Legislative Notebook: Major income, property tax cuts proposed by Idaho House Speaker Mike Moyle 

From left to right behind the lectern, House Majority Caucus Chairman Jaron Crane, R-Nampa; House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star; House Majority Leader Jason Monks, R-Meridian; and House Assistant Majority Leader Josh Tanner, R-Eagle, host a press conference on Jan. 6, 2025, at the Statehouse in Boise. (Pat Sutphin for the Idaho Capital Sun)

In an effort to help Idahoans follow major bills, resolutions and memorials through the legislative process, the Idaho Capital Sun will produce a “legislative notebook” at the end of each week to gather information in one place that concerns major happenings in the Legislature and other news relating to state government. To receive the full extent of our reporting in your inbox each day, sign up for our free email newsletter The Sunrise on our website at idahocapitalsun.com/subscribe/.

Here is our quick rundown of the major happenings during the fourth week of the Idaho Legislature’s 2025 session.

In Idaho Gov. Brad Little’s State of the State address, delivered before state lawmakers on Jan. 6, he called for continued tax relief for Idahoans to the tune of $100 million through his “Keeping Promises” plan.

But Idaho House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, has been adamant in the weeks since that the Legislature could and should do more – much more. 

He’s introduced a combination of bills in the last few days that would collectively reduce taxes by more than $400 million this year.

His bill seeking to reduce Idaho’s individual and corporate income tax rates from 5.695% to 5.3% is advancing to the floor of the Idaho House of Representatives after a vote in the House Revenue and Taxation Committee on Thursday.

House Bill 74, another bill introduced by Moyle this week, is designed to reduce property taxes by providing a one-time transfer of $50 million to the state’s homeowners property tax relief fund and another $50 million every year to help pay for local school construction and renovation projects that would otherwise be funded with property taxes.

“You are going to hear people say we can’t afford tax relief, that we should instead invest the money in this or that program,” Moyle wrote on the social media platform X on Thursday. “I disagree. There’s no better place for taxpayer dollars than in the hands of taxpayers.”

He’s right that other legislators have already questioned how sustainable these tax cuts would be if the state’s economy experienced a downturn. 

Rep. Steve Berch, D-Boise, opposed the income tax bill in committee after saying he is not sure if the state can afford to reduce revenue by more than $400 million through tax cuts and still pay for everything in the state budget and keep up with deferred maintenance at public schools.

“We don’t have a revenue number and a budget yet to determine if we can, in fact, afford this bill,” Berch said. “The future of the over $6 billion that we get from the federal government in the face of the Department of Government Efficiency, DOGE, and other executive orders – we don’t know how that’s going to impact the state of Idaho. That can have a huge impact.”

Democrats also took issue with the bill in a Thursday press release because they say it will favor Idahoans who are already wealthy while “leaving working families behind.”

“Idahoans need fair tax policies that build a thriving middle class, not another upside-down scheme that benefits those who need it the least,” said Idaho Democratic Party Chair Lauren Necochea in the release.

Under House Bill 40, an Idaho family earning between $55,000 and $91,000 would expect to see a tax break of about $127, according to the nonpartisan Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy. Meanwhile, the top 1% of Idaho earners making $738,300 and above would receive a tax cut of about $5,358, according to the center.

But Moyle, who is serving his 14th term in the Legislature, says he has no intention of slowing down.

“Those of you that know me know that the only reason I ran for the Legislature is to cut taxes,” Moyle said on Thursday. “This is probably the largest income tax relief we’ve ever provided or offered to the citizens of Idaho.”

