Washington, D.C. ? A $7,000 tax mistake shouldn’t disqualify Health and Human Services nominee Kathleen Sebelius from serving as the nation’s top health official, a key Republican senator said Wednesday.

Sen. Charles Grassley of Iowa told home state reporters in a conference call that he felt Sebelius made “a good-faith effort” to pay her taxes correctly in the first place, and errors discovered in a recent review should not count against her.

Grassley, the senior Republican on the Finance Committee, said he is reserving judgment on Sebelius until confirmation hearings. But taxes won’t be the deciding factor for him. The committee holds a hearing today on Sebelius’ nomination and must vote to send her nomination to the full Senate.