{"id":16559,"date":"2013-04-04T15:20:33","date_gmt":"2013-04-04T21:20:33","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/idaho\/?p=16559"},"modified":"2013-04-04T15:31:43","modified_gmt":"2013-04-04T21:31:43","slug":"idaho-legislature-approves-20-7-million-in-tax-cuts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/stateimpact.npr.org\/idaho\/2013\/04\/04\/idaho-legislature-approves-20-7-million-in-tax-cuts\/","title":{"rendered":"Idaho Legislature Approves $20.7 Million In Tax Cuts"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Emilie Ritter Saunders \/ StateImpact<\/p>

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The Idaho Legislature will go home today having approved nearly $20.7 million in tax cuts. That’s a fraction, less than one percent, of the state’s general fund budget<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Far and away the largest share of that cut is the $20 million approved to offset the effect of partially repealing Idaho’s business personal property tax<\/a>. The repeal means about 90 percent of Idaho companies won’t pay personal property tax on their business equipment and machinery.<\/p>\n

Lawmakers also approved three other measures that will mean $698,900 less in the state’s main bank account. Two of those pieces of legislation, House Bill 2<\/a> and House Bill 139<\/a>, make changes to the state’s tax code. The other exempts food and beverage samples<\/a> from the sales tax. <\/p>\n

The Legislature also approved a tax exemption for land developers<\/a> who make site improvements, and an exemption on tribal reservation lands<\/a>. A legislative analyst says both of those affect property taxes<\/del>, which are assessed at the county level, and don’t have a direct general fund impact. Another approved tax change will exempt wells drilled for oil and gas production<\/a> in Idaho. Again, there is no projected general fund impact, because this bill affects severance taxes.<\/p>\n

A measure important to Idaho’s growing tech industry clarifies the status of cloud computing<\/a>, that is, delivering service over the internet instead of offering software for purchase on a store shelf. According to Legislative Services, the state Tax Commission hasn’t been collecting sales tax on cloud computing services, so there is no negative budget impact.<\/p>\n

As for the tax exemptions or credits that didn’t pass this year, most of the proposals were approved by the House, but didn’t make it through the Senate.<\/p>\n