It looks like the final passage of our .09% rural sales tax credit extension bill, a major WSAC priority, will come down to the wire. HB 1267 has passed out of the House unanimously, out of the Senate policy committee unanimously, and finally passed out of the Senate Committee on Ways and Means on April 4. We have had good discussions with senators as to concerns they had with the bill—more accurately, concerns they have with the whole program going back years, focused on the use of funds and reporting. We worked with them and the state auditor to come up with consistent and clear reporting standards that make it easy for both local and state officials to track and report projects, and these standards were incorporated into an agreed amendment. The bill has been deemed necessary to implement the budget (NTIB) and is therefore not subject to the final cutoff earlier this week (April 12), by which date most bills needed to pass out. Key senators have pledged to run the bill after the budget is wrapped up, which is expected in about the middle of this last week, so look for this bill in the final days of Session!
Policy Contact:
Mike Hoover
WSAC, Policy Consultant
