The House Revenue and Taxation Committee introduced two new measures Tuesday morning that would respectively increase taxes and reduce taxes for select groups.
First, out of state paddleboarders are on notice. The new bill, if passed, would require non-residents buying paddleboards to pay a sales tax. Currently, that very specific group is off the hook (bad pun intended) because Idaho doesn't require sales tax from non-residents on water vessels.
Since this is the tax code, it's a bit more complicated than that. See, the term "vessel" only applies to a floatation device with a motor on it or if it's longer than eleven feet. But that eleven feet rule doesn't count if your vessel is a canoe, kayak, inflatable boat or - potentially - a paddleboard. This is why I have an accountant.
If passed, this new tax would net the state an estimated $25,000.
On to the next bill. It's good news for my bosses! Hand tools costing less than $100 would be exempt from a sales tax if used for the purposes of radio or TV broadcast, certain free papers, and logging.
This is an extension of an exemption created last year for hand tools. Apparently, us TV people were left out of the language. Still, if passed it means a tax cut worth $100,000.
