JFAC approves technical corrections and program‑maintenance budgets for dozens of state programs

The Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee on Friday approved technical corrections to existing appropriations and enacted program‑maintenance budgets covering nearly every major state agency, from the Legislative Branch to Health and Human Services.

Committee action fixed fund coding errors and moved base dollars into the correct programs, approved routine maintenance budgets and full‑time‑equivalent caps, and adopted standard carryover and reporting language used annually across agency appropriation bills.

Why it matters: the votes set the baseline appropriations the Legislature will use when drafting appropriation bills. Several of the fixes change where money is tracked (for example, moving prior reappropriations into a broadband account), which affects transparency and how the Legislature monitors grant and federal fund spend going into the next budget cycle.

The committee took its first votes on a set of technical corrections identified in a yellow handout from Legislative Services. Janet Jessup, budget and policy analyst with Legislative Services Office, told the committee that last year’s decision to add the broadband office to the Department of Commerce occurred after reappropriation was recorded, so the money landed in the Commerce program instead of the broadband office. “This action would remove the monies that were reappropriated to the commerce, commerce program, and then also add them back into the broadband office so they can be tracked for transparency moving forward,” Jessup said.

Committee members moved and passed two corrective motions to (1) reduce reappropriated funds from the Department of Commerce program and (2) add the same amount to the broadband program; both motions carried unanimously on roll call.

Other corrections approved included a $2,000,000 transfer to make the Department of Environmental Quality’s appropriation whole after a General Fund/transfer coding error and a pair of reclassification moves in the Department of Health and Welfare that shifted trustee/benefit payments into operating expenditure categories where contract payments are recorded.

The committee then advanced program‑maintenance budgets — the “base plus statewide decisions” budgets the Legislature uses as a starting point for the 2026 budget cycle — for the Legislative Branch, the Judicial Branch, constitutional officers, public safety agencies, general government, economic development functional agencies, natural resources, the State Board of Education (and its related institutions), public schools and Health & Human Services. Mr. Bybee, a Legislative Services budget analyst, framed the program‑maintenance review as “starting with the base” and adding only statewide adjustments such as contract inflation and statewide cost allocation.

Most maintenance‑budget motions included (a) the dollar totals by fund source for the FY2026 base and program maintenance level, (b) a cap on authorized full‑time equivalents where applicable, and (c) statutory or carryover (reappropriation) language. The committee also approved the accompanying standard language provisions — exemptions from expense class/program transfers in limited cases, reappropriation authority for ARPA/other carryovers, reporting requirements, and accountability language — that the agencies rely on to administer multi‑year projects and federal grants.

Representative Miller, Representative Tanner, Senator Carlson and other committee members moved and seconded the various maintenance motions. Mr. Bybee and other Legislative Services analysts walked the committee through comparative reports and line items for each package prior to votes. Bybee summarized the budgeting concept: “What is a base budget? So a base budget is really your ongoing operations for the entire state government, right?”

Most motions passed unanimously on roll call; a few health‑and‑human‑services items drew one or two dissenting votes during closely watched realignment votes and the large Medicaid/federal funds appropriation, which one senator later changed from an aye to a nay during the roll call review. The committee recorded each roll call on the record and indicated when vote totals were 20‑0 (Senate + House floor representation in the committee) or otherwise.

What’s next: staff will draft appropriation bill language reflecting the motions and the committee’s included language. The committee scheduled a review once bills are drafted to confirm technical corrections before introduction. Committee members noted outstanding items (contract inflation decisions, health insurance/CEC numbers) that were not finalized and will be taken up separately when the group reaches consensus.

