Idaho’s Legislative Wins: Empowering Our Schools

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Breaking Down the 2024 Session for Charter School Supporters

The 2024 Idaho Legislative session saw significant legislation enacted that impacts the state’s public school systems, highlighted by a major reform of Idaho’s charter school laws and a significant change in how public schools facilities are funded. The legislature also passed several other pieces of legislation that impact kids and families across the state. 

Here’s a summary of what happened in 2024:

Accelerating Public Charter Schools Act, H. 422 – The intent behind this legislation is to foster and support charter schools through best practices, development, educational and operational assistance. It aims to reward high achieving schools with greater autonomy while identifying struggling schools and devoting additional resources to help them get back on track.  Some of the specific changes include: 

  • Cleaning up the charter school chapter to make it more readable and user friendly throughout the bill. 

  • Allowing a charter to operate day care and after school programs so long as no state funding is used to subsidize such programs.

  • Allowing charter holders with multiple schools to enroll as a single LEA to reduce duplicative audit requirements and cross-collateralize loans.

  • Streamlining the application authorization, and reauthorization processes by spelling out what is required in an application.

  •  Creating a special category of pilot charters to continue to promote and support innovative or novel charter school models.  

  •  Providing for terms for the application - 6 year general, 3 year pilot charters – and renewals – 12 year general, 6 year pilot charters.

  •  Implementing the use of administrative hearing officers for the Charter School Commission’s  appeals process.

  •  Allowing demonstrated high performing charter school holders to more easily replicate their model and manage multiple schools while maintaining a high level of academic and fiscal performance.

  • Allowing charter schools that meet all of the terms for their performance certificate a 12-year renewal term.  Authorizers have the flexibility of providing for a 6-year or non-renewal of any charter that fails to meet any of the terms of the performance charter.

  • Allowing charters to receive funding or financial assistance from private organizations. 

  • Eliminating existing rules for the charter commission as they have been integrated into this bill where necessary to create a one-stop shop for charter laws.

  • Simplified the language regarding fees charter school authorizers can charge so schools have a clear understanding of what they will be required of them. 

  • Charter schools still must abide by and are required to submit all financial documentation and audits to the State Department of Education, as well comply with certain State Board of Education policy and decisions.

Funding for School Facilities, H. 521 – A $2 billion plan to fund school facilities over the next decade is now in motion. Each school district will get a share of $1 billion, divided based on attendance, and the state will boost annual contributions to funds that help districts pay off bonds and levies. Altogether, H.521 represents $1.5 billion in new state spending on school facilities. 

This legislation was this session’s major education spending proposal that sailed through the House in February before slowing down in the Senate over “policy provisions” that were also included in the bill. Ultimately the legislature decided to pass a trailer bill that addressed some of the policy provisions included in H.521, clearing a path for this bill to be approved and signed into law. The bill ultimately cleared the House and Senate on comfortable votes, and Gov. Brad Little, who co-authored HB 521, quietly signed it. 

Funding for School Facilities ‘Trailer’ bill, H 766 – The policy changes implemented by H. 521 were addressed in H. 766.  It tweaks the four-day schools language; provides a funding patch for the Oneida School District, which stands to lose state funding under HB 521; and allows the Senate to confirm future executive directors of the State Board of Education. It also fixes a glitch from last year’s big property tax relief law, ensuring charter schools receive facilities money totaling $400 per student. 

  • Eases language for four-day schools, a contentious point in the HB 521 debate. Schools receiving a share of the $1 billion in new facilities funding would have to meet state requirements for classroom days – or minimums for instructional hours. The language on instructional hours is a major change; more than 90 districts and charters are operating under a four-day schedule, meeting the state’s minimums for classroom hours.

  • Guarantees charter schools facilities money, totaling $400 per student. This would swap out an old and complicated formula that provided charters with roughly the same amount of money. The property tax bill from last year, H.292 from last year inadvertently cut funding to about $200 per student. 

  • Addresses Oneida School Districts unique funding issues. It would ensure the school district collects as much money from HB 521 as it would have received from a bond levy equalization fund that HB 521 eliminates. Oneida passed a $29 million bond issue in 2023.

  • Allows the Senate to confirm the executive director of the State Board of Education. Previously the position was only appointed by the governor.

Private School Tuition Tax Credits, H.447 – This session’s major “school choice” proposal — a $50 million tax credit and grant program for private school tuition failed to pass out of the House Tax and Revenue Committee by one vote. The bill would have given qualifying families a tax credit worth $5,000 for qualified education expenses, including private school tuition. It also included $5,000 grants for low income families and a $7500 tax credit for special needs students. Dozens of supporters attended an emotional hearing on the bill, and school choice groups across Idaho advocated for the bill.

Empowering Parents, S.1358 - The Empowering Parents grant program is an existing program that allows families to  cover out-of-pocket education costs to support their child’s education. The program was permanently authorized and funded last year. However, after some concerns about expenses last year lawmakers made a few changes to the popular program. For example, parents will be able to use their grants for student fees, such as sports pay-to-play fees and FFA fees..

Advanced Opportunities, H.454 – High school students will be able to spend more Advanced Opportunities money, and in more ways. Public and charter school students will now get a $4,625 line of credit — a $500 increase, and enough to cover the cost of an associate’s degree. For nonpublic school students, the cap increases from $750 to $2,500. Students will also be able to spend up to $1,000 on a career-technical course, up from $500.