JFAC shifts Department of Labor funding amid lower federal grant expectations; two policy reports fail to gain House support

The Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on Tuesday approved budget adjustments for the Idaho Department of Labor that move $5,000,000 into the Employment Security Special Administration Fund and reduce federal grant fund authority by the same amount, producing a net increase of $161,000 for FY2026.

Brooke Dupree, a budget and policy analyst with the Legislative Services Office, told the committee that the department requested $7,330,000 for unemployment insurance operations and proposed the fund shift because federal grant awards are partly determined by unemployment numbers. An analyst explained the state has recently experienced low unemployment, so a decline in the federal grant award is expected and the department requested dedicated fund appropriation to keep operations funded.

Senator Cook moved the budget adjustment, noting the department director revised the request and that the department supports the change. The committee approved the motion by roll call and the chair announced the motion will go forward with a due‑pass recommendation.

Separately, committee members considered two pieces of intent language the department would produce: (1) a report analyzing the impact of illegal immigration on Idaho’s labor market; and (2) a report reviewing costs of administering disability determinations at the state level versus the federal level. Supporters said the reports would provide cost‑benefit information to inform policy decisions.

Opponents raised separation‑of‑powers concerns. Senator Wintrow cautioned that intent language directing executive branch activity without funding can amount to mission creep; she said such directives are more appropriate for policy committees and, if funding is needed, should come through a trailer bill. Representative Tanner and Senator Wentworth (as recorded) raised questions about federal legal constraints on disability determinations, including protections for people with disabilities under federal law.

The committee voted on the language. The transcript records an affirmative Senate tally but the House side did not approve the language; the chair declared the language failed in the committee because the House did not concur. The budget motion itself passed and will be forwarded with a due‑pass recommendation.

Committee members asked staff to follow up on how quickly federal grant awards adjust to unemployment changes; an analyst offered to report back with information. The committee did not appropriate new general fund dollars for the Department of Labor in this action.