Idaho’s budgeting committee is pumping the brakes on restoring cuts made to the state’s National Guard tuition assistance program.
The Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee voted on Friday to hold off on adding nearly $190,000 back into the military division’s budget, saying they were concerned that money needed to be offset elsewhere.
Idaho National Guard members can get up to $8,000 of tuition assistance each fiscal year for college and universities in the state, as well as qualified vocational programs.
Multiple Republicans who voted against restoring the tuition cuts said they support the military and have either served themselves or have had family members serve.
“My family has served in every single war,” said Rep. Glenneda Zuiderveld (R-Twin Falls).
“I feel like a lot of these [proposed cuts] are to teach us a lesson,” said Zuiderveld. “Why cut [that program?] They couldn’t have cut a vehicle?”
“My heart and my support will always be with my military friends,” said Sen. Codi Galloway (R-Boise).
But Galloway said she voted against restoring the cuts because of conflicting information committee members are receiving behind closed doors about how JFAC will ultimately craft its budgets.
Several members warned that JFAC needed to be selective about what funding to restore in order to keep a healthy carryover balance for the following fiscal year.
“If we put added things that every agency needs [back into their budget], we will be upside down when we get to the [end of setting budgets],” said Sen. Cindy Carlson (R-Riggins).
“I’d just like to provide the perspective that what we’re voting on here today is $190,000 to support the education of those who’ve taken an oath to give their lives for ours,” said Sen. Jim Woodward (R-Sagle), who was one of a handful of Republicans who supported restoring the funding.
When JFAC passed more than $100 million in cuts to agencies last week, the committee’s co-chairs said lawmakers could negate some of those decisions through a new bill.
Sen. Janie Ward-Engelking (D-Boise) took that at face value, but said Friday that trust is fraying.
“I was hopeful that we were going to be true to our word that we would add some things back in. This is making me a little nervous that we can only add it back in if we cut something else,” Ward-Engelking said.
Ultimately, JFAC voted 11-7 to hold the budget in committee and give the chairmen the authority to bring it back up at a later date, though that’s not guaranteed.
The committee will continue to set next year’s budget next week.
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