Idaho Senate Candidates Debate Property Tax Relief

Democrat Jan Brown and incumbent Republican Dave Lent discuss rising costs and the state's role in addressing them ahead of the Idaho Senate District 33 election.

Updated on Nov. 3, 2026 in Inflation

Idaho Senate Candidates Debate Property Tax Relief

Live Poll

Should Idaho raise the homeowners' property tax exemption to $200,000?

Democrat Jan Brown and Republican Dave Lent, the incumbent, are running for Idaho Senate District 33 and spoke in interviews about rising costs and government's role in addressing them. Brown called for raising the homeowners' exemption and for equalizing property, income, and sales taxes as part of broader tax reform.

Why it matters

Property taxes weigh heavily on Idaho homeowners, and the candidates offer differing views on whether recent tax cuts have gone far enough. The race will help determine how the state approaches tax policy in the coming years.

Idaho tax reductions total $2.8 billion over five years of Legislature action, largely from income taxes. The homeowners' exemption stands at $125,000, while Brown proposes $200,000 indexed to inflation, and the source does not estimate the fiscal cost of that change.

The players

Dave Lent

Dave Lent is the Republican incumbent in Idaho Senate District 33 who has served eight years in the Idaho Senate and is seeking reelection.

Jan Brown

Jan Brown is the Democratic candidate for Idaho Senate District 33 who has called for raising the state's homeowners' exemption and reforming the tax structure.

The details

Lent, who has served eight years in the Idaho Senate, points to five of those years in which the Legislature reduced taxes. Brown, who spoke about the state's tax system and remembered a more balanced structure from the 1980s, argues that property taxes remain a burden despite recent cuts.

1980s: Brown describes Idaho's tax system as more balanced than it is today.
November 3, 2026: Election day for Idaho Senate District 33.

Economic Context

Idaho's homeowners' exemption, currently $125,000, is the central lever in the candidates' property tax debate. Brown's call to index it to inflation would extend a fixed exemption into an automatically adjusting one.

Homeowners in Idaho pay property taxes that the candidates say remain a burden, and the homeowners' exemption determines how much of a home's value is shielded from those taxes. A change to the exemption amount would directly affect the tax bill of homeowners who qualify.

The takeaway

Voters in Idaho Senate District 33 face a choice between continued incremental tax cuts and a broader restructuring of property, income, and sales taxes. Understanding the homeowners' exemption can help residents evaluate how each proposal would affect their own bills.