Legislative Update--Senator Mark Harris

Dear friends and neighbors —

We win some and we lose some. Senate Bill 1145 (S1145) is one of our unfortunate losses. S1145 is a bill I sponsored that dealt with Early Literacy Readiness Programs for 4- and 5-year-olds. Research shows about 47% of kindergarten students are not reading “at grade level” when assessed in the fall. This is due to the lack of early childhood support in communities and for parents who cannot afford preschool. S1145 empowers local school districts by allowing them to use existing special education funds to support early literacy efforts. The bill did not create new spending and promoted local control to use resources where they would be most effective. It basically freed up funds currently locked up in grades K-3 and allowed districts to use the funds to get younger kids ready for kindergarten with no mandate to do so. S1145 was voted out of the Senate Education Committee with a do-pass recommendation but died on the Senate floor. This was another case of anti-public-school groups flexing their political muscle.  

House Bill 345 (H345) passed the Senate this week and was sent to the Governor. H345 is a significant bill that overhauls the Medicaid system in Idaho. It sets up a cost sharing plan as well as requesting a work requirement for Medicaid recipients from the federal government. The bill also moves medical providers from a Value Care Organization (VCO) system to what is called a Managed Care Organization (MCO) system. An MCO is basically a healthcare plan managed by insurance companies. The idea behind this is to save money. H345 also changes the way hospitals are reimbursed from the Medicaid system. The bill has a provision that addresses the possibility of the federal government failing to adhere to the agreement that was made to reimburse the State. In this case, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare can “take any action necessary to offset the increase in State funding”. In other words, the department can make adjustments until the Legislature reconvenes next Legislative Session when they can address any shortfall. It is important to note, the bill does not get rid of Medicaid like previous renditions of Medicaid legislation introduced during this Legislative Session. H345 is now on the Governor’s desk.

The Senate Local Government and Taxation Committee voted to advance a $100 million ongoing property tax bill this week. House Bill 304 (H304) will now go to the Senate floor to be debated. This is the third tax bill this year set to reduce taxes for Idaho citizens. I will be curious to hear more about H304.

We are seeing quite a few appropriation and finance bills on the Senate floor now. This is a good sign that this Legislative Session is winding down. We hope to see the last few budget bills next week as long as the Joint Finance and Appropriation Committee (JFAC) can continue to work together to approve budgets and send them to the respective floors for final votes. It has been interesting to watch legislators work to get things done before the various committee chairs shut down their committees. As the Legislative Session moves forward, it is apparent that many issues and ideas will have to wait to be taken up next Legislative Session.  

I continue to be blessed by having the privilege and honor to serve the good people of Legislative District 35. Please feel free to share your thoughts, concerns, and any questions you have about legislation before the Legislature or about State government in general. You can email me at [email protected] or call me at 208-332-1308.