Legislative leaders Friday previewed their upcoming debate over private school choice, but it remains unclear — for now — where the governor stands on sending public funds to private education.

Gov. Brad Little and House and Senate leaders spoke with reporters Friday in a legislative preview hosted by the Idaho Press Club. Three days before the legislative session kicks off with the governor’s State of the State address, the Republican and Democratic leaders discussed a laundry list of education issues — from Idaho Launch to medical education, K-12 school facilities and diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) on college campuses.

Lawmakers will again debate whether to open up public funds for private and home-schoolers. Supporters of private school choice celebrated election victories last year that may have shored up enough votes to push through a new bill this session. But it’s unclear whether a successful proposal would garner a veto-proof majority, meaning the governor likely will play a key role in its success or failure. 

Little evaded questions attempting to pin down his stance Friday, and he hinted that he will have more to say during Monday’s speech. The Republican said that he and his staff have “been having lots of discussions” with lawmakers in recent weeks, and “we will be engaged, as we always are.”

Little historically has avoided planting a flag on private school choice, except to say that he wouldn’t support legislation that would harm public schools. “The sideboards I’ve had in the past are the sideboards I’m going to have in the future,” he said Friday. 

Meanwhile, House and Senate leaders debated whether taxpayer funds would be accountable in private education settings.

Rep. Wendy Horman and Sen. Lori Den Hartog are preparing a bill that would create refundable tax credits covering private school and home-school expenses, including tuition. Similar to last year’s House Bill 447, the new legislation would direct a targeted amount to low-income families. 

Den Hartog, R-Meridian, said it’s a “thoughtful piece of legislation” that “provides our lower income folks with some options and opportunities that may not exist for them today.” The program would have “pretty significant” financial accountability, she said. Horman, R-Idaho Falls, previously told Idaho Education News that felony convictions would await filers attempting to defraud the tax credit program.

But Democrats seized on the lack of academic oversight in private schools that would benefit from the state funds. The bill will not include provisions mandating testing or curriculum oversight, Den Hartog said. 

Senate Minority Leader Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, said the state is constitutionally required to fund public schools, where “we can maintain accountability, where we can create oversight, where we know what’s going on.” House Assistant Minority Leader Steve Berch added that Republicans have previously called for withholding additional public school funding until academic performance improves.

“There’s a real inconsistency, here, in the logic that we’re hearing from the majority party,” said Berch, D-Boise.

Den Hartog, however, said she prefers to frame accountability around whether parents are satisfied with their child’s education. 

“You can have a school that is fantastic academically and meets all of the targets and all of the marks, and your kid is getting bullied, and you need a different option,” she said.

Little and legislative leaders addressed several other education topics Friday.

DEI. The State Board of Education has already reined in diversity, equity and inclusion programs on Idaho campuses — but the Legislature is likely to take up the issue as well.

“I think there will be additional legislation to make sure all folks have an equal opportunity to participate and to be supported, not only in our institutions of higher education, but in employment and in all areas,” Den Hartog said.

The State Board last month approved a resolution banning colleges and universities from providing student support programs “based on DEI ideology.” Boise State University and Idaho State University have already closed student centers, opting for one-stop centers designed to cater to all students. The University of Idaho is planning to follow suit.

Little supported the State Board resolution. But hundreds of students wrote the State Board in December, in the waning days of fall semester, to protest the change.

“I know there was that furor initially, but I think it’s subsided a little bit,” Little said Friday. “We want to be sensitive. We really do want to help everyone be successful as a student, particularly if they have a challenged background.”

Idaho Launch. The House and Senate both appear to have shifted further to the right in the 2024 elections, with Republicans adding three legislative seats and hardliners gaining seats within the GOP caucuses. But Little said he still is optimistic about Launch, a postsecondary financial aid program that has faced staunch opposition from Statehouse hardliners.

“I think it will be fine,” Little said. “My confidence is pretty high, because it’s pretty hard to beat success.”

This is the inaugural year for Launch, an initiative designed to steer high school graduates into high-demand careers. As of Oct. 1, nearly 6,500 students were using Launch dollars to pursue college degrees or workforce training.

House Speaker Mike Moyle, R-Star, has been one of the Legislature’s most vocal Launch opponents. On Friday, he again voiced skepticism, and he said lawmakers will try to tweak the program this year. In particular, Moyle said he wants Launch to emphasize career-technical programs and short-term certificates, rather than college degrees.

“I think that Launch needs to be brought back to where it was originally sold,” he said. “I think that if it’s done right, though, Launch can be very beneficial to the state of Idaho.”

Legislative Democrats have uniformly supported Launch, and Wintrow listed it as a priority for 2025. “We hope to see that program flourish,” she said.

Medical education. As thousands of high school graduates use Launch money to pursue degrees in nursing and other health professions, Idaho colleges and universities are scrambling to ramp up their course offerings. In some cases, the schools are collaborating to meet the need; in other cases, the schools are openly competing for market share.

Medical programs need to be spread around the state, Little said, since no one region has the clinical space needed to accommodate students. But he said duplication is a concern.

“I want (health care programs) to be as efficient as possible.”

Little said he has talked to Idaho State University President Robert Wagner about a possible acquisition of the Idaho College of Osteopathic Medicine, a private medical school near Idaho State’s Meridian campus. Idaho State is looking at the feasibility of an acquisition; Little said the state needs to look at the pros and cons.

School facilities. Little hinted at a possible followup to House Bill 521, last year’s far-reaching law that poured $1.5 billion into school facilities. “You may hear a little bit about that on Monday.”

Little said he is generally happy with the unprecedented rollout of state facilities money. Little said he wants to make sure the program helps rural communities, but he also wants to make sure schools still have an incentive to spend the money wisely.

“We need to make sure that it’s fair,” he said. “But we don’t want to have it too fair.”

The 2025 legislative session opens Monday. Check back at idahoednews.org for full first-day coverage, and daily reports from the session.