And now, the public schools budget…
After a 10-9 vote on the public health services division budget within the Department of Health & Welfare, JFAC is now taking up the public schools budget. Sen. Dean Mortimer, R-Idaho Falls, noted that there are two competing motions: One from him and JFAC Co-Chair Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint; and one from a working group of JFAC members led by Rep. Wendy Horman, R-Idaho Falls.
Mortimer told the committee that all involved “have done a lot of work, have worked hard, and education is going to benefit. I think there are some differences, but in the overall scheme of what we’re trying to do, I think there is a lot of agreement.”
He said the difference between the two proposals is “one overriding principle, and that is whether you put a line item from employer health insurance costs. If you put that line item in there, it changes the discussion of what you can do in the teachers division and the operations division, and the amounts you can put in those budgets. ... I feel like there needs to be a health insurance item in there, and that’s why we’re working a competing motion.”
Horman said, “I agree with the senator that so many senators and representatives have invested time working on this budget. That’s good news for all of us. That being said, there are some differences that we will see as we get to working through this budget.”