Proposal would have shifted stimulus funds to schools

BOISE – An attempt to nab nearly $20 million for education from federal stimulus money that Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has suggested earmarking for roadwork failed Thursday.

Sen. Nicole LeFavour, D-Boise, proposed shifting $19.5 million from the stimulus into the public school operations budget as discretionary funding for districts.

“This gives us an opportunity to cover where (schools) are short – keeping lights on, getting kids to where they need to be,” LeFavour said. “It is a pretty simple motion, and we do have the ability to do this.”

Rep. Maxine Bell, R-Jerome, co-chairwoman of the Legislature’s Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, said that’s not what the governor wants to do with the money.

“The gentleman in the Borah building has never wanted to put more money into education,” she said, noting that the stimulus money in question is for “safety and general government.” Bell said, “There’s other places where this money could do as much good for the people of Idaho.”

Wayne Hammon, Otter’s budget chief, confirmed, “He didn’t want to spend that money on education.”

Rep. Darrell Bolz, R-Caldwell, said LeFavour’s move would spend one-time money on ongoing expenses, creating “a whale of a hole to fill” after it’s gone. The motion was defeated on a 16-4 vote, with only the joint committee’s four Democrats favoring it.