Idaho GOP’s new platform calls for end to ‘inherently unjust’ property taxes
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 multi-generational 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.”
GOP changes language in abortion section
At the convention, the party also changed the language in the section of its platform on abortion. The section now reads that human personhood begins “at the moment of fertilization” and “ought to be protected and cherished from that moment on.” It previously used the term “conception.”
The platform still calls for a total ban on abortions, including in cases of rape and incest, refers to abortion as murder and calls for the criminalization of all “murders by abortions.” The platform also opposes the destruction of human embryos.
On education, the new platform adds a section on amending Idaho code to end the state’s relationships with accrediting bodies that “promote ideological agendas antithetical to the values and principles” of the party platform. It lists those values as social justice, diversity, equity and inclusion, and gender ideology.
“We further support Idaho’s recognition of alternative accrediting bodies that affirm traditional academic standards, parental rights, and the values of Idaho families, ensuring that Idaho institutions are not coerced into adopting ideological requirements as a condition of accreditation,” the platform reads.
Delegates vote down resolution on Israel
Delegates also vote on a packet of resolutions during the convention. This year, they voted to remove a resolution affirming support for Israel and condemning Hamas — a marked shift from the past.
Herndon, the chair of the resolution committee, said the committee reviews and votes on submitted resolutions. The committee received 23 submissions and sent 19 to the floor, including the measure on Israel.
When the packet goes before delegates, people can call to make amendments. Sen. Brian Lenney, R-Nampa, posted on X that he made a successful motion to remove the measure on Israel. He said Idaho shouldn’t be approving measures that aren’t directly related to the state, and that no foreign nation should be “untouchable” in American politics.
Lenney did not respond to a request for comment.
Herndon said a significant majority agreed that the resolution on Israel should be removed. There wasn’t a formal count, but he estimated around three-quarters of delegates stood up to vote for the motion. Delegates at the convention wanted the resolutions to be more Idaho specific, he said.
At the previous two conventions, resolutions passed in support of Israel.
Since Hamas launched its Oct. 7, 2023, attacks on Israel, the nation has killed tens of thousands of people in Gaza, including many children, and has destroyed hospitals, buildings and homes. Israel and Palestine negotiated a ceasefire in October, but a United Nations report released this week found Israel was continuing to kill Palestinian children and asserted its actions amounted to genocide, a claim Israel’s U.N. mission rejected, according to The New York Times. A March survey from the Pew Research Center found 41% of Republicans overall have unfavorable views on Israel, but the percentage of people younger than 50 with unfavorable views has risen since last year.
