Raising a Joint Assembly to hear remarks of the Governor

2025 Regular Session Introduced by Roger Hanshaw

Allows Idaho lawmakers to voluntarily donate part or all of their pay to the Tax Relief Fund; funds may flow to tax relief and reduce property taxes, without changing pay itself.

House received Senate message

Main purpose

HCR 4 is a concurrent resolution recognizing recent increases in legislator compensation and expressly allowing individual members of the Idaho Legislature to voluntarily donate all or part of their legislative pay to the Tax Relief Fund (Idaho Code §57‑811). It does not change compensation levels or the constitutional process that sets those levels.

Key provisions

States factual findings about legislative compensation, including:

The Citizens' Committee on Legislative Compensation set legislative base pay at $25,000 per year for the period December 1, 2024 – November 30, 2026 (motion approved November 6, 2024).
The prior base salary for December 1, 2023 – November 30, 2024 was $19,913; the new base represents an increase of $4,432 (about 26%).
Leadership positions (President Pro Tempore, Speaker, Majority/Minority Leaders) receive an additional $500 per year under the committee’s motion.
Contextual comparisons to other state salaries and inflation-adjusted purchasing power are provided.

Declares that legislators who consider themselves overcompensated "may donate all or a portion of their legislative compensation" to the Tax Relief Fund (section 57‑811, Idaho Code).

Reiterates that the Citizens' Committee on Legislative Compensation is constitutionally authorized (Article III, §23) to set compensation; the resolution does not alter that authority.

Who is affected

Primary: Individual members of the Idaho Legislature — the resolution permits (but does not require) them to direct some or all of their compensation to the Tax Relief Fund.

Secondary: Idaho taxpayers and public education financing — donated monies increase the Tax Relief Fund; any excess balance in that fund is distributed to the School District Facilities Fund and used to reduce property taxes.

Fiscal and legal impact

Fiscal note: No fiscal impact to state or local governments is required by passage. The resolution itself creates no new program or mandatory expenditure.

If legislators donate pay, receipts to the Tax Relief Fund would increase correspondingly; any excess funds are transferred to the School District Facilities Fund to reduce property taxes.

The resolution is voluntary and symbolic in nature; it does not change statutory or constitutional compensation-setting processes.

Procedural / timeline notes

Introduced in the 2025 legislative session (document identifies introduction activity beginning January 2025).

Identifies the Citizens' Committee action date (November 6, 2024) and the compensation period (Dec 1, 2024 – Nov 30, 2026).

Sponsors and contacts listed in the record include Representative Todd Huston (author) and committee references; fiscal-note contacts include Representatives Jason A. Monks and Mike Moyle.

Because HCR 4 is a concurrent resolution, it expresses the legislature’s position and provides authorization for voluntary donations by legislators rather than creating a statute that changes compensation procedures.

Bottom line: HCR 4 permits Idaho legislators, on a voluntary basis, to redirect part or all of their legislator pay into the Tax Relief Fund to benefit taxpayers (and potentially lower property taxes if excess funds are transferred to the School District Facilities Fund). It does not alter how compensation is set.

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