House Bill 521 will change which schools will receive lottery funds and what they can use them for.
BOISE, Idaho — Since 1989, the Idaho Lottery has offered its tickets for residents to purchase in the state. It was created through a voter initiative in 1988 with the idea that it would benefit Idaho schools.
The formula for dividing the annual dividend among Idaho schools has changed over the years. But in 2024, the Idaho legislature passed House Bill 521, marking the third time the formula has been changed.
- 50% would be allocated to the maintenance and operations of public schools.
- 50% would be for the permanent construction fund.
In 2008, the formula changed:
- 37.5% to the maintenance and operation of public schools.
- 37.5% to the state’s permanent construction fund.
- 25% to bond tax compensation fund.
At that time, “the State Department of Education used funds to help school districts complete building maintenance, repairs and other operational projects,” said Spencer Barzee, regional director of the Department of Education.
Traditional public schools and charter schools received funding from the Idaho Lottery under the “public school operations and maintenance” umbrella of the 2008 formula.
It will return to a 50-50 split due to House Bill 521, which passed this legislative session.
- 62.5% will go to the school district’s facilities fund.
- 37.5% to the state’s permanent construction fund.
The reworking of the formula changes how schools can use the funds and eliminates charter schools from receiving Idaho Lottery funds.
Now, traditional public schools can no longer use lottery funds for maintenance and operations.
“(The funds) go first to pay off existing bonds, pay off supplemental levies and then pay off plant facility taxes,” Barzee said. “So if all of those expenses are paid, there is still money left that can go into another separate construction fund that districts can use for construction-related projects.
Some school districts that relied heavily on lottery funds for maintenance and operating costs may now be struggling to find alternative funding sources.
Idaho is currently watching school districts review their budgets for next year. Some are making cuts because the taxes were not approved in the May primary elections just a few weeks ago.
Others are having to reevaluate aspects of their budget because schools are no longer receiving one-time Covid relief funds and other state funds are shifting from enrollment-based to attendance-based funding.
“It’s a pretty difficult situation,” Barzee said. “It’s a lot of things coming at once and all of those things together have been difficult for districts.”
The formula essentially eliminates the use of lottery funds for charter schools, but funding will continue to come from a different source.
House Bill 766 restores the “charter school facilities fund” through general taxes to ensure charter schools continue to receive the funding they need.
Barzee said the money is almost equivalent to what traditional schools receive.
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