Facilities budget, including lottery funds shift, approved on 13-6 vote

In the facilities division of the public schools budget, there’s a proposal to, for a third year, shift $17.6 million in lottery funds out of the the facilities division and into discretionary funds. Rep. Shirley Ringo, D-Moscow, said, “My comfort level isn’t real high with this. It seems like we’re wanting to move down this path long-term, and when the people put the lottery in place, the notion was that that money would be spent a certain way.” Rep. Wendy Jaquet, D-Ketchum, said, “I guess what bothers me is that this is another shift to the property taxpayer. People are having to go to their voters to ask for help on these buildings. … They’re not going to have that funding for the maintenance.”

Sen. Dean Mortimer, R-Idaho Falls., said, “I think it’s important to realize that this is a motion that allows flexibility, meaning that that money is still there, but it is put down into discretionary, where the schools, if they can, can put that to other things, but if they need if for their buildings, they can use it. … It is left to their discretion.” Jaquet countered that that was the state’s previous approach to funding facilities, and “it wasn’t happening, so that’s why we put this program here.”

The motion, including the shift, then passed on a 13-6 vote. Two Republicans, Rep. Jim Patrick, R-Twin Falls, and Sen. Mitch Toryanski, R-Boise, joined the four Democrats on JFAC in opposing it.