Rep. Steve Berch Newsletter: CAUTION! Sharp right turn ahead

Rep. Steve Berch Newsletter: CAUTION! Sharp right turn ahead.

We’re about half way into the 2025 legislative session and things are heating up. A lot of bills are being pushed through committees and a few big ones have reached the House floor for a vote.

Bills reflecting the more extreme ideology within the majority party are starting to come to the surface. They are intermingled with bills that undermine the future of public education, prevent the state from funding vital services, and threaten to undermine the future of ballot initiatives.

And we’ve voted on only a fraction of the over 400 pieces of legislation that have been written so far . . .

NOTE: You can look up any bill introduced since 1998 by CLICKING HERE.

Who's calling the shots?

There has been a shift in power taking place in the Capitol building. Here are just a few of the examples of the legislature taking away control from the executive branch.

Rules

There are many pages of detailed rules needed to manage the depth, breadth and complexity of what it takes to operate the executive branch departments (transportation, education, health & welfare, insurance, labor, etc.). The House has become more aggressive in micro-managing departments by treating each rule as if it was a law. They went so far as to not approve any of them, forcing each department to recreate every rule as a “temporary rule” in order to continue functioning.

Special sessions

For 136 years, only the governor could call a special session of the legislature to address a single topic – until 2022. That’s when the legislature put a proposed amendment to the state constitution allowing itself to call a special session without the governor’s approval, which voters passed. The legislature can now bypass the governor and call a special session at any time to address multiple topics – which is more than the governor can do.

This increases the potential for political mischief. A session can be called months or even weeks before an election and force legislators to vote on controversial issues that might impact the outcome of their re-election campaigns.

JFAC

Perhaps the biggest power-grab is taking place in JFAC, the Joint Finance and Appropriations Committee. JFAC sets Idaho’s annual budget, making it the most important legislative committee. It is comprised of 10 senators and 10 representatives appointed by the respective Senate and House party leaders. Members used to write a single budget bill for each department that would fund it for the coming fiscal year. A simple majority vote of all 20 JFAC members would determine if JFAC would pass each budget bill.

That changed last year. Department budgets are now been divided into two parts: a bare-bones “maintenance” budget, and a second “supplemental” budget. When the “maintenance” budgets are passed, the legislature has technically met its constitutional responsibility to pass a budget, albeit inadequate. That enables the secondary “supplemental” budget bills to be used as bargaining chips for negotiations between the legislature and the Governor.

In addition, budget bills no longer pass by a simple majority vote. It now requires a majority of the 10 senators (6) and a majority of the 10 representatives (6) to pass a budget bill. This means that only five JFAC members from the House or five from the Senate can stop the other 15 members from passing a budget bill – giving them three “no” votes for every one “yes” vote. This gives the Senate or House leader a huge influence over the state budget by appointing legislators who are loyal to them.

Unless the governor vetoes bad bills and the veto is sustained by the House or Senate, a single legislator with the power of appointment can wind up calling the shots.

On the air
Below are links to my recent appearances in the media:

BYU-I Radio (2/6/25)
IPT Idaho Reports (1/24/25)

Rotunda Roundup

This section starts off with detailed reviews of the two most important bills I’ve had to vote on thus far: 1) an historic tax cut, and 2) school vouchers/tax credits.

Permanently reduce state revenue by $253 million/year (H40 – passed the House, in the Senate). This bill is advertised as the largest tax cut bill in Idaho history. It is also the most irresponsible tax cut bill in Idaho history. There are three parts to this tax cut bill:

$1 million/year reduction in revenue by eliminating the capital gains tax on precious metal bullion. I do not supportthis, which appears to primarily benefit a large political donor who owns a precious metal business.
$12 million/year exempting taxation of military pensions. I do support this based on the broader principle of showing respect and appreciation for veterans when we can. If this was a stand-alone bill, I would have gladly co-sponsored it.
$240 million/year reduction in the income tax rate from 5.695% to 5.3%. I do not support this. Voters are asking for property tax relief and repeal of the grocery tax. This bill does neither. Instead, it will mostly benefit corporations and the very wealthy, while the average Idaho family making between $55-92K/year will get a whopping $127. Here’s an analysis of who benefits most from this proposed tax cut:

