JFAC approves $177.4 million CEC compensation package including $1.55 per hour minimum and targeted increases

BOISE — The Joint Finance‑Appropriations Committee on Feb. 6 approved a compensation and equity adjustment package (CEC) that directs a minimum increase of $1.55 per hour for state employees and includes targeted adjustments for specific groups of workers.

Legislative staff presented a single, consolidated motion that would: provide $1.55 per hour per full‑time equivalent for permanent employees of state agencies and institutions; include $2,305,700 to cover community‑college equivalents at 5%; add $6,042,800 for salary‑schedule adjustments for employees at the minimum of their pay grades; fund a 4.5% adjustment for classified and nonclassified IT and engineering positions; provide up to an 8% total increase for Idaho State Police troopers; and fund nursing and health‑care state workers at $1.55 per hour or 3%, whichever is greater. The package also includes $84,669,500 directed to public schools and Idaho Educational Services for the Deaf and the Blind (IDESDB). The total cost of the motion was $177,429,100 across general, dedicated and federal funds.

Keith Bybee, Division Manager for Budget Policy Analysis with Legislative Services, walked the committee through the language that implements pay increases between $1.50 and $1.55 per hour except in specified circumstances, directs reporting requirements to the Division of Human Resources and State Comptroller for monthly reporting of pay changes, and prevents agencies from transferring the new funding from personnel costs to other categories. Bybee said the language shifts four salary schedules (primary, IT/engineering, public safety, and nursing/health care) upward by at least $1.55 per hour and includes reporting and reversion provisions to the legislature if funds are not used for pay increases.

Representative Miller moved the compensation motion. After extended floor‑style discussion in committee — including objections from Senator Ward Engelking and Senator Wintrow who said the package does not fully address pay compression and salary competitiveness for higher‑paid positions — the committee approved the motion. Debate noted concerns that a uniform minimum raises the risk of compression at higher salary steps and limits managers’ discretion to reward performance.

The committee recorded roll calls for the package. The House recorded 18 ayes and 2 nays; the Senate recorded 8 ayes and 2 nays. With the majority voting in the affirmative, the motion passed and will carry a due‑pass recommendation to the floor.

Committee members and legislative staff said the package aims to strike a balance between cost‑of‑living relief for all employees and targeted market adjustments to retain and recruit high‑turnover or high‑market‑pressure positions. The bill’s language also requires monthly reporting from the Division of Human Resources and the Office of the State Comptroller to show how agencies apply the new funding and to identify any additional pay changes outside the CEC window.

Representative Miller urged passage to enact the higher minimum and targeted adjustments; opponents urged a broader, longer‑term fix to compression at salaries above roughly $64,000. Mr. Bybee told the committee the package follows statutory requirements for legislative review of salary increases and provides reporting so the legislature can track implementation.

The committee directed staff to incorporate the adopted language into the maintenance bills and to produce follow‑up reports as required by the motion’s reporting provisions.