Legislation that had unanimously passed the House to grant a temporary, two-year sales tax exemption to non-profit homeless shelters in Idaho has been killed - unanimously - in the Senate Local Government & Taxation Committee. Rep. Branden Durst, D-Boise, sponsor of HB 435, said after the vote, "I think they're allowing their philosophy to cloud their judgment on people's needs." Committee members said they just couldn't support continuing to pass individual sales tax exemptions, and that they can't say that one charity is more deserving of a tax break than another. "I appreciate the good work of these and other groups that want to reach out and provide that very necessary help," said Sen. Joe Stegner, R-Lewiston. "The problem is that this conflicts with some very fundamental challenges in my opinion that Idaho has, and that basically is a lack of a clear policy direction on how we hand out the favors of state government - this is the power of government to tax or not tax."
 
The unanimous vote came after only favorable testimony was offered on the bill at the committee's hearing. The Rev. Bill Roscoe, executive director of the Boise Rescue Mission, told the committee his non-profit homeless shelters in the Treasure Valley would save $10,000 under the bill. Five non-profit homeless shelters around the state, including one in Bonner County, would have qualified for the temporary tax break. Roscoe said his organization has helped hundreds of homeless men in the past two years to move into independent or semi-independent living situations and become productive citizens. "These are men who ... were wandering our streets," he said. Senate Tax Chairman Brent Hill, R-Rexburg, told Roscoe, "We want you to know how much we appreciate what you're doing - it is a tremendous service to the citizens of Idaho."