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Editorial: Idaho needs to lower its hurdle for school bonds

Wed., July 22, 2009

Idaho has often been called the toughest state in which to build a new school, and with good reason. The Legislature refuses to provide direct construction funding and the state has erected a two-thirds supermajority hurdle for districts attempting to pass local school bonds.

State Superintendent Tom Luna wants to change the latter and is urging the lawmakers to lower the supermajority to 60 percent during the 2010 legislative session. That would be more in line with other states.

In essence, Luna is telling lawmakers what many people have told them before: If you won’t agree to fund school construction, then give voters a more reasonable way to tax themselves.

In a fiscally conservative state like Idaho, winning three out of every five votes would still be a substantial hurdle. Plus, recent changes in state law will preclude districts from strategically placing bonds on the ballot when fewer voters are paying attention. In 2011, there will be only four set times a year when school bond issues can be offered.

So, the onus would remain on those who are asking for more taxpayer money, as it should be.

In 2005, the Idaho Supreme Court ended 17 years of litigation between school districts and the state by ruling that the state’s funding practice was unconstitutional, because it didn’t provide a way for poorer districts to build and maintain safe buildings for its students. The court cited “overwhelming evidence in the record documenting serious facility and funding problems in the state’s public education system.” It also acknowledged that there were a number of unsafe schools around the state.

The court didn’t provide a remedy, but it suggested some. One of the solutions was to lower the supermajority hurdle. The Legislature ignored those suggestions and made some changes that school districts said were insufficient. So districts went back to the court and asked whether the remedy was good enough. But the court would not offer more guidance, calling the case closed.

As a result, Idaho remains a very tough place to build and maintain schools. That leaves children in inadequate and sometimes unsafe buildings.

The state – via the Legislature and the courts – has made its determination. But many Idahoans believe that’s not good enough. They ought to be given a fair chance to make changes. Dropping the supermajority to 60 percent would help.