Communities with the greatest impact from HB 389, a controversial property tax bill that was added to the bill this week, are communities with high rates of new construction and annexation. For this reason, Nampa and Caldwell are considering restricting new construction and annexations or stopping them altogether.
On Monday, Caldwell City Council will consider a moratorium on housing to “respond to the imminent threat to the safety and wellbeing of the citizens of Caldwell” resulting from the restriction on HB 389’s ability to provide services to new and existing residential buildings to provide development “, it says on the agenda of the council.
During an emergency session of the city council on Friday convened to discuss the recently codified property tax legislation that will put a strain on the city budget, Nampa Mayor Debbie Kling said she is not recommending a moratorium, but city officials are modeling the financial impact of several Types of development based on city services.
“No growth is not good,” said Kling. “If you stop the growth, your existing shortage will be exacerbated and you won’t have any extra revenue in the city to actually offset the cost of service to the city.”
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Ryan Soup is the Boise City Hall and Treasure Valley business reporter for Idaho Press. Contact him at 208-344-2055 (ext 3038). Follow him on Twitter @salsuppe.