Lawmaker proposes increases in grocery tax credit
Bill would increase credit to $155 per person
BOISE — Amid calls to repeal Idaho’s sales tax on groceries, a lawmaker is proposing to increase the grocery tax credit.
House Majority Leader Jason Monks, R-Meridian, presented the bill to the House Revenue and Taxation Committee on Monday morning. The committee voted unanimously to introduce the bill, which will allow it to come back for a public hearing.
The bill would increase the grocery tax credit from $120 per person to $155 per person; the tax credit currently is higher for individuals 65 or older, at $140 per person — this bill would set the credit as the same for every tax filer.
“Anybody who’s raised a teenager knows that teenagers eat much more than somebody over 65, and therefore the budget requires additional expenditures on that,” Monks said.
The bill would reduce state general fund revenue by an expected $50 million.
It would also allow tax filers to submit itemized grocery receipts in order to collect a credit of up to $250 per person. In order to receive the full refund on sales taxes for groceries that year, the person would have to submit receipts for purchases on food, which is defined the same way as federal food assistance — namely, SNAP benefits. There are also requirements that the groceries do not include candy, restaurant food, and food sold in a heated state or food sold with an eating utensil provided by the seller.
Gov. Brad Little before the start of the 2025 legislative session told reporters that the potential problem with repealing the sales tax on groceries would be defining what qualifies as “groceries.”
Several lawmakers on both sides of the aisle said in their campaigns that they would like to see a repeal of the sales tax on groceries.
Monks said Monday that increasing the credit while keeping the tax in place will allow revenue to be generated from tourists and other out-of-state visitors who purchase food in Idaho but do not file taxes in the state.
Idaho has a 6% sales tax that applies to purchases, including food. In 2022, the Legislature increased the tax credit that Idahoans may use to either reduce their tax bill or get a refund from $100 to $120 per person or $140 for seniors 65 and older.
The current credit covers the sales tax applied to about $2,000 worth of groceries over the course of the year. The increase would result in the refund of sales tax applied to around $2,583.30 worth of grocery purchases. The credit can be claimed for dependents.
The grocery tax credit bill is the second of three tax cut bills expected this session. House Speaker Mike Moyle last week presented the first bill, a $253 million income tax cut on the personal and corporate tax rate.
Moyle during that presentation said there would also be a proposal to address property taxes.
Guido covers Idaho politics for the Lewiston Tribune, Moscow-Pullman Daily News and Idaho Press of Nampa. She may be contacted at lguido@idahopress.com and can be found on Twitter @EyeOnBoiseGuido.
