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House education chair urges continued investment, warns rural schools face greatest funding risk
Summary
House Education Chairman Doug Pickett told the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee that Idaho has increased K-12 spending in the last decade but rural districts still face large funding gaps for facilities, special education and transportation and need targeted support.
Doug Pickett, chair of the Idaho House Education Committee, told the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee on March 7 that Idaho’s public education system has seen significant funding gains over the past decade but that rural districts remain at risk if funding priorities shift.
Pickett, who represents House District 27, said the statewide K-12 budget doubled over the last 10 years from about $1.4 billion to about $2.8 billion even though student counts rose by less than 9 percent. He said average teacher pay in Idaho has climbed to nearly $63,000 this school year, a roughly 42 percent…
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