This bill allocates funding and authorizes new positions for Idaho's Office of Information Technology Services for fiscal years 2026 and 2027. It provides approximately $10.7 million in total funding across personnel, operating, and capital costs from the General Fund, Administration and Accounting Services Fund, and Federal Grant Fund. The legislation also increases the office's authorized workforce by 59.5 full-time equivalent positions for 2027 and an additional 0.5 position for 2026 to support the E-CORE Federal Grant program.
H 642 adjusts Idaho's public safety officer retirement benefits to ensure consistency between catastrophic injury and death benefits. It increases the lump-sum death benefit for surviving spouses or dependent children to $500,000 (matching the existing catastrophic injury benefit) and adds an annual pension of $75,000 for surviving spouses. The bill specifically affects surviving spouses and dependent children of police officers and firefighters who die in the line of duty due to catastrophic injuries. Benefits will be funded solely through public safety officers' pension contributions, with no tax on the payments. The legislation repeals outdated death benefit provisions and defines "catastrophic injury" through specific medical criteria.
This bill revises Idaho's sales tax rebate program for developers of retail complexes. It allows developers to receive a 60% rebate on sales taxes collected by qualified retailers within their complex, provided the developer spent at least $4 million on approved transportation improvements (like highway projects costing over $5 million). The rebate is paid from a new "demonstration pilot project fund" and capped at $35 million per transportation project. This directly affects developers building retail complexes who make qualifying transportation investments, not the retailers or general consumers.
Idaho's H 645, the Portable Benefit Plan Act, creates a system for independent contractors to access portable benefits through accounts funded by hiring parties. It allows companies to contribute to these accounts (without reclassifying workers as employees) and specifies that contributions are fully deductible as a business expense for hiring parties and excluded from taxable income for contractors. The bill establishes clear definitions, administration rules for benefit accounts, and tax treatment, effective July 1, 2026. It directly affects independent contractors (who gain access to benefits like health, retirement, and disability insurance) and hiring parties (who can voluntarily fund these accounts). The law does not change worker classification status but provides tax advantages for both parties.
This bill modifies Idaho's budget limit rules for taxing districts, allowing them to request property tax revenue increases under specific conditions. It primarily affects local governments such as cities, fire protection districts, and other taxing entities by adjusting how much they can raise in property taxes for their annual budgets. The key changes include allowing a maximum budget increase of 8% for most districts, with a 15% limit for smaller cities under 30,000 people, and creating a mechanism for districts to recover previously unused budget increases in future years. The bill also clarifies calculations for new construction and annexed property, while excluding school district levies from these limits.
This bill appropriates state funds to Idaho's Public Safety agencies, including the Department of Correction, Department of Juvenile Corrections, and Idaho State Police, for fiscal year 2027. It allocates specific amounts for personnel costs, operating expenses, capital outlay, and benefit payments across various correctional facilities and programs. The legislation also limits the number of authorized full-time equivalent positions and exempts the appropriation from certain program transfer restrictions. Additionally, it requires accountability reports and establishes conditions, limitations, and restrictions on how the funds can be used.
This bill revises how Idaho distributes transportation funding from the Highway Distribution Account. It gradually increases the share going to local governments (from 38% to 40% by 2025) while increasing the state highway account share (from 57% to 60%), and eliminates the law enforcement account's allocation. Crucially, it removes a restriction preventing fuel tax revenues (including fees from electric/hybrid vehicles) from being used for highway funding. These changes adjust existing fund distribution formulas without creating new taxes or programs.
H 733 revises Idaho's tax code for partnerships and S corporations (now called "affected business entities") by requiring these entities to pay tax on behalf of non-resident members instead of individual members filing returns. The bill adds new rules for calculating tax based on Idaho-sourced income, sets deadlines for annual elections to qualify as an affected business entity, and creates a new section (63-3070) to handle partnership income and federal adjustments. Non-resident members of such entities will not need to file individual tax returns if the entity pays the tax and reports it. The bill also updates technical provisions for tax notices, deadlines, and credit adjustments. These changes streamline tax collection for businesses with non-resident owners while maintaining Idaho's corporate tax rate for entity-level payments.
This bill establishes the Public School Digital Content and Curriculum Fund in Idaho's state treasury, administered by the Idaho Department of Education. It provides state funding for public school districts (including specialized programs like the Idaho Bureau of Educational Services for the Deaf and Blind) to purchase digital content, curriculum, and academic text support systems that directly improve student achievement in areas like reading, math, career readiness, and college preparation. School districts must demonstrate how requested funds (capped at $50,000 per request) will help meet measurable student performance targets outlined in their continuous improvement plans, with funding distributed first-come, first-served based on needs-based criteria. The bill also specifies that funds are continuously appropriated and interest earned must be returned to the fund.
Idaho's H 731 allows the state to join the federal tax credit scholarship program, enabling Idaho families to use state tax credits for private school scholarships. The bill requires the Idaho Department of Education to annually publish a list of qualified scholarship groups, certify the state's authority to participate, and accept submissions from those groups year-round. It ensures Idaho meets federal requirements to participate starting in tax year 2027, with the law taking effect July 1, 2026. The bill directly affects Idaho's education department and scholarship organizations operating within the state.
