‘It’s an awkward position to be in’
Here are a few North Idaho lawmakers’ reactions to the governor’s veto of the grocery tax relief bill:
Sen. Mike Jorgenson, R-Hayden Lake, said, “I think should this veto survive, it might give more impetus to considering real grocery tax reform down the road,” such as completely removing the sales tax from groceries. “It’s an awkward position to be in, because you want to get anything you can for the citizens of Idaho,” he said. “Clearly this was a compromise, and it’s better to get something than nothing. That’s why I voted for it in the first place.”
Rep. Frank Henderson, R-Post Falls, said he’d vote to override the veto. “I promised our constituents up there that we would enable some relief under grocery tax, so I would absolutely do that,” Henderson said.
Sen. Jim Hammond, R-Post Falls, said he was “disappointed” by the veto. “I understand it isn’t what he wanted, but if you look at all the different iterations that started in the House and what came through …. I would assume some kind of a compromise is better than nothing at all. I still hope that we can revive something and provide some kind of relief on that sales tax issue.”
