least 11 months. The House on Thursday voted 48-21 to send to the Senate a measure sponsor Republican Representative Heather Scott and other supporters say is needed because taxing districts should only get one shot a year at asking voters to approve bonds. Opponents of the House bill – including some Republicans – say taxing districts typically communicate with voters to find out why a bond failed and make changes before trying again. Taxing districts can currently bring failed bonds back for a vote within months and up to four times a year. In Idaho, bonds for new schools, jails, and other large projects must be approved by a two-thirds super-majority of voters. However, bonds must be paid back with interest, and that money typically comes by increasing property taxes – an issue in the crosshairs of the 2020 Legislature. Lawmakers in 2006 eliminated using property taxes to fund public schools while raising the sales tax from 5 percent to 6 percent to make up for the lost money. However, school districts, in general, say they’ve never seen that bump in sales tax cover the fundings. As a result, a majority of school districts have turned to voters to ask them to approve bonds or levies, which has proved difficult with the needed two-thirds majority to pass. Many residents have been complaining about increased property taxes because of soaring property values as the state grows, with some saying they can’t afford to remain in their homes. (AP)
