Lawmakers head home after ITD fight

Idaho lawmakers headed home for the week after largely finishing their business Wednesday, which included passing the contentious transportation budget and library legislation. They’ll be back next Wednesday.

Notably, there is still a Division of Welfare budget that needs to be passed and an issue with the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation budget that may need to be addressed when the Legislature reconvenes.

ITD

The primary delay of adjournment of the 2024 session was a fight over the Idaho Transportation Department budget, which included intent language that would withdraw from a planned sale of the agency’s vacant headquarters. In the end, the Legislature narrowly approved the budget, effectively tanking the deal and providing money to instead rehabilitate the building that has been empty since a 2022 flood.

The House and Senate leaders were in stark opposition to each other on this issue, which caused some tension and waylaid what is typically not a controversial budget. House Speaker Mike Moyle has vocally opposed the sale of the State Street campus, and Senate Pro-Tem Chuck Winder, who is a former chairperson of the Idaho Transportation Board, has been supportive of the agency’s decision to sell the campus and opposed to the method of going back on it.

The Senate on Wednesday voted 18-17 after no debate to pass HB 770, which was the third attempt at the budget, and just $200 less than the original appropriation bill that had died in the Senate previously.

“I’ve never seen an Idaho Department of Transportation budget be that contentious,” said Senate Majority Leader Kelly Anthon, R-Burley.

The first version of the budget, HB 723, passed the House by one vote and then was rejected by the Senate by a single vote on March 28, with all of the opposition focused on tanking the deal and whether the budget-writing committee had authority to do it.

The budget writers of the Joint Finance and Appropriation Committee (JFAC) met quickly to pass an almost identical budget, with a $100 reduction. This second version of the budget was ruled out of order after Winder presented a parliamentary analysis from Secretary of the Senate Jennifer Novak, because it was too similar to the rejected legislation.

A third version of the budget was then approved by JFAC and sent to the House, which moved to quickly pass it in a 37-31 vote, and then the chamber recessed until Wednesday, leaving its fate up to the Senate.

Anthon and Sen. Geoff Schroeder, R-Mountain Home, changed their votes from the original budget to help the new version pass.

Anthon said ahead of the first vote on the agency budget, he had been asked by Winder to reject it, which he did.

But he said he looked further into it after the first vote and decided he should vote with the majority of his caucus. He said nothing in it would negatively affect his constituents, was unconstitutional or was “anything I can’t stomach with my conscious.”

That’s kind of a unique thing for the majority leader,” he said.

Schroeder did not respond to a request for comment by press time.

The group of developers that had been selected as buyers sent an emailed statement in response to the Legislature’s move.

“The Idaho Legislature sent a clear message to the free market: Don’t do business with us,” the statement from Hawkins Company chief executive officer Brian Huffaker said. “All of Idaho — citizens and businesses alike — should be concerned. We hope legislators and the media pay attention to how much money this decision costs the state over the next few years in terms of the millions already spent moving ITD, extensive renovation, remediation, missed job creation and lost revenues. We expect people will hold our lawmakers accountable.”

Huffaker, on behalf of his company, the Pacific Companies, and FJ Management, called on Gov. Brad Little to veto the bill. They wrote that they have had an agreement with the state to buy the land since March 21.

NOW WHAT?

The 2024 legislative session isn’t over yet. The legislators will wait to see if Little rejects any of the bills they passed and then consider trying to override any vetoes when they return Wednesday.

There is also the Division of Welfare “enhancement budget,” which was redone to remove a summer food program for children. The program had been the reason the Senate killed the first version of the budget.

The federal Summer Electronic Benefit Transfer Program would have provided families that qualify for free and reduced lunch programs with a card to pay for groceries over the summer, similar to how the federal SNAP program works.

The new budget totals $666,000 in state general funds and $13 million in federal funds. The Senate passed it Wednesday in a 22-12 vote. The House left for the week before taking action on the new budget.

Lawmakers on Wednesday also discovered that there was a potential $4.7 million budget shortfall for the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, the Idaho Capital Sun reported.

The division had asked for a supplemental $2.7 million request, which JFAC approved. But JFAC co-Chairperson Rep. Wendy Horman, R-Idaho Falls, later pulled back the supplemental budget in light of new information.

She said in an interview that she had heard from vendors who indicated the numbers presented were higher than what was obligated to them. She said staff is working on getting independent verification on the numbers for what the division owes.

The division helps individuals with disabilities find and retain employment.

Legislative Services Office staff have requested invoices from the division. The governor’s office also ordered an independent audit of the division.

Division Administrator Jane Donnellan originally told JFAC that the issue didn’t appear to be caused by the new financial system Luma, which has caused several reported issues since its recent launch. But Donnellan wrote in an email to LSO staff that while processing a payment batch in Luma, there was an error message.

Horman said Thursday that she has reached out to the controller’s office, which oversees Luma, and the governor’s office has also reached out, to try to determine the issue.

Until more information is gathered, the division hasn’t received more money.

“It’s still a waiting game at this point,” Horman said.

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.

DAILY NEWS

How local lawmakers voted

House — YES: Brandon Mitchell, R-Moscow. NO: Lori McCann, R-Lewiston.

Senate — NO: Dan Foreman, R-Viola. (edited)