JFAC rejects restoring $1 million pass-through for Idaho home visiting program after heated debate

Lawmakers on the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee debated whether to restore a $1,000,000 pass-through to public health districts that supports Idaho's home visiting program and ultimately failed to pass the restoration.

Senator Winthrop (Senator Winthrop) urged support for restoring the funding, saying health district directors told her the loss would prompt the disenrollment of about 200 families statewide and the elimination of roughly 10 staff positions. "If this money goes away, what will happen? They said they would have to disenroll families, and about 200 statewide would be off the program, and 10 staff would be lost statewide," she said.

Opponents, including Representative Bruce and Representative Harris, emphasized that the program would continue with other funding streams and voiced concern about expanding general-fund commitments. Representative Bruce noted the committee still proposed $4.2 million for the program and that Medicaid can be billed for services. "This program is not going away. We're still putting $4,200,000 into it," he said.

Multiple substitute and alternate motions were offered. One substitute motion to add $4,237,200 (FY2027 JFAC maintenance) and significant dedicated and federal funds to restore elements of public-health programming failed to get the majority in both the House and Senate panels of the joint committee. The committee ultimately held the matter in committee after subsequent attempts failed to secure the necessary majorities.

Why it matters: Advocates said the home visiting program is an evidence-based early-childhood intervention with long-term return on investment; opponents countered that budget constraints and other funding streams mitigate the harm from the proposed rescission. The committee’s failure to restore the full $1,000,000 pass-through could trigger local program reductions or waiting lists, according to proponents.

What’s next: The motion failed in committee and was held; the committee indicated further consideration may happen later in the budget-setting process.