This bill ignores current and future fiscal needs. It is just one of multiple tax cut bills that collectively removes over $400 million from revenue collection each year. That’s a $4 BILLION reduction in revenue over the next 10 years. Meanwhile, the state’s unmet fiscal needs include:

Over $5 billion in road and infrastructure projects.
Over $1 billion in ignored and deferred school building maintenance.
Over $1 billion to fund vital services, such as public defenders, EMS, Medicaid, prisons, and more.

It also fails to consider economic uncertainties, such as:

Failure to meet the state’s revenue projections (which had a $60 million shortfall in January).
The impact of drastic cuts in money Idaho gets from the federal government (e.g. DOGE).
A significant, sustained downturn in the economy.

The state is also borrowing $1 billion for school facilities over the same 10 years this bill reduces state revenue by $4 billion – and taxpayers are paying millions of dollars in interest on the borrowed money. This makes no sense.

I voted AGAINST this bill that no successful business would embrace when managing its fiscal future.

CLICK HERE to see my debate against this bill in the House Revenue & Taxation committee.
CLICK HERE to see my debate against this bill on the House Floor.

Idaho Parental School Choice tax credit (H93 – passed the House, in the Senate). This bill allocates $50 million in the form of a $5,000 tax credit per child in each household on a first-come, first-served basis ($7,500 for special needs students). Preference is given to households with incomes making up to three times the poverty level ($92,000/year income for a family of four). The Idaho Tax Commission (which has no experience managing education programs) would oversee this program. The $50 million would fund less than 10,000 of Idaho’s 300,000 school-age students.

This is not a “school choice” bill. Idaho already offers just about every school choice a parent would want. This is a “you pay for someone else’s school choice” bill. Your tax dollars will be given to someone else to help pay the tuition for their child to attend a for-profit private or religious school, be it in the form of a voucher check or a refundable tax credit.

Out-of-state interests have spent millions of dollars over the last six years trying to achieve this in Idaho – and they expect a return on their investment. Earlier failed attempts tried to convert nearly all of the public education budget into checks sent to parents with no accountability or performance requirements. They changed their tactics this year. This bill starts by only asking for $50 million and disguises the voucher as a “refundable tax credit.” However, the outcome is still the same: Every public tax dollar made available to private and religious schools is one less dollar available for public education.

This bill is the first step toward universal vouchers. The sponsor revealed this when describing the bill as providing “universal eligibility.” When everyone is eligible, the legislature will be pressured to fund universal participation. For example, 50% participation would cost Idaho taxpayer $750 million/year. This is why the bill deliberately proposed a much smaller amount to fund the program.

One key reason I voted AGAINST this bill was its lack of accountability. The legislature has placed extensive accountability expectations on public schools. This bill, however, places almost no accountability on private or religious schools. The table below illustrates the outrageous disparity in accountability:

There are many more reasons I voted against this bill:

The cost can grow and accountability requirements can be removed – as soon as next year.
There are no consequences when a parent decides to remove their children from the public school system. If you want out, you should stay out – for the rest of the school year. If you want back in, your children should have to test for grade level. If the state is compensating you to not use public schools, your children should not have access to public school offerings (sports teams, arts, music, etc.).
Parents lose protections provided by public schools that are taken for granted, such as
- Admittance – private schools can reject your child
- Expulsion – private schools can expel your child without reason or recourse
- Grievances – private schools can ignore your complaints
- Cost – private schools can raise your tuition whenever they want
- Accommodations – private schools do not have to provide them
- Safety – private schools do not have to perform background checks
There is no consumer protection from scammers who collect your subsidized tuition and then expel your child or suddenly shut down. This has happened elsewhere.
These voucher-type programs usually wind up as a subsidy for wealthy families who are already paying for private schools.
Property taxes will go up and stay high as the state has less money to allocate for public education, forcing school districts to continue floating bonds and levies to close the funding gap.

