Senate committee backs sending bean commission fee increase to Senate floor

The Idaho Senate Agricultural Affairs Committee voted to send Senate Bill 1054 to the Senate floor with a do-pass recommendation after testimony that the Idaho Bean Commission needs more revenue to fund research, education and market development.

Andy Wolf Wybie, executive director of the Idaho Bean Commission, told the committee the commission “does not receive any general fund moneys” and has not asked for an assessment increase since 1992. Wybie said the commission’s board voted in June 2023 to raise the dealer-side assessment by 4 cents and is requesting statutory authority to raise the total assessment up to 24 cents per hundredweight with a majority board vote; the request before the committee would raise the base assessment to 16 cents per hundredweight split equally between growers and dealers, a change members described in committee discussion as moving “from 12¢ to a base of 16.”

The nut graf: supporters told the committee the commission’s work — disease testing, seed certification rules, research trials and education events such as Bean School — underpins Idaho’s reputation as a premier source of clean bean seed and that declining assessment revenue has reduced the commission’s capacity to fund that work.

Committee testimony described how the commission is funded and how the money is used. Wybie and several industry witnesses emphasized research and market access as priorities. “As a grower I view the Commission as an invaluable resource for research, education, and marketing,” said Michael Goodson, vice chairman of the Idaho Bean Commission and a grower representative. Monty Hamilton, the commission’s dealer representative and board chairman, said: “The dealers on the board strongly support this bill.”

Witnesses and Wybie outlined recent outreach and grants the commission has used to supplement its budget: presentations to farm groups, field days in Treasure and Magic valleys, sponsorships at the University of Idaho Parma Research and Extension facility, and roughly $2 million in grants Wybie said the commission has received since 2011 to fund research and related work. Wybie also told the committee the commission has funded entomology work and seed-testing protocols aimed at responding to international concerns about Curtobacterium; seed-testing and rapid response were cited as key to protecting Idaho’s export markets.

Committee members asked for budget detail and alternatives. Wybie estimated administrative costs at roughly 30–40% of the commission’s typical annual budget and research also “around the 40%,” with education and outreach funded from the balance. When asked whether private fundraising could replace a fee increase, Wybie said the commission has sought sponsorships and grants but that statutory limitations and the commission’s structure constrain how much privately raised money can substitute for an assessment.

Senator Cole said he would support sending the bill to the floor but expressed “lingering concerns” about relying on fee increases and urged more private fundraising where possible.

The motion to send Senate Bill 1054 to the floor with a do-pass recommendation was moved by Senator Blaylock and seconded by Senator Lent. The committee approved the motion by voice vote; no roll-call tally was recorded in the hearing record. The committee also noted the bill author (Senator Blaylock) would carry the bill on the floor.

Looking ahead, proponents said the additional revenue would allow the commission to restore research and travel that it has curtailed as receipts fell — Wybie said 2024 receipts were under $86,000, “almost half” the prior 10-year average of about $163,000 — while opponents or cautious members asked the commission to continue pursuing sponsorships and private funding as a complement to public assessments.

Wybie closed by noting that even the commission’s maximum request (24 cents per hundredweight) would translate to a modest per-acre cost on typical yields: she said an average yield is about 25 sacks per acre and that “even at 24¢ ... it’s only about $3 per acre.”

The committee record shows the bill advanced to the full Senate for further consideration.