Trailer bills added to sweeping Idaho school facilities measure

BOISE — New potential changes to the sweeping school facilities bill were introduced in the Senate on Thursday, as the Legislature nears the end of the 2024 session.

The four trailer bills, introduced in Senate State Affairs, would “knock some of the hard edges off” of HB 521 — which represents the centerpiece legislation of the 2024 session, and would do a variety of things including provide a new fund for school maintenance, change the way the Idaho Board of Education director is chosen, remove an election date for school districts and cut income taxes, as well as other things.

The Senate passed HB 521 on Thursday afternoon 23-11, with one member absent. The trailer bills, would have to be passed separately to add any of the potential changes.

Sen. Dave Lent, R-Idaho Falls, introduced the bills. One would delay the fund distribution from the new fund created in HB 521, called the School Modernization Facilities Fund, which would allow the Legislature to look at the distribution model of the funds “more carefully,” Lent said.

Another option would alter the distribution of the School Modernization Fund and raise the minimum distribution to school districts from $25,000 to $100,000, and it would cap distribution at $100 million.

Two of the trailer bills also aim at the provision in HB 521 that would require schools to attest that if they receive funds they will not go from a five-day school week to a four-day week, and provides new requirements for districts that already operate on a four-day week.

One of the bills repeals the parts about the four-day week completely.

Another bill would delay the implementation of the requirements around the four-day week another year. Under HB 521, the State Board of Education would be required to create minimum instruction and contract days for districts using the four-day week by Aug. 1, 2024; the trailer bill would delay this until July 1, 2025. This same trailer bill would also include the minimum distribution of $100,000 and maximum of $100 million.

When HB 521 passed, there were concerns that the distribution model based on average daily attendance as well as the requirements around the five-day school week would disadvantage the smallest rural districts. Bill sponsors House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, and Majority Leader Jason Monks, R-Meridian, have said it’s important to them that the funds go toward facilities that have students in them.

Several small districts are projected to receive less than $100,000 from the modernization fund under HB 521; only West Ada School District would get more than $100 million, with an estimated $140 million distribution for fiscal year 2025 under HB 521 as it stands.

HB 521 would use $125 million in sales tax revenue to go out for a bond in order to make a total of $1 billion available over 10 years to school districts to use for facilities maintenance. Districts would be able to receive the money in a lump sum or installments annually over the 10 years.

During the public hearing on the bill in House State Affairs, representatives from the School Boards Association and Idaho Association of School Administrators supported the bill but had concerns about the restrictions on the four-day week.

Idaho Association of School Administrators Executive Director Andy Grover said that over 40% of the state’s traditional districts are on a four-day week.

The Nampa School District has been weighing dropping to the four-day week, and Emmett’s district recently made the move, Idaho EdNews reported.

Addressing school facilities funding is Gov. Brad Little’s No. 1 priority for this session, and a number of lawmakers have echoed this sentiment. A state evaluation of facility needs done in 2022 found a nearly $900 million backlog in school building maintenance.

The House voted overwhelmingly to pass HB 521, although many representatives had concerns over the many other things the 30-page bill does.

Senate Majority Leader Kelly Anthon, R-Burley, commended Lent on his work on the proposed changes to the bill. He also expressed frustration at the nature of the broad bill that touches so many areas of law.

“Sometimes you have these difficult choices in the Legislature, whether you’re going to take it or leave it, and sometimes when we draft bills we know that if there’s a nice shiny piece in there it’ll swallow down the poison pill,” Anthon said. “And I would say to you that the majority of the Idaho Senate is tired of that, but here we are.”

The state budget writers had been waiting to do the public school budget, which is one of the largest of the state budgets, until there’s a decision on HB 521, Rep. Wendy Horman, R-Idaho Falls, has said. Lawmakers can’t go home until all the budgets are completed.

Guido covers Idaho politics for the Lewiston Tribune, Moscow-Pullman Daily News and Idaho Press of Nampa. She may be contacted at lguido@idahopress.com and can be found on X @EyeOnBoiseGuido.