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Committee grants spending authority for Farm-to-School extension, school-bus camera fund and child-nutrition tech grants

Joint Legislative Budget Committee (Senate Finance & House Appropriations) · March 9, 2026

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Summary

The joint committee approved an SDE package providing dedicated and federal spending authority to expand school bus camera grants, extend a Farm-to-School federal grant, and fund technology for the state Child Nutrition Program, after rejecting a larger substitute and passing the original package.

Kellen McGurkin, budget and policy analyst, told the committee the State Department of Education requested several enhancements for FY2027 that the governor recommended: a $28,200 ongoing dedicated-fund increase to access school-bus camera funds, federal spending authority to accommodate an anticipated extension of a Farm-to-School USDA grant, and $220,000 ongoing federal funds for Child Nutrition Program technology grants to support Idaho’s CNP platform.

Committee members debated a substitute that would have increased federal spending authority further. Supporters of the substitute emphasized that the additional federal authority would allow SDE to continue farm-to-school coordinator work and expand grants for vertical tower gardens, lesson materials and pass-through crunch-day reimbursements for schools; opponents worried about committing additional federal spending authority beyond anticipated grants. The substitute failed on roll-call, and the committee reverted to the original motion.

The committee then approved the original package on a roll-call: the motion adds $28,200 from dedicated funds and $489,600 from federal funds (total $517,800) to support the school-bus camera fund ongoing increase, the Farm-to-School federal grant extension, and the Child Nutrition technology grants. The motion will carry a do-pass recommendation.

What happens next: SDE will have statewide spending authority to continue the Farm-to-School program if the USDA grant extension is finalized and will be able to proceed with the child nutrition technology grants and expanded school-bus camera grant-making.