Lawmakers return to Bonners Ferry to tackle EMS, budget, education issues

BONNERS FERRY — The state budget, judicial system, and education were among the topics discussed by Idaho District 1A House Rep. Mark Sauter and District 1 Sen. Jim Woodward Saturday at the Bonners Ferry Visitors Center. 

New bills 

Sauter proposed three bills to the house on Feb. 10 aimed at improving public safety agencies statewide.

Two bills address challenges of accessibility and coverage for rural emergency medical services without a funding increase.

Boundary County has an average emergency response time of 10-15 minutes, according to an analysis by the Idaho Office of Performance Evaluations. Parts of Owyhee and Custer counties suffer from up to 30-minute average response times. 

“We have areas in our state that are not covered by EMS,” Sauter said. “Coverage is out of an Idaho State Police car.” 

Sauter said he hopes rural areas will see an improvement in the next two years. 

He also proposed a house bill that would enable fire districts to consolidate or merge if two fire districts reach a written agreement, then hold a public meeting and finally pass a merger through vote. 

Sauter said has been working on the bill for 14 months and is hopeful it will move forward.

Delayed tax revenue projection 

The state has yet to set its budget, which is typically finalized within the first week of the legislative session. 

“We’re at the end of week five, and still no revenue projection this year. I’ll say openly that I am frustrated with the route we are headed down,” said Woodward, a long-standing member and current Senate vice-chair of the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, which is responsible for setting Idaho's spending limit. 

“Idaho is a great place, and we were in a great place because of the decision making in the past that is based on stable, long-term outcomes. Right now, I see more of our decision making geared toward what’s going to be great in the next election cycle,” Woodward added. 

After weeks of deliberation, JFAC reached a decision Feb. 6 on how to set the revenue projection number, based on implementing a flat raise of $1.55 per hour for all state employees. Woodward criticized the employee compensation plan, calling it “a system of demerit, rather than merit,” as it is not performance-based. 

Disagreements over employee compensation and revenue projections have delayed the budget-setting process, Woodward said, but it can now finally move forward. 

On a positive note, Woodward voiced optimism about the Budget Stabilization Fund, saying the state reserve levels are just slightly higher than the levels prior to the economic downturn in 2008. 

Judge compensation and caseload 

Woodward and Sauter said Idaho judges are paid significantly less than private practice attorneys, making it difficult to recruit and retain qualified judges. 

“We’re having a hard time competing,” Woodward said. “An attorney in private practice, especially depending on where — rural versus in the city — is making three, four or five times what we are paying our judges.” 

The state is looking to not just retain but to add more judges to address the heavy caseloads and delays in the judicial system as the state population has surged to over two million. 

The Senate passed two bills last week to add a new district judge in Kootenai County, who will also serve Boundary County, and another district judge in the Twin Falls area.  

Education bills emerge out of house and senate 

Woodward and Sauter delayed opening the education conversation until later in the town hall, understanding that it had the potential to take up a large chunk of the hour-and-a-half discussion. 

House Bill 93 and Senate Bill 1025 are the leading education bills to expand publicly funded private education. The house approved HB 93 on Feb. 7, and the Senate Education Committee advanced SB 1025 to the floor Feb. 3. 

HB 93 would create a $50 million tax rebate system for private school and homeschool students. Anybody at 300% of the federal poverty level or below would be eligible on a first-come basis. 

Both Woodward and Sauter said HB 93 lacks accountability in making sure the tax money is properly spent.  

According to the bill, the state tax commission would have to oversee spending, which Woodward said is a lot to ask of a body that must already account for so much.  

Sauter agreed that the bill allows the potential for parents to misuse their tax credits. 

Senate Bill 93, however, takes stronger accountability measures. The bill prioritizes low-income families rather than the first- come, first- serve system of HB 93.  

The bill also includes a funding increase of $30 million for special education, and private schools participating in the separate program Empowering Parents would be required to accept students with disabilities. 

Woodward and Sauter said that ultimately SB 1025 was introduced as a contrast to HB 93 to create a political negotiation tactic. 

Woodward said that the Senate Education Committe only pushed SB 1025 forward because they knew HB 93 would pass the House. 

Sauter opposed HB 93, which ultimately passed by a vote of 42-28. Understanding the limited access Boundary County students have to private schools, he said a strategic approach is needed to find compromise within the legislature. 

“There’s a phrase at the capital: if you’re not at the table, you’re on the menu. If you don't have any votes that you may be able to work, then you don't have the influence,” Sauter said. “I know who I am, and I represent you guys. But if you think about it, North Idaho has about 15 reps out of 105 if you go all the way down to Shoshone. So, our influence isn't really in numbers. It's in associations and groups and being able to work with our colleagues. That's just what we have to do is to figure out how to make it work.”