Tax Relief, Water, Two Of The Top Issues IFBF Will Watch In Upcoming Session

As state lawmakers prepare to kick off the 2021 legislative session, the Idaho Farm Bureau Federation said there will a host of issues the Ag community should watch very closely. Braden Jensen, Deputy Director of Governmental Affairs with the IFBF, said property tax reform is one of the top issues the Idaho Ag community and the general population will watch.

“A lot of them feel with the rising prices of real estate, home values and property in general, that they’re starting to feel the pinch and so I think they’re looking for some type of tax relief.  Some of the conversations that came out of the interim committee that studied this issue, one of the big proposals was to just make the process a lot more transparent.”

And like most years in western states, Jensen says water legislation will be discussed. He anticipates while some of the proposals will be specific to certain basins or areas, statewide water discussions will take place as well.

“Also, you know the issue of water quality, data collection, information gathering; there’s a study going on to get a better understanding of water quality issues in the mid-Snake, so we’ll continue to see and that is something as an organization we’ll be watching.”

The 2021 legislative session gets underway Monday in Boise.

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