JFAC approves $270,000 supplemental for Fish and Game fire damage; considers $18.3 million in FY2026 enhancements including Idaho Power settlement

A Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee majority voted to approve a $270,000, one‑time appropriation to the Idaho Department of Fish and Game to cover funds already expended in calendar year 2024 responding to damage at the Boise River Wildlife Management Area caused by the Valley Fire.

The appropriation was moved by Vice Chair Woodford and seconded by Representative Manwaring. Chairman Groh called the roll; the motion carried with the committee recording 19 ayes, 0 nays and 1 absent/excused across the two legislative delegations.

The committee also took up the Department of Fish and Game’s FY2026 enhancement package. Janet Jessup, budget and policy analyst with Legislative Services, told the committee the department requested a range of enhancements including license and sales system updates; final funding for the Albany Falls mitigation project; increased costs for recreational access leases; phase 2 of a website overhaul; hatchery trailers and renovations; regional office lease and remodels; and remote connectivity for hatcheries. Jessup said the Valley Fire burned approximately 9,900 acres last summer and that the Idaho Power Company reached a settlement to convey $800,000 to the department for rehabilitation work.

Senator Woodward moved the FY2026 package, which combined dedicated and federal funds. The motion as read requested $11,017,400 from dedicated funds and $7,287,600 from federal funds, a total of $18,305,000 for FY2026 enhancements. Representative Manwaring seconded the motion. Committee members discussed line‑item details and a federal grant alignment reduction on one line. The motion was approved and will proceed with a due‑pass recommendation to the full legislature.

The committee also adopted two reappropriation language items the department requested. One allows appropriation balances for specific ongoing projects (deferred maintenance, the Pocatello office remodel, and website overhaul) to be reappropriated from FY2025 to FY2026; the other makes the balance of the Fish and Game depredation expendiable fund available for the agency’s use. Both language motions passed unanimously in committee and will accompany the department’s budget recommendation.

Why it matters: the supplemental and the Idaho Power settlement money support immediate restoration of wildlife habitat damaged in a large wildfire, while the FY2026 enhancements fund a range of operational and capital needs across the state’s fish and wildlife infrastructure. The committee’s approval sends the requests on for floor consideration and preserves reappropriation authority so multi‑year projects can continue uninterrupted.

Quotations from the hearing: Janet Jessup, Legislative Services budget and policy analyst, described the settlement and need: “The Idaho Power Company is going to convey $800,000 for fiscal year 2026 to the Department of Fish and Game” to continue rehabilitation work at the Wildlife Management Area.

Next steps: the department’s FY2026 enhancement package and the supplemental will proceed with JFAC’s due‑pass recommendations to each chamber; statutory appropriation and budget allocations will be finalized during the legislative floor process.