Idaho Agriculture Department details quagga mussel response, staffing and equipment requests

The Idaho Department of Agriculture told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on Friday that the agency’s FY2026 budget centers on continued quagga mussel response work and measures to retain investigators and inspectors.

Legislative Services analyst Frances Lippett told the committee the department received a one‑time $5 million general fund infusion last session for quagga mussel response and an ongoing $1.5 million general fund appropriation for staffing and check‑station needs; the department also expects ongoing pressure on a number of its dedicated funds. "The projected decline that you see in the fund balance reflects the extent of that effort rather than any decline in sticker fee revenue," Lippett said, referring to the invasive‑species fund supported primarily by watercraft sticker fees.

The money is intended to support statewide watercraft inspection and decontamination operations and staffing increases that director Chanel Tewell said nearly doubled sampling and inspections in 2024. "We doubled the sampling statewide ... we almost doubled the amount of…