February 14, 2024
Bill Report

The 60-day legislative session has passed the halfway mark, yet much of the significant action still lies ahead of us, beginning this week. The next significant process cutoff was yesterday, February 13, the deadline for policy bills to be passed from their house of origin to remain alive for further consideration. Remember, bills deemed "necessary to implement the budget" (NTIB) – which typically includes bills dealing with taxes and fees – are exempt from cutoffs, so our lobbying team will be watching closely to ensure that bills that appear dead don't rise from the ashes. 

We also expect to see the latest economic forecast released today, with the caseload forecast to follow later this week. After those forecasts are released, both legislative chambers will release their respective supplemental budgets, with the Senate leading the way on February 19 and the House shortly after that. Once both have adopted their budget proposals, the reconciliation process will begin to forge a compromise that both chambers can support. 

Although many bills that were on our watch list at the start of session have since died, we continue to monitor some critical proposals: 

• SB 5838 and HB 1934 are two proposals to create an artificial intelligence task force to examine regulatory oversight of this rapidly evolving technology. The two vary in composition and timelines, so these differences would have to be resolved before becoming law. The Senate version appears more likely to be the vehicle on this issue, having passed that body and now moved to the House.
• SB 6299 deals with the impact of AI in the workplace and is an attempt to protect existing jobs from being eliminated through AI technologies. Our concern with this bill is that its definition of artificial intelligence is very broad, and nearly any automation or technology might fall under it. The bill is in the Rules Committee, the last step before heading to the floor. 
• HB 2081/ SB 5968 deal with home equity sharing agreements. The Senate has passed its version, which is now in the House. In general, we are comfortable with the language in the bills at this point, but we will keep an eye out to ensure nothing changes. 
• HB 1915 is WBA-supported legislation that would expand state financial literacy programs and high school graduation requirements. It passed the House unanimously and is now in the Senate Education Committee. 
• HB 2072 is AG request legislation to substantially increase penalties imposed on organizations found to have violated antitrust laws. The bill has passed the House and has been referred to the Senate Law & Justice Committee.
• SB 5801 deals with the regulation of special deposits. We are comfortable with the clarifications in the bill. It has passed the Senate with a strong 47 votes and has moved to the House. 

Finally, as mentioned earlier, all tax proposals are considered NTIB, so they remain alive. Ones we are paying particular attention to, even if they appear dormant, include: 

• SB 5493, this year's version of the proposal to eliminate the B&O tax exemption for interest income on first mortgage loans, remains a top priority. So far, it hasn't received any action, but we have learned over the years not to take anything for granted, so we will continue to watch it closely.
• HB 2276 and SB 6191 would increase the real estate excise tax on transactions over $3.025 million. The bills are being pitched as a "mansion tax" but would significantly impact sales of raw land, apartment buildings, and the already struggling commercial real estate sector. Both bills have had hearings, but neither chamber wants to be the first to pass the higher tax. There is a business community opposition coalition, and we are watching their activities.
• SB 5770 would allow local governments to triple the rate of growth in their property tax collections from 1% to 3%. It made it to the Rules Committee, the last step before going to the floor, but the prime sponsor has publicly stated that it lost several supporters and is dead for the session.
• HB 2308, which is in the Rules Committee, would allow local governments to offer tax incentives for converting excess commercial property into housing or converting multifamily housing to affordable housing.

As the session heads into its final weeks, we will continue to provide you with regular updates on these and other bills.