© 2024 Boise State Public Radio
NPR in Idaho
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations
Apple's latest iOS (17.4) is preventing our livestreams from playing. We suggest you download the free Boise State Public Radio app & stream us there while we work to troubleshoot the issue.
A school kid in Indiana works at a computer.With the results tallied from Idaho’s 967 precincts, voters clearly said no to Propositions 1, 2 and 3.More than 645,000 votes were cast in each of the Propositions. Each of the propositions failed by at least 15 percent of the vote. Proposition 3, the measure that corresponds to giving each high school student a laptop, failed by the largest margin, with 66 percent of voters rejecting it.Now that voters have weighed in on the trio of election laws that were passed in 2011, it’s up to lawmakers and stakeholders to determine what happens next.BackgroundIn 2011 the Idaho Legislature passed a package of three laws which made sweeping changes to the state’s education system.The laws were introduced and championed by Superintendent of Public Instruction Tom Luna and are known as Students Come First, though opponents call them the Luna Laws.The laws have been controversial in Idaho, with the state’s largest public teacher union, Democrats and some Republicans condemning them. School administrators and boards have been split on their support. Idaho’s second largest school district in Boise has voiced its opposition to the laws.The three laws will be split up into Proposition 1, Proposition 2, and Proposition 3. Here’s a breakdown of what each law contains:Proposition 1Proposition 1 corresponds to 2011’s Senate Bill 1108 and deals with labor relations. A ‘yes’ vote will keep SB 1108 on the books, a ‘no’ vote will repeal the law. Here are the details:District superintendents, school administrators, and teachers get an annual evaluation. At least 50 percent of it must be based on measurable student growth. Teachers’ and principals’ evaluations must include parent input.Teachers and school administrators get one or two year contracts. A category of contracts for experienced teachers that renewed automatically from year to year barring misconduct is eliminated. These renewable contracts will stay in place if signed before 2011.Steps that had to be taken to fire a teacher or not bring him or her back for the next school year are eliminated such as providing a written statement of the reasons for the decision.School districts no longer have to prove a financial emergency before reducing teacher numbers. School boards can reduce teacher numbers at their discretion but cannot consider seniority when deciding who to eliminate.Principals can decide which teachers come to their schools.Teachers are encouraged but not required to purchase liability insurance and districts must provide information about insurance providers.The state’s early retirement incentive program for teachers is eliminated.Local education organizations (labor unions) must represent a majority (more than 50 percent) of a district’s teachers in order to engage in collective bargaining. Unions must prove annually that they represent a majority of a district’s teachers.Contract negotiations can only cover compensation, defined as salary and benefits. Negotiations must be done in public meetings.If a district does not have a union that represents a majority of teachers the school board will set compensation.If no contract agreement is reached through collective bargaining by June 10 of each year, the school board will set compensation.Proposition 2Proposition 2 corresponds to Senate Bill 1110 and institutes a pay-for-performance plan. A ‘yes’ vote will keep SB 1110 on the books, a ‘no’ vote will repeal the law.Bonuses are available for student academic growth measured by statewide standardized tests given each spring. Bonuses would go to all administrators and teachers at a school with a certain amount of improvement in scores.All teachers and administrators at a school could get a bonus if the school’s average score on the spring test is in the top 50 percent of schools statewide.Local school boards will create systems by which teachers and administrators can get bonuses based on other performance measures such as graduation rates, advanced placement classes taken and parental involvement.Teachers can get bonuses for working in hard to fill positions. At least every two years the State Board of Education will determine which positions should be considered ‘hard to fill’ and rank them based on need. Local boards can choose from the state board’s list which positions are hardest to fill in their districts.If a district can’t find a qualified teacher for a hard to fill position it can use some of the bonus money to train a teacher for the position.A district can designate up to 25 percent of its teachers to get bonuses for working extra hours in leadership roles. Those could include activities like peer mentoring, curriculum development, grant writing and earning a “Master Teacher” designation.Proposition 3Proposition 3 corresponds to Senate Bill 1184 and deals with technology and funding. A ‘yes’ vote will keep SB 1184 on the books, a ‘no’ vote will repeal the law.A laptop computer will be provided for all high school teachers and students. That will happen over four years beginning with teachers in fall 2012.As determined by the Idaho Board of Education, students must take two semester-long online classes to graduate.Parents can enroll students in any qualified online course without district permission.High schools will get more money to help pay for the costs of providing more math and science classes to meet new graduation requirements.SB 1184 Creates a formula for allocating money for technology. That includes mobile computers for high school students, wireless broadband service in high schools, and professional development on using technology in class.Creates a formula for allocating money to districts that takes online classes into account.Increases the amount districts can spend to get instruction from other districts or provide virtual education.The Idaho Department of Education will post a fiscal report card for each school district on its website.Each school district must post its annual budget and master labor agreement on its website. That’s in addition to several pieces of financial information districts were already required to post.A district can employ fewer teachers than it gets money for (up to 10 percent starting in 2014) without losing the money it gets for the unfilled positions.Raises the minimum teacher salary by $355 to $30,000 a year.Eliminates a $2,000, five year bonus for “Master Teacher” designation.If a student has completed all graduation requirements by the beginning of her senior year the state will pay for her to take up to 36 college credits while still being registered as a high school student. She can also take college credits in her last semester if she meets graduation requirements by the end of the first semester.Public post-secondary schools in Idaho can operate charter high schools.

