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LSO provides K‑12 budget overview: attendance, support units and funding mechanics explained
Summary
Jared Tatro of the Legislative Services Office briefed the committee on K‑12 funding mechanics, including average daily attendance vs. enrollment, support units, major budget drivers, ARPA phase‑out, and program maintenance and enhancement items facing JFAC this session.
Jared Tatro, deputy division manager for the Legislative Services Office’s Budget and Policy Analysis Division, briefed the House Committee on Education on the state’s K‑12 funding mechanics, current enrollment and attendance trends, and the top budgetary issues the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee (JFAC) will consider.
Tatro said Idaho funds most public‑school spending by average daily attendance (ADA) and support units rather than simple enrollment. He noted the February midterm ADA was about 94% of enrollment, that support units (roughly a classroom equivalent) drive funding allocations, and that last year’s return to attendance‑based funding—after three hybrid years during the pandemic—contributed to budgetary adjustments the legislature addressed with supplemental appropriations.
He summarized current numbers: approximately 314,100 students in enrollment, a midterm ADA of about 295,400, and roughly 15,875 support units at the time of the briefing. Tatro explained that the public school appropriation is roughly $3.3 billion and described the mix of general fund, dedicated funds (including the school district facilities fund), and federal funds (traditional federal funding plus ARPA, which is nearing exhaustion). He added that the legislature does not set local employee compensation: "The legislature does not determine school employee compensation. That is a local decision 100%."
Tatro walked through statutory mechanics—Title 33, Chapter 10 (support units and divisors), the staff allowance formula, the career ladder and how recent changes complicate transparency—and listed top enhancement proposals that would require separate germane legislation, including a weighted student formula, a rewrite of the student transportation formula, and a special‑needs student fund.
Committee members asked about how one‑time funds (ARPA) affect base budgets, how quickly districts know their budgets after final legislative action, and what happens when appropriations do not match statutory formulas. Tatro said one‑time funds are removed in subsequent budgets, the public education stabilization fund (PESF) can be used to smooth shortfalls or surpluses, and districts generally do not have a final, signed number until legislation is complete; he said districts receive usable estimates earlier but rely on final appropriations to finalize contracts.
Tatro also noted several Department of Education enhancement requests such as additional special‑education support positions, and he pointed committee members to the legislative budget book, fiscal facts, and other LSO resources for deeper detail. The presentation was technical and informational; no committee vote resulted from the briefing.
