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Idaho Public Television seeks truck and $300,000 to replace aging broadcast servers; committee asks for itemized plan and clearer public/private budget lines
Summary
IPTV requested one‑time general‑fund replacement money for a pickup and $300,000 for an automation/network operations replacement; committee members questioned whether the vehicle estimate fits market prices, asked for an itemized plan for the $300,000, and pressed for clearer separation of state versus private funding and FTP allocation.
Idaho Public Television (IPTV) told the Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee it needs replacement capital items including a heavy‑duty field truck and $300,000 for broadcast automation and network operations equipment used to deliver programming and emergency alerts across the state.
LSO deputy Jared Tatro and IPTV General Manager Jeff Tucker described two replacement requests. The vehicle replacement request reflects the budget‑manual rate for a heavy‑duty truck; LSO said the manual lists $45,000 as the replacement rate for that vehicle class but the committee package showed $42,400 within the 3% cap. Tucker said the agency will auction the replaced vehicle and use any proceeds to help offset costs, but acknowledged that finding an appropriate heavy‑duty pickup at the stated price will be difficult.
The governor recommended $300,000 in one‑time funds for a network operations/automation system replacement. Tucker described the system as a proprietary automation platform built on Windows servers that handles recording, playback, routing and switching for IPTVs five channels and the statewide emergency broadcast functions. He told the committee the current servers are out of date and cannot be patched: "...they're not patchable anymore," he said, adding that the system is currently on an isolated network "which is a good thing," but that the aging equipment needs replacement to remain supportable and secure.
Committee members requested an itemized plan before releasing the $300,000. Senator Cook pressed whether the truck and the $42,400 estimate were realistic; Tucker and LSO staff acknowledged the published replacement rates are imperfect and said they would provide a procurement plan. Representative Tanner asked how the agency separates state‑funded infrastructure from privately funded content operations; Tucker said the private nonprofit arm pays for content production while the state general fund supports infrastructure, emergency alert capability and certain FTE. He said 14 FTE are paid from the general fund for operations including technical staff and the general manager.
The committee did not vote on the requests at the hearing and asked IPTV to provide more detailed, itemized replacement plans and to clarify the lines between state general‑fund spending and the station's private fundraising expenditures.