The legislature has a constitutional responsibility to support and protect Idaho’s public school system, not lay the groundwork to destroy it. (CLICK HERE to see my debate against this bill.)

Give the Attorney General (AG) new powers to prosecute city officials (H6 – passed the House, in the Senate). This bill allows the AG to intervene if they suspect that a local prosecutor is not taking action due to a personal relationship with the parties involved (usually in small towns). In allowing this, the bill creates the potential for abuse should an AG decide to take action for partisan political reasons (which is happening in other states). I voted AGAINST this bill which gives too much power to one person in an increasingly divisive and authoritative political environment.

Impose a mandatory minimum $300 fine for possession of marijuana (H7 – passed the House, in the Senate). In Idaho, mandatory minimum punishments are allowed for felony crimes. This bill would set a precedent by extending mandatory minimum punishments for misdemeanor crimes. Possession of marijuana is a misdemeanor and judicial discretion allows for a fine to be imposed in those situations. Even if a judge imposed no fine, there are still other costs incurred by the guilty party that can add up to more than $300 (court costs, testing, probation, etc.) I voted AGAINST this bill. It ties a judges hands from weighing the unique circumstances of a situation (juvenile, disabled veteran seeking pain relief, etc.) and render a judgment that better fits the crime.

Exempt minors from wearing a helmet in a UTV if it has roll cage and seat belts (H13 – passed the House, in the Senate). On the surface, this sounds somewhat reasonable. However, there is no requirement for the minor to be wearing the seat belt. I voted AGAINST this bill due to this technical flaw, which may be corrected in the Senate.

Idaho Code Cleanup Act (H14 – signed into law by the Governor). This new law requires state agencies to review Idaho Code for unnecessary, obsolete, and outdated provisions, and to report their recommendations to the Legislature by September 1, 2025. While the due date may be a bit aggressive, I VOTED FOR this common-sense exercise to help remove irrelevant, redundant and obsolete statutes.

Declare that marriage in Idaho can only be between a man and woman (HJM1 – passed the House, in the Senate). I normally don’t cover memorials or resolutions. They are mostly political statements that have no force of law. However, this memorial is particularly offensive to many of my constituents and their loved ones. I voted AGAINST yet another attack on Idahoans targeted by extremists and religious zealots in the majority party who continue writing new legislation that is disrespectful to people they don’t like.

Limit the type of flags and banners that can be displayed on public school property (H41 – passed the House, in the Senate). The real purpose of this bill is to ban a rainbow flag from being displayed in a public school. To disguise that purpose, the bill bans all flags (and banners) with a few noted exceptions. However, there is nothing to prohibit displaying the printed image of any flag on a piece of paper – rainbow or otherwise. It just can’t be on cloth attached to a flagpole. So, if you drive a pickup truck with a Trump flag or Don’t Tread on Me flag in the school parking lot, you would be in violation of the law. I voted AGAINST this loophole-ridden bill that only a contortionist would love.

Parental notification of student bullying (H44 – passed the House, in the Senate). This bill notifies parents if their child is involved in a serious incident of harassment, intimidation or bullying in school. I VOTED FOR this bill, which addresses an issue that many constituents have mentioned during the 14 years I’ve been knocking on doors.

Prohibit any level of state government or official from mandating the use of masks (H32 – passed the House, in the Senate). The danger of this bill is inherent in the Statement of Purpose that accompanies it:

“The purpose of this legislation is to prevent the State of Idaho, its political subdivisions, or any state officers from mandating the use of face masks, face shields, or other face coverings as a means to prevent or slow the spread of a contagious or infectious disease.”

This encourages the spread of contagious or infectious diseases. I didn’t like having to wear a mask during the COVID pandemic. However, it is the height of irresponsibility to prevent steps from being taken in the event of a future threat to public health and safety, be it a local outbreak of measles or tuberculosis, or a future mutation of a highly deadly virus for which there is no vaccine or cure. I voted AGAINST this bill which is an insult to medical science.

