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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

Analysis: Omnibus tax proposal would mean tax hike for lower-income, tax break for top 1%

The Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy has released a new analysis of the omnibus tax proposal that’s been debated in the back rooms of the Legislature this year, to raise the sales tax while eliminating it from groceries and dedicated increased funds to transportation, and while also moving to a flat-rate income tax. The analysis concludes that the bottom 20 percent of Idaho taxpayers would see a $134 tax hike, on average, while the top 1 percent would get a tax cut of nearly $5,000.

“Idaho’s tax structure is already out of balance in that lower-earning families pay about 8.5% of their income in state and local taxes on average, while families at the very top pay only about 6.4%,” the report says. “The proposed tax shift would increase this discrepancy.” You can read the full analysis here.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

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