Just a year ago, Utah lawmakers were pushing to raise the state’s sales tax on food. Now some are looking at eliminating it, as 35 other states already have.

The House Revenue and Taxation Committee voted 8-3 on Wednesday to endorse HB148, which would totally abolish the state’s 1.7 percent sales tax on unprepared foods.

But it would raise the state’s portion of sales tax on everything else from the current 4.7 percent to 4.92 percent.

Overall, legislative analysts estimate that state sales tax revenue would remain the same. But Rep. Tim Quinn, R-Heber City, said the change would help low-income people who spend much higher percentages of their income on food.

“To me, it’s not an economic issue. It’s a moral issue,” Quinn said. “That is a trade-off I think we should all make to help those are struggling,” noting that while most people average spending about 7 percent of their income on food, the poor often spend 35 percent or more.

Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Representative Tim Quinn, R-Heber City, asks a question of Rep. Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake, as she presented of her bill, HB200 - Sexual Assault Kit Processing Amendments - during a House Revenue and Taxations committee meeting at the Utah State Capitol complex, Wednesday, February 8, 2017.
Scott Sommerdorf | The Salt Lake Tribune Representative Tim Quinn, R-Heber City, asks a question of Rep. Angela Romero, D-Salt Lake, as she presented of her bill, HB200 - Sexual Assault Kit Processing Amendments - during a House Revenue and Taxations committee meeting at the Utah State Capitol complex, Wednesday, February 8, 2017.

A long line of groups representing the poor testified in favor of the bill.

“This bill would provide some measure of relief to those families that can least afford to put food on their table,” said Bill Germundson, of Make Hunger Visible. “We have a great opportunity here to make the great state of Utah a more compassionate place to live.”

Melissa Jensen, with Utahns Against Hunger, said, “Taxing food increases food insecurity in the state,” and mean that more people do not have enough to eat.

But others opposed the bill.

Billy Hesterman, vice president of the Utah Taxpayers Association, said his group prefers to broaden the tax base to lower rates, while this bill does the opposite.

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Rep. Doug Sagers, R-Tooele, said that when the recession hit, overall sales tax revenues plummeted, making it difficult to fund government programs. He said food sales are fairly constant even in hard times, so eliminating them could lead to more volatility and less stability for government funding.

The committee made one change to the bill. It decided to tax candy at the full tax rate. It has up to now received the same discount as unprepared foods.

Committee Chairman Steve Eliason, R-Sandy, made that motion in part because it helped achieve revenue neutrality in the bill, and he said he wanted to send a “public health message” — saying diabetes, for example, is becoming an increasing problem in Utah so such foods should not get a tax break.

The bill now goes to the full House for consideration.

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