Legislators tackle math problem

Will the Legislature adequately fund public schools now that it has eliminated the property taxes that long formed the base of school support?

It’s a key issue in the Legislature this year. On Thursday, as lawmakers began to dig into budget numbers to try to find an answer, teachers converged on the state Capitol to ask what will be done.

“This is a litmus session in that regard,” said House Assistant Minority Leader George Sayler, D-Coeur d’Alene. “The pledge was we’re going to support education adequately. The money is there to do it. … Will we follow through?”

New GOP schools Superintendent Tom Luna presented his budget proposal to legislative budget writers to generally good reviews, calling for a 7 percent boost in state funding for schools next year, to $1.38 billion.

Care bears

Cute little teddy bears dressed in crisp white nurses’ uniforms graced the desks of every member of the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee one morning this week. The committee heard budget pitches from the College of Southern Idaho and North Idaho College, which want to expand their nursing education programs.

Gov. Butch Otter has recommended spending $37 million on construction of new nursing education buildings at CSI and at Lewis-Clark State College, but his budget includes no funding for $13.6 million in additional faculty, training and pay recommended by a state nursing task force.

“You can’t have one without the other, can you?” asked a surprised Sen. Denton Darrington, R-Declo, who served on the task force.

Urban renewal

Two North Idaho legislators launched an effort to restrict urban renewal districts, introducing legislation to limit their growth and to hand control from mayor-appointed volunteers to elected county officials.

Concerned that renewal districts benefit cities at the expense of county taxpayers, Sen. Michael Jorgenson and Rep. Jim Clark, both Hayden Lake Republicans, are proposing two bills that aim to increase accountability and hold districts to their original plans.

“You have tax burden or taxation without representation, and that’s a concern,” Jorgenson told members of the House Revenue and Taxation Committee on Wednesday.

Leaders of North Idaho urban renewal districts strongly oppose the bills, saying current law provides accountability and needed planning flexibility.