OPINION: Here’s a proven way to boost Idaho schools and communities

Land in Idaho is overwhelmingly owned by the federal government — nearly 62% — with U.S. Forest Service lands being nearly two-thirds of the total and Bureau of Land Management lands constituting most of the other third.

Last year, Idaho Attorney General Raul Labrador filed an amicus brief in support of a Utah lawsuit to take possession of 18.5 million acres of BLM lands in Utah, claiming that such were never “appropriated” by the federal government through being designated as a national park, national forest, wilderness or an equivalent designation. Labrador’s hope was that if Utah was successful, Idaho could also obtain a chunk of BLM land. The U.S. Supreme Court on Jan. 13 dashed that hope by declining to hear the Utah case.

But there is another, existing tool that Idaho could use to obtain federal land to create local opportunities for economic expansion, possibly expand housing availability, open up recreational opportunities and even provide a revenue boost for our schools.

The key is Idaho’s endowment lands, granted at statehood in 1890. Idaho initially received scattered pieces of ground, mostly 640 acres each in size, totaling 3.65 million acres. Over time, some of the pieces have been exchanged or sold (with the proceeds held and reinvested), leaving roughly 2.5 million acres today or 4.7% of all land in our state (and even more acreage with mineral rights). In 2024, those lands and the reinvested portion generated $100.3 million with 85% channeled to Idaho’s public schools. Under Idaho’s Constitution, such lands are to be managed for maximum financial benefit.

Idaho has traded many of the scattered pieces, mostly with the U.S. Forest Service, for consolidated state lands that are easier to manage and monetize. Many of those consolidated areas are in northern Idaho. Today, they are leased for timber production and generate a significant part of the funds distributed to our schools each year.

But 22% of all land in Idaho today is managed by the BLM. Interspersed throughout those BLM lands are a multitude of state endowment lands, spread out most often six miles apart. Those scattered pieces are a challenge for Idaho to manage and, as required, generate revenue. The current checkerboard creates an opportunity for the state of Idaho and many of our local communities and counties.

Idaho endowment lands can be traded for federal land if the value of what is being swapped is equivalent under both federal and state law. Such was done in Owyhee County in 2021 when Idaho swapped 24,000 acres of state land for 31,000 acres of BLM land. They were deemed of equivalent value.

What if the state of Idaho, in concert with its counties, put together a statewide land swap to consolidate the state lands inside BLM lands by trading them for BLM property located together in large, usable chunks?

For instance, Custer County, near the center of the state, has roughly 40 separated state endowment land parcels on both sides of State Highway 93. If, instead, those scattered state pieces were traded with the BLM, that could create roughly 25,000 acres of usable land, depending on the relative value. That consolidated state land could be leased more efficiently for grazing, developed for commercial use, sold for housing construction or, even, used to establish new state parks for recreational use. Consolidated together, they could be a powerful driver of local economic development. And our schools would be the primary beneficiary of any increased revenue.

Most Idaho counties have such scattered pieces. To spur the process along, the Legislature should provide counties the funds necessary to develop local proposals for such swaps, designed to meet two goals:

Address local economic and community needs.

Boost state revenues.

This approach has a primary advantage. It can be done without a longshot court fight using a procedure that already exists.

Taggart is an attorney in Idaho Falls and has worked in Republican politics since his teens, both in campaigns and for elected officials, including running a congressional office.