• House Joint Memorial 1: The Idaho House passed on Monday in a 46-24 vote the memorial that calls on the U.S. Supreme Court to reverse its 2015 ruling that extended the fundamental right of marriage to same-sex couples. The memorial may be taken up by the Idaho Senate in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 85: Introduced by Rep. Bruce Skaug, R-Nampa, on Wednesday, the bill would let the Idaho governor veto laws passed directly by voters through the state’s ballot initiative process. The bill may be taken up by the House State Affairs Committee in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 40: Sponsored by Idaho House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, the bill would reduce Idaho’s individual and corporate income tax rates from 5.695% to 5.3%. The House Revenue and Taxation Committee voted to send the bill to the full House with recommendation that it pass. It is on the House’s third reading calendar and may be considered in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 74: Introduced by Moyle, on Tuesday, the bill would send $50 million a year annually to the state’s school district facilities fund to help local schools pay for a portion of new buildings and school renovations that would normally be paid for by property taxes. The bill also takes another $50 million in one-time funding and transfers it to the state’s homeowners property tax relief fund to reduce property taxes for homeowners. The bill may be taken up by the House Revenue and Taxation Committee in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 94: Introduced by Idaho House Majority Caucus Chair Jaron Crane, R-Nampa, on Thursday, the bill would block voter registration processing for people whose citizenship status isn’t confirmed. It directs the secretary of state to verify citizenship statuses of everyone on Idaho’s statewide voter registration list. The bill may be taken up by the House State Affairs Committee in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 32: The Idaho House passed on Wednesday in a 52-16 vote the bill that prevents the state, public schools, institutions of higher education, government officials, local units of government and health districts from mandating the use of masks to slow the spread of an infectious disease. The bill may be taken up by the Idaho Senate in the coming days of the session.
• House Bill 41: The Idaho House passed on Tuesday in a 59-11 vote the bill would ban flags or banners in Idaho public school classrooms that “represent a political viewpoint, including but not limited to flags or banners regarding a political party, race, sexual orientation, gender, or a political ideology.” The bill may be taken up by the Idaho Senate in the coming days of the session.
• House Joint Resolution 1: Introduced by Rep. Dale Hawkins, R-Fernwood, on Thursday, the resolution would amend the Idaho Constitution to include protections for private and homeschooling parents “to educate their children without government regulation.” The resolution may be taken up by the House State Affairs Committee in the coming days of the session. 
• House Bill 98: Introduced by Rep. Judy Boyle, R-Midvale, on Thursday, the bill prohibits public officials from allowing school district funds, personnel, and other resources to support teachers’ unions. The bill may be taken up by the House State Affairs Committee in the coming days of the session.

Senate Resources and Environment Committee

Senate Bill 1003, a bill that would make a person with outstanding fines for violations ineligible for any hunting, fishing, or trapping license, tag, or permit, will be before the committee for a full public hearing on Monday. 

Senate Education Committee

Senate Bill 1025, a bill would expand the state’s Empowering Parents program by $20 million to be able to cover costs such as tuition for students at private, public and home schools and includes $30 million in funding to support special education, will be before the committee for a full public hearing on Monday.

House Education Committee

House Bill 79, a bill that would increase the annual tuition cap and limits annual tuition increases at Idaho’s community colleges, will be before the committee for a full public hearing on Monday.

House Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee

House Bill 37, a bill that would make the firing squad the primary way to execute a death row inmate in Idaho, will be before the committee for a full public hearing on Monday. 

“The reason that we have requirements that we publish in newspapers is to make sure that certain notices are brought before the public, so that the public may act on those. … If we are going to turn that over to the state, we are at risk of having that information kept from the public when it doesn’t serve the best interests of the state.” – Rep. Joe Alfieri, R-Coeur d’Alene, on House Bill 33, a bill that stalled in the Idaho House State Affairs Committee that would have let government agencies and residents electronically publish official public notices instead of paying newspapers to publish them

I’m here to cut taxes and chew bubblegum… and I’m all out of bubblegum.

— Mike Moyle (@Mikeemoyle) January 31, 2025

Reporting from Idaho Capital Sun journalists Clark Corbin, Mia Maldonado and Kyle Pfannenstiel contributed to this legislative notebook.