Votes at a glance

- Commerce/broadband reappropriation (technical correction): two motions — (a) remove $291,737,000 from Department of Commerce reappropriated funds; (b) add $291,737,000 to the broadband office reappropriation account. Movers: Representative Handy (removal); Representative Handy (addition). Outcome: both passed (Senate/House roll calls recorded as unanimous; total recorded 20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Department of Environmental Quality appropriation correction (transfer from General Fund): moved by Senator Woodward. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Department of Health & Welfare: two expenditure‑category reclassifications (substance abuse treatment & prevention, physical health services): moved by Representative Price. Outcome: both passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Legislative Branch program‑maintenance budget (includes $41,700 statewide cost allocation): moved by Representative Miller. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Legislative Branch appropriation language (exemptions, ARPA reappropriation authority, reporting): moved by Representative Miller. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Judicial Branch program‑maintenance budget (includes $116,400 statewide cost allocation): moved by Senator Carlson. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Judicial Branch language (expense class exemptions, judges’ retirement remittance language, ARPA reappropriation): moved by Senator Carlson. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Constitutional officers program‑maintenance budget (six statewide elected offices): moved by Representative Tanner. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Constitutional officers language (several reappropriations and limits specified): moved by Representative Tanner. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Public Safety program‑maintenance budget: moved by Senator Wintrow. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Public Safety language (transfers within Corrections, other reappropriations): moved by Senator Wintrow. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- General government program‑maintenance budget: moved by Representative Miller. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- General government FTP caps (motion to set caps): moved by Representative Biller. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- General government language (13 sections including ARPA carryovers, workforce grants, accountability reports): moved by Representative Miller. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Economic development program‑maintenance budget: moved by Senator Woodward. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Economic development language (broadband grants reappropriations, watercraft inspection, lottery continuous appropriation, etc.): moved by Senator Woodward. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Natural resources program‑maintenance budget: moved by Representative Manwaring. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Natural resources language (Bunker Hill reporting, Ag BMP, parks capital reappropriation, water resources transfers): moved by Representative Manwaring. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- State Board of Education program‑maintenance budget (includes colleges, K‑12 programs, some FTP caps): moved by Senator Ward Engelking. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- State Board of Education language (tuition/fee reappropriations, exemptions for agricultural research and extension, IP TV continuous appropriation): moved by Senator Ward Engelking. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays); the committee later adopted a clerical correction to the Idaho Public Television language by roll call (19 ayes, 0 nays, 1 absent excused recorded on that correction vote).

- Public school support (program maintenance): moved by Representative Miller. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Public schools language (24 sections: professional development, discretionary funds, health benefits, classroom technology, student support consolidation, advanced opportunity, reporting): moved by Representative Miller. Outcome: passed (20 ayes, 0 nays).

- Department of Health & Welfare realignment of appropriation units (create a new Idaho Childcare Program unit, move FTPs and dollars to align with reorganized divisions): moved on the record and seconded; outcome: passed (combined committee roll: 18 ayes, 1 nay, 1 absent excused on the realignment motion). A later roll call on the larger HHS dollar motion recorded 17 ayes, 2 nays, 1 absent excused after one senator changed an earlier recorded vote.

- Health & Human Services program‑maintenance appropriation totals, FTP cap and language (Medicaid reporting requirements, managed‑care reporting, opioid/Naloxone restrictions, behavioral health reporting, community hospitalization transfer exemptions): moved by Representative Tanner. Outcome: passed (committee recorded majorities, see text above for specifics; final recorded vote on the large appropriation showed 17 ayes, 2 nays, 1 absent excused after a change on the record).

Staff and next steps

Legislative Services analysts (including Janet Jessup, Mr. Bybee, Frances Lippitt, Brooke Dupree, Jared Tetrault and Alex Williamson) said staff will post the drafted appropriation language in SharePoint and return next Friday for a review once drafters have produced bill text. The committee indicated outstanding items (contract inflation/CEC numbers and health insurance amounts) remain unresolved and will be taken up separately when the work groups reach consensus.

Closing note

Committee Chair Representative Horman thanked staff and the committee for progress and scheduled a review session to confirm technical drafting before bills move to introduction.