By Becca Savransky
Idaho Statesman
(TNS)
BOISE, Idaho — Idaho Republicans want to completely eliminate property taxes.
Republican delegates this month approved an updated platform that calls property taxes unjust and proposes getting rid of them and replacing the funding stream with another source.
The platform change came during the GOP state convention, a gathering every two years where delegates adopt a new platform, approve resolutions and vote on party officials.
The 2026 platform emphasizes the importance of having a “predictable, fair, and balanced” tax structure.
“Property tax is an inherently unjust tax that converts privately owned property into government collateral and threatens homeownership,” the platform reads. “We support the elimination of property taxes in Idaho and their replacement with revenue sources that do not place a lien on a citizen’s home.”
The platform calls on the Legislature to devise a plan to replace property tax revenue.
“We believe property tax is incompatible with true private property ownership. A tax that allows the government to place a lien on and ultimately seize a citizen’s home for nonpayment is fundamentally at odds with the right to own property,” the platform said. “No Idahoan should face the loss of their home because they cannot keep up with a government assessment of what their property might sell for.”
The 2024 platform similarly called for a predictable and fair tax structure, but said “the combination of our income, sales, and property taxes will continue to provide a stable, dependable source of income for governmental needs.”
Former state Sen. Scott Herndon, who is running for the Legislature again, said when he read the 2024 platform, he disagreed that property taxes were “fair.” Herndon told the Idaho Statesman that property taxes treat people differently not based on their cash flow or ability to pay, but rather on the value assigned to their property. Some families live in multigenerational homes and have had the same property in their families for decades, but must pay high taxes associated with the increasing values. People who pay those taxes also don’t always use the services they’re funding, he said.
“In essence, it just denies you ever being free and clear of a government claim on your property, so you never truly own your property,” he told the Statesman. “You’re essentially renting it from the government for perpetuity.”
Idaho lawmakers in recent years have made it a priority to lower property taxes. In 2023, lawmakers passed a bill that provided funds for schools to use to pay off bonds and levies in an effort to lower people’s bills. A year later, lawmakers added more money to that program to help alleviate the burden on taxpayers.
“I consider it like water in the pipe,” Herndon said. “You can simply change the water in the pipe by switching the valve over to another tax source.”
But many institutions, including schools, rely on property taxes to keep their doors open and make up for funding the state does not provide. Most school districts across the state have supplemental levies to pay for basic expenses, like salaries and maintenance, beyond what the state funds. Districts also run bonds, which require two-thirds voter approval to pass, to replace aging schools and build new ones to accommodate growth. These measures require voter approval. In recent years, lawmakers have restricted the elections school districts can run these ballot measures in, giving them fewer chances to propose levies and bonds.
This year, Ada County commissioners are considering raising property taxes just to maintain operations, according to previous Statesman reporting. The budget challenges are compounded as commissioners deal with some of the fallout from statewide budget cuts, which are having effects that trickle down to local governments.
Herndon, who has proposed property tax elimination as a central piece of his campaign, said the idea wouldn’t be to sub property taxes with other taxes. Instead, he said, it would be a long-term plan and would involve being “patient.” Part of that includes not creating and funding new programs, and then directing revenues as the economy grows to pay down local taxing districts.
In 2022, Ada County alone collected $735 million in property tax for distribution to various taxing districts, according to the county. About 60% of that amount funded cities and schools.
“You can turn around and say, well, let’s just raise some other tax,” Herndon said. “But I don’t want to raise some other tax. I think we can do it through controlling of spending.”
Photo caption: Idaho State Capitol building (Wikimedia Commons)
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©2026 Idaho Statesman. Visit at idahostatesman.com. Distributed by Tribune Content Agency LLC.
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