MINOT – The North Dakota State House passed a bill Wednesday to provide property tax relief for more people who are disabled or over the age of 65.
House Bill 1211, after amendments, would raise the income thresholds of the homestead property tax credit by 30%. The House Finance and Taxation committee also added an inflation trigger which would raise the income brackets every year. The bill would also strike the requirement for a person to have assets lower than $500,000 in order to be eligible for the homestead credit.
“Finally a property tax bill that can pass,” said the sponsor of the bill, Rep. Larry Bellew, R-Dis. 38, Minot. “This bill will give some North Dakotans some property tax relief, but in my opinion, it’s not enough. We passed income tax relief which is very good, however, people in my district are advocating property tax relief and reform, not income tax relief. HB1211 is ok, but it’s not good enough. What would make this a really good bill is to change where it says a person’s income to a person’s taxable income. As you know I have advocated for property tax relief and reform, and I still do, and I do not know if this will happen this session, even though we have the finances to do it. We may never have that opportunity again. So far, we as a legislature lack the political and intestinal fortitude to genuinely reform property taxes.”
The bill passed by a vote of 91 to 0 and will be sent to the Senate for consideration.
