Idaho State University president says forensic-lab funds will be returned, pledges tighter controls

Idaho State University President Rob Wagner told the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on Jan. 29 that the university will return state funds connected to a proposed Eastern Idaho forensic pathology laboratory and that ISU will tighten controls to ensure legislative intent is followed.

Wagner made the remarks after a Legislative Services Office analyst outlined ISU’s budget and identified a technical reporting error in tuition-and-fees balances. Kevin Campbell, a budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, told the committee his review of state-treasury records showed, “ISU has not overdrawn its bank account.” Wagner repeated the administration’s conclusion that the university must do better at tracking and owning legislative funds, saying, “legislative intent is law” and promising steps to improve accountability.

The report and the committee exchange came after media coverage about a planned Eastern Idaho Forensic Pathology Center. Wagner said ISU was originally appropriated the funds to house a lab on its Pocatello campus and that the university supported the project’s clinical and…