RANDY PATRICK, Associated Press |
Rep.
Stacy said he expects the bill to go to the House floor on Thursday.
The bill would provide a rebate of the state's 6 percent sales tax on materials used to rebuild houses, business buildings and other structures in the counties where the owners' losses occurred. The owners would have to show receipts and proof of losses from their insurance companies or the
The relief would apply to the 21 counties that were declared eligible for federal disaster area assistance by President
The bill would also help school districts by authorizing the state commissioner of education to authorize 10 additional emergency or disaster days that would not be counted against their average daily attendance figures. It would give those districts the option to use last year's ADA figures instead of this year's if attendance is lower so that their funding would not decrease.
School employees in the 21 counties would be protected from loss of pay or benefits resulting from time lost because of the storms. School staff would have to perform work for those days missed, but the work could be in areas other than the areas where they're normally assigned.
"This is a rare opportunity that we all have under extraordinarily bad circumstances to do something jointly for people all over the state who are in need," Stacy told the committee.
Stacy said he appreciated the support the measure has gotten from Republicans and Democrats in both the
Several members commended Stacy for bringing the proposal to them before the end of the session.
Chairman
Rep.
"The thing I'll never be able to erase from my mind is the faces of the people" she saw after the tornado destroyed
The bill, she said, is not just about monetary damage, it's about offering hope to those victims whose lives were wrecked by the loss of their homes, their businesses and their jobs.
House Majority Floor Leader
Senate Majority Floor Leader
Stacy said after the meeting that affected building owners are already well aware that the relief is being offered. The press conference was held at 12:30 Tuesday at the Capitol Annex, and by
"They had all kinds of questions, as you can imagine, about what the future held for them," he said. "People were glad that there was actually something tangible being offered."
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The bill is HB 165.
Copyright: | (c) 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. |
Source: | Associated Press |
Wordcount: | 687 |
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