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Legislative Services adds impact review team, research fellows to support JFAC evidence reviews
Summary
Paul Headley introduced a new Legislative Services Office impact review team and two research fellows through the Idaho Science/Technology Policy Fellowship to help JFAC with evidence, mapping and IT analysis, and to provide short research products for committee members and work groups.
Boise — Paul Headley, deputy chief at the Legislative Services Office, told the Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee on Jan. 8 that LSO has added an impact review team and two research fellows to support JFAC this session with rapid research, IT and GIS analysis, and evidence reviews.
Headley said the team can produce short, committee‑focused products ranging from quick email responses to one‑ or two‑page briefs and deeper research where time allows. He introduced Casey Hartwig (public schools, higher education and natural resources), Alex Penny (audits/evaluations, health and human services, capital budgets), and Alex Hatfield (IT analysis, GIS and transportation/public safety/election topics). He also introduced two fellows hosted through a university fellowship program: Dr. Ellen Upton (biomedical science) and another research fellow with GIS/engineering backgrounds.
Why it matters: Committee members will have immediate access to additional research capacity dedicated to synthesizing evidence for proposed programs, performance measures and policy proposals — a tool intended to improve the committee’s ability to evaluate ROI and program outcomes during budget review.
Scope and capabilities
Headley told members the new team’s work will include locating evidence about whether programs have worked in other jurisdictions, identifying relevant databases, doing performance measure research and producing short briefs that committee members can use in hearings and work groups. He summarized the team’s central task with a single word: “evidence.” He said the staff will also attend working groups to take notes and provide targeted analysis.
Staffing and deployment
LSO listed assignments for the impact team and the two fellows and said the researchers will support budget analysts by answering questions on demand and by building short research products that can be shared with committee members and staff.
Next steps
Headley invited members to use the new resource and to request follow‑up research or briefings through LSO staff. Committee leaders said the team will be available to work with analysts in the committee’s work groups starting this week.
Ending
Committee chairs framed the new team as a permanent enhancement to LSO’s capacity for evidence‑based budgeting and urged members to rely on the impact review analysts when preparing for hearings.
