BISMARCK — The North Dakota Senate passed a property tax relief and reform bill on Friday, April 25, that is nearly identical to the bill many have said is the primary vehicle for property tax relief and reform this session.
House Bill 1168 started as a property tax relief and reform bill that would have had the government pay part of property owners’ school district tax obligation. It was amended in the Senate Finance and Tax Committee to be a near identical copy of House Bill 1176, the main vehicle for such changes.
The most recent version of HB 1176 being discussed in conference committee would expand the primary residence tax credit to offer up to $1,650 to North Dakota homeowners. It would also cap the amount political subdivisions could raise their levies at 3% a year.
Sen. Mark Weber, R-Casselton, said HB 1168 had been hoghoused — stripped the bill’s original language and changed it so it does something different than originally intended — to be a backup in case HB 1176 fails, reflecting the version of the main bill that includes the Senate’s priorities for property tax relief and reform.
“In case 1176 doesn’t pass, we have 1168 ready to go,” Weber said. “It includes all the provisions that the Senate desires … If 1176 runs into trouble and gets defeated, 1168 is all ready to go and fully loaded.”
The bill that passed Friday would set the maximum primary resident tax credit available at $1,650 and includes the “skin in the game” amendment brought by Senate Majority Leader David Hogue, R-Minot, on HB 1176, which would ensure North Dakotans pay at least 25% of their property tax obligation and ensure no homeowner’s property tax obligation reaches zero. He and other supporters of the amendment say it would keep voters from adopting local levies that would disproportionately affect farm and commercial land owners too easily.
The amendment has come up as a sticking point between the House and the Senate in conference committee, with the House opposed to the amendment and the Senate in favor of it.
HB 1168 passed the Senate in a unanimous 45-0 vote. It now goes back to the House for a vote of concurrence.
