The Senate Revenue and Taxation Committee today failed to recommend HB 1342 by Rep. John Payton to increase the sales tax exemption on a used car from $4,000 to $7,500.

The bill had near universal support in the House and opposition to the bill in the Senate led a House insurrection yesterday at which the House failed to approve some routine appropriation bills to send a message to the Senate. The bill had languished on the Senate calendar for more than a week.

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Sen. Jonathan Dismang, chair of the Revenue and Taxation Committee, opposed the bill. He said the $12 million loss of revenue wasn’t budgeted and he had other priorities if the state was going to pursue further tax reductions. Sens. Jason Rapert and Trent Garner supported the law change, but Dismang ruled the motion for a do-pass failed on the voice vote, in which a scattering of yeas and nays were heard. It takes five votes for a bill to clear a Senate committee.

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