A conference committee working on House Bill 1176 voted to include $246,000 for pay‑equity increases in the Tax Commissioner's office, a move supporters said is needed to retain staff who handle a high volume of citizen calls.

The funding, approved during the committee’s conference session, was moved and debated amid discussion that the adjustments would affect roughly 17 full‑time positions and translate into modest monthly raises for affected employees.

The equity money "matters to them and the ability to retain, and train, and, keep their employees," a committee member said in support of the increase. Lawmakers also agreed to lower an advertising line item from $1.5 million to $1.0 million and removed related policy language before sending the committee’s report to the floor.

Why it matters: The Tax Commissioner's office fields significant public inquiries about property tax programs and related credits; committee members said the office has been reduced in staff over the last decade while responsibilities have grown. Supporters said the equity funding is intended to avert further staff losses that they expect would make it harder for the office to respond to taxpayers.

Discussion and votes

Committee members reopened deliberations after determining that a technical adjustment previously expected in the tax commissioner’s budget would instead be carried in House Bill 1176. The committee heard that the equity request had come from the Tax Commissioner's office and that it would touch "17 different positions, FTEs," according to meeting remarks. Committee members and staff described rough payroll math during the meeting: gross monthly increases of about $1,300–$1,400 per affected employee, with a net increase of about $800 after benefits; one speaker said that works out to roughly a $7,000 annual increase per employee.

Representative Meyer moved $204,000 for the equity increases during one round of discussion, saying that amount would produce about a $500 monthly increase for those employees. That motion was later withdrawn. The committee ultimately adopted a motion to include $246,000 for equity salary funding; the motion was seconded by Senator Sickler and approved on a roll call. The roll call recorded affirmative votes from the chair, Representatives Kempenick and Meyer, and Senators Zwanzick, Sickler and Brookhart; the motion passed.

Committee members also discussed other budget lines tied to the bill. They agreed that the primary residence credit and disabled veterans’ credit provisions were unchanged and that a reduction in the advertising appropriation (to $1,000,000 from $1,500,000) should be sufficient, with the caveat that a deficiency appropriation could be considered if costs exceed estimates.

Points of contention and context

Some members expressed concern that adding ongoing equity pay increases creates future spending obligations for subsequent bienniums. "Every time we look at equity increases, we're looking at compression too," one lawmaker said, noting uncertainty about future revenue forecasts and the state's "cost to continue." Another lawmaker argued the Tax Commission has been efficient, noting the agency has decreased total FTEs over the past decade while workload and responsibilities increased, and urged the committee to fund equity adjustments to preserve institutional knowledge.

The committee also removed policy language tied to the bill; a member noted that the removed policy "will not fly on the House side," reflecting anticipated disagreement in the separate chamber.

What's next

With the committee’s changes adopted, the conference report will be forwarded to the floor for consideration. Committee members noted that if actual program costs exceed the adjusted advertising or other appropriations, a deficiency appropriation could be considered.

Ending note: The committee's action resolves internal conference negotiations on pay adjustments and related budget tradeoffs for the Tax Commissioner's office and moves the revised HB 1176 forward to the next legislative step.