Freshman Sen. Mary Souza’s bill to require school board candidates to report campaign finances has cleared the Senate on a 24-11 vote, and now heads to the House side. The bill, SB 1072a, was amended earlier to remove an emergency clause, “so that it would not impinge on the upcoming May election,” Souza said; and to exempt school districts with fewer than 500 students.

“The budgets that school board candidates will need to oversee are substantial, even for some of the small districts,” Souza, a Coeur d’Alene Republican, told the Senate. “Even Salmon School District, with only 865 students, has a budget of $5.5 million. … Because there’s so much money at stake in school board decisions, companies who are trying to get a contract with the district, be that for a new construction, new building, or a service or a supply, might want to influence who is elected to the school board. Unions and school employees who might want to affect the outcome of negotiations and contracts might want to have some influence. Political leaders (are) looking to influence policies and decisions. So it is important that we have some transparency, in my opinion, in these elections.”

Sen. Dan Schmidt, D-Moscow, said he appreciated the amendment and agreed with Souza about “the demands on school board members – it is a difficult and, in my opinion, burdensome position. They have to manage a lot of money and they are very directly and closely responsible to the district members who they serve.” But Schmidt spoke against the bill, saying school board members in two of the school districts in his legislative district would be subject to the provision, and when he spoke to them, they opposed the bill. Schmidt noted that failure to file or comply could bring misdemeanor charges and a fine for those seeking the unpaid positions. “I think that’s inappropriate,” he said. “This position is I think the greatest public service we have in this state, the least rewarded and the hardest work. And I am very thankful for those members to do this.”

Schmidt told the Senate, “I do know quite a bit about the school board members in my district, and I respect the work that they do. And I believe if there was somebody trying to influence them, the community would know that and they’d be up in arms.”

Souza read a letter from Coeur d’Alene School Board member Tom Hamilton supporting the bill. “I think this action is long overdue,” Hamilton wrote. “I would argue that those in opposition are likely those that have something to hide and that certainly isn’t who I would want serving in elected office.”

Here’s how the Senate votes broke down:

Voting in favor: Sens. Bayer, Brackett, Burgoyne, Davis,  DenHartog, Guthrie, Hagedorn, Heider, Hill, Jordan, Keough, Lakey, Lee, Lodge, Martin, Mortimer, Nonini, Nuxoll, Patrick, Souza, Thayn, Vick, Ward-Eneglking, and Winder.

Voting against: Sens. Bair, Buckner-Webb, Cameron, Johnson, Lacey, McKenzie, Rice, Schmidt, Siddoway, Stennett, and Tippets.