District 25 state legislators took a tour of their region last Friday and Saturday, meeting with voters and determining what issues were on the minds of their constituents.
While issues as varied as mega-loads and animal cruelty were discussed in forums in Ketchum and Bellevue, voters mostly continued along the lines their legislators set last week, voicing their concerns over the budget shortfall, education reform and the severe cuts to the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare.
No money, more problems
"I have been so depressed about this," said Rep. Wendy Jaquet, D-Ketchum, about the 2012 budget.
The predicted budget shortfall stood at $35 million at the start of the session, but Jaquet said the shortfall is now $150 million. Because of the sweeping changes made to educational programs and other areas, as well as the decreased state revenues in December, Jaquet said the budget process is going to be a long and difficult one.
"I think we'll be there in April," Jaquet said. "We need to figure out where we're going to find the money."
Sales tax increases have been suggested to fill the shortfall, including one bill sponsored by Rep. Shirley Ringo, D-Moscow, and Rep. Tom Trail, R-Moscow. The bill would remove tax exemptions on ski lifts and snow-grooming equipment, as well as issuing new taxes on construction and other personal and professional services.
Jaquet dismissed the bill, saying it was unlikely to ever receive a hearing. She also said there was "no appetite" in the Legislature for raising sales taxes.
However, Sen. Michelle Stennett, D-Ketchum, and Jaquet both support raising the tobacco tax by $1.25 per pack of cigarettes, a move that Jaquet said would bring the state $51.1 million in revenue.
The tax would mainly be used to offset the cost of tobacco-related illnesses in the Medicaid program, an estimated $83 million. Though Jaquet has been vocal about her support for the bill since before the beginning of the session, Stennett added hers just recently in her weekly legislative update.
While the budget situation looks bleak so far, Jaquet said, there was at least one benefit to having a difficult budget.
"One thing that's good about not having money is you start asking questions," she said.
Learning, the hard way
Schools Superintendent Tom Luna's plan for education reform, called Students Come First, did not find many supporters either in the Legislature or in the public forums this weekend.
"This plan is not students come first," said Jim Cobble, school superintendent for Jerome. "It's some students come first, maybe."
Cobble said during the Ketchum forum on Friday that he estimates the Jerome School District will lose just over $2 million in funding in 2012.
Jaquet said that not only did she oppose the plan, she opposed the way in which it was brought to the Legislature.
"Very few people knew about it," she said. "We came in already depressed about the budget and suddenly there was this huge change."
The issue of online learning provoked the most discussion of the educational issues involved in Luna's plan, with even students saying they weren't convinced the plan would be effective.
Claire Bowman, a senior at Wood River High School, said during the Ketchum forum that she wasn't satisfied with the classes she took online.
"I did my assignments the day after they were due," she said. "As a student, you have to go out of your way to get a good education online."
Bowman's point was so compelling for Rep. Donna Pence, D-Gooding, that she used it as an example during the Bellevue forum the next morning.
"Everybody learns a different way," Pence said. "I think it depends a lot on your motivation."
Bowman said she was able to learn a lot in her online economics class, but only because she had extensive phone contact with her teacher.
Online learning could also reduce the average daily attendance rate, which Pence said might reduce funding to schools such as those in the Jerome School District. The most recent version of the bill calls for only six online classes per student, rather than the eight required by the original plan.
The laptops that the state plans on providing to high school students also met with opposition, as the budget calls for only $250 per laptop.
"That doesn't sound like much of a laptop," Pence said, while Cobble added, "Those have less technology than my cell phone."
Stennett said the 96-page education bill will likely be split into several bills for hearings.
E Pluribus Unum—kind of
District voters also said they worried about efforts in the Legislature to nullify the federal health-care bill by declaring the law to be unconstitutional and ineffective in Idaho.
Stennett said House bill 59, scheduled to be introduced in committee next week, would set a precedent that states can decide which federal laws they wish to enforce.
"What do you want to do, secede from the union? Over health care? Really?" Stennett asked.
Pence agreed, saying the Idaho bill is unconstitutional, "but that doesn't seem to faze them."
Stennett said the bill, if passed, would likely be struck down through litigation. She said passing the bill would be a waste of taxpayer money that would need to be spent in court and on legal fees, all because of political posturing.
"The Legislature just wants to make a statement," she said.
Jaquet said the bill is likely the result of a lack of understanding regarding the federal health-care bill, the approval rate for which is increasing as more people learn about it.
Health and Welfare
Apart from education, the department facing the most severe cuts is Health and Welfare, another major issue of concern for valley voters.
"It's heart-breaking," Jaquet said of the budget, which cuts services to the tune of $80 million.
Such cuts would also result in the loss of federal matching funds, according to Pence, putting many programs in jeopardy.
The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee held a public hearing on the topic Friday, which Stennett said drew an incredible response from the public. About 1,000 voters showed up to testify, bringing compelling stories regarding the need for Health and Welfare funding and filling five overflow rooms at the Capitol.
Jaquet said Idahoans need the services provided by the department. One such program provides funding for developmentally disabled or otherwise disabled people to be cared for in what are called certified family homes, cared for by their own family members.
Jaquet said the current system, which may come under the budget-trimming knife, saves the state money.
"We're supposed to be a loving, caring, civilized society," she said. "We don't want to have to lock people up again."
Coming up next
This week should see the printing of the education reform bills, as well as legislation regarding school board training and stipends sponsored by Jaquet.
Stennett is sponsoring her first bill in the Senate this week. The bill would allow Idaho government buildings to fly prisoner-of-war or missing-in-action flags below the American flag. Such displays would not be mandatory.
Stennett said she was asked to sponsor the bill by the veterans of Gooding, who approached her because of her involvement with local POW Bowe Bergdahl. Bergdahl was captured in Afghanistan in June 2009.
"Hopefully, the bill will pass with little opposition," Stennett said.
Katherine Wutz: kwutz@mtexpress.com
Sen. Michelle Stennett, left, and Rep. Wendy Jaquet listen to voters’ concerns during a forum at the Roosevelt Grille in Ketchum on Friday. Stennett, Jaquet and fellow legislator Rep. Donna Pence toured the region on Friday and Saturday before heading back into session on Monday. Photo by Willy Cook