Election Roundup: Idaho Voters To Decide Major Races And Issues

Emilie Ritter Saunders
/
Boise State Public Radio/ StateImpact Idaho

Gem State voters choose between Romney, Obama

Idaho voters are getting ready to pick the next U.S. President — and if history is any guide, Gem State voters will throw their support behind Republican Mitt Romney.

Idaho is among the nation's reddest states, and its four electoral votes haven't been awarded to a Democrat since 1964.

Romney is the clear favorite for several reasons.

His candidacy has been championed by some of the state's GOP stalwarts, including Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter, who is Romney's state campaign chairman.

The former Massachusetts governor emerged as the winner in Idaho's first-ever Republican caucus in March and he's a member of The Church of Jesus Christ Latter-day Saints — a religion shared by a quarter of Idaho's population.

Romney has also held fundraisers this year in Boise, Ketchum and Idaho Falls.

Voters to decide on hunt, fish and trap measure

There is little doubt Idaho residents love heading to the backcountry to hunt or fish.

The question before voters Tuesday is whether the right to hunt, fish and trap should be protected in the Idaho Constitution.

Earlier this year, state lawmakers approved HJR2 with support from both parties.

If approved at the polls, Idaho would join 13 other states that have amended their constitutions to preserve into perpetuity the collective right to hunt, fish and trap.

Supporters say protections are essential to preventing restrictions from outside animal rights groups or changing public attitudes on those activities.

But not everyone is convinced a constitutional amendment is necessary — especially for trapping.

Critics say trapping remains cruel and inhumane. Foes also say the constitution was never intended to protect such activities.

Ed overhaul is easily Idaho's top 2012 poll issue

Public schools chief Tom Luna spent the last days of the campaign to preserve his "Students Come First" education overhaul promoting this message: Teachers unions are putting their interests above those of Idaho's schoolchildren.

Meanwhile, foes of Luna's changes also stayed on the offensive as voters streamed into the polls, encouraging them to reject the changes on grounds they were forced on teachers.

On Tuesday, Luna and Mike Lanza, chairman of the "Vote No on Propositions 1,2 and 3, had just hours to wait before learning who would come out on top.

The campaign is among the most expensive in Idaho history, topping out at some $6 million combined.

Luna's changes, passed by the 2011 Legislature, limit union bargaining, promote teacher merit pay and lease laptops for high school students.

Idaho's Farris takes on Labrador after racing T.O.

As an NFL football player, Jimmy Farris once raced Pro Bowl wide receiver Terrell Owens to a standstill in a 40-yard-dash challenge: After splitting the first two heats, the third ended in a photo-finish draw.

Now retired from football, Farris is running as a Democrat on Tuesday against Republican incumbent U.S. Rep. Raul Labrador.

With T.O., it was a gentleman's bet.

With Labrador, Idaho's 1st Congressional District is on the line.

Farris quit his NFL career three years ago before launching hopes to end Labrador's congressional run at one term.

But Labrador outraised his rival some eight-fold.

In two years, Labrador has championed fiscal austerity — even taking on such sacred cows as the Idaho National Laboratory as part of his efforts to trim spending and reduce the nation's deficit.

In Idaho, LeFavour takes on Simpson, long odds

Voters in Idaho's 2nd Congressional District face a clear choice Tuesday: Pick U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson, a Republican who has occupied the seat for 14 years, or swap him out for a Boise Democrat, state Sen. Nicole LeFavour.

LeFavour took on a challenge of mammoth proportions with her March announcement that she'd try to unseat Simpson.

He's won by an average 36 percentage points since taking office in 1998.

As the contest escalated in October, LeFavour has repeatedly accused Simpson of violating Idaho voters' trust by supporting big changes to Medicare and opposing a 2009 law bolstering equal-wage protections for women.

Simpson debated LeFavour twice, but otherwise focused more on what he plans to do when he returns to Washington, D.C., particularly help trim the nation's $16 trillion debt.

Copyright 2012 Associated Press

You make stories like this possible.

The biggest portion of Boise State Public Radio's funding comes from readers like you who value fact-based journalism and trustworthy information.

Your donation today helps make our local reporting free for our entire community.