House Education Committee introduces RS32040 to create public education facilities grant fund

BOISE — The Idaho House Committee on Education voted Jan. 28 to introduce RS32040, a draft bill that would establish a Public Education Facilities Fund to provide need-based grants to school districts for construction, remodels, deferred maintenance and emergency repairs.

The bill’s sponsors, Representative Rod Furness (District 31) and Representative Sonya Galaviz (District 16), told the committee the measure would convert an older loan-and-grant program into a grant-only fund and prioritize districts with the greatest demonstrated need, with an emphasis on rural districts that lack bonding capacity.

RS32040, as explained by Furness, would repeal prior legislation that left about $25 million in an unused account and transfer that balance into the new fund. The bill would also permit transfer of a portion of the public school health insurance participation fund — about $57,000,000 was cited in the committee discussion — with…