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JFAC adds $1.68 million to community colleges, directs board to propose outcome‑based funding
Summary
The Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee approved $1,679,800 in ongoing general fund for enrollment workload adjustments across Idaho's community colleges and instructed the State Board of Education to return an outcome‑based funding model by Dec. 31, 2025.
The Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on March 7 approved additional general‑fund support for Idaho's community colleges to cover enrollment workload adjustments and directed the State Board of Education to develop an outcome‑based funding proposal.
Representative Pesky moved that JFAC add $496,800 ongoing general fund for College of Eastern Idaho, $690,000 ongoing for College of Southern Idaho and $493,000 ongoing for College of Western Idaho — a total of $1,679,800 in ongoing general fund for fiscal 2026. Senator Ward Engelking seconded the motion. The committee voted 19 ayes, 1 nay, 0 absent; the motion passed and will be sent to the floor with a due‑pass recommendation.
"We didn't wanna hold them to that 3% cap," Pesky said during floor discussion, referring to a cap on the enrollment workload adjustment (EWA) calculation. He said JFAC wanted to give community colleges the full benefit of their EWA and held North Idaho College harmless after NIC's backward‑looking EWA did not fully reflect recent enrollment gains and progress on accreditation.
Committee staff explained community‑college appropriations are trustee and benefit payments and that community colleges are subject to enrollment work‑load adjustment rules set by the State Board of Education.
The committee also adopted language directing the State Board of Education to develop an outcome‑based funding model and return to JFAC with a proposal by Dec. 31, 2025, with implementation targeted for fiscal 2028. Representative Petzke requested unanimous consent to accept the language from the screen and the committee approved it without objection.
Votes at a glance: the motion to add $1,679,800 from the general fund for community colleges passed 19–1 (combined House and Senate), and accompanying directive language on outcome‑based funding was adopted by unanimous consent.