Prosecute Dr. Anthony Fauci for crimes in Idaho (HCR5 – passed the House, in the Senate). This resolution says that the state can prosecute Dr. Fauci in the future, regardless of any pardons he may have received. I am not aware of any legislation in Idaho that has ever singled out one person by name for future prosecution and punishment. I voted AGAINST this politically motivated, mean-spirted resolution which exposes a level of hate and retribution that is infecting the Idaho Legislature.

Make execution by firing squad the primary method for administering the death penalty (H37 – passed the House, in the Senate). The current method for executing someone in Idaho is by lethal injection, with a firing squad being a secondary, back-up method. This bill makes death by firing squad the primary method of execution in Idaho. I voted AGAINST this barbaric, inhumane bill, which would use a mechanized gun that would fire bullets at a person by pushing a button. What could possibly go wrong?

In the hopper

This is the growing list of bills that have been introduced in either the House (H) or Senate (S) that are worth watching. Some will move forward and some will stall or die along the way. Those in red reflect the “sharp right turn” taking place in the legislature.

H59 – Allow any health provider to refuse service to anyone if they think it would violate their sincerely held religious, moral, or ethical beliefs.

H74 – Allocate $100 million in property tax relief ($50 million one-time, $50 million ongoing).

H75 – Fund public school facilities based on need instead of school district size.

H78 – Enable ITD to issue electronic driver’s license cards to be stored on a mobile phone.

H83 – Declare anyone illegally in Idaho to be a criminal – and be removed – under certain circumstances.

H86 – Prevent cities from requiring that conduit be installed in new parking lots or garages that can facilitate the installation of EV charging stations in the future.

H94 – Require the Secretary of State to verify the citizenship of all persons on the statewide voter registrations.

H96 – Allow government entities to only display certain types of flags (prohibit rainbow flags in particular)

H98 – Limit certain teacher union activities.

H127 – Require disclosure if AI is used in certain trade or commerce communications.

H131 – Require disclosure of mRNA vaccination status prior to donating blood.

H134 – Provide medical insurance coverage for supplemental breast cancer screening technologies.

H138 – Trigger the repeal of Medicaid expansion if the federal government does not grant certain waivers.

H139 – Prohibit the use of absentee ballots except for specific, limited reasons.

H140 – Eliminate Daylight Savings Time in Idaho.

H162 – Require a Christian bible to be read by a teacher to all students in all public schools every day.

H163 – Give preference for charter school admission to students with a parent in the military.

H164 – Idaho Education Opportunity Program (IEOP) – another school voucher bill.

H166 – Eliminate the requirement to publish public notices in a local newspaper.

H176 – Withdraw Idaho from the regional WWAMI program (which produces doctors) due to abortion and DEI.

H184 – Define “domestic terrorism” such that it can only exist if a foreign terrorist organization is involved.

H203 – Prohibit certain actions by rental property owners that can result in rental price fixing.

H231 – Increase the grocery tax credit from $120/person to $155/person.

H235 – Create a pine tree Appeal to Heaven license plate.

H238 – Require that the Ten Commandments be displayed in all public school buildings.

H239 – Require student participation in school sex education classes to be opt-in instead of opt-out.

H240 – Create a right of free speech on Idaho college and university campuses that extends to groups who are not members of the campus community.

S1001 – Allow for the swift dismissal of meritless Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs). This is prompted by lawsuits that arise from actions people take on social media.

S1009 – Allow any group of people or private militia to parade in public while bearing firearms.

S1025 – This is another school voucher bill. It allows money from the Empowering Parents program to be used to pay for private or religious school tuition.

S1026 – Allow urban and suburban residential property owners to keep and raise chickens on their property.

S1042 – Limit how much a prospective renter can be charged for an application fee.

S1048 – Prohibit “DEI” from all Idaho institutions of higher learning.

S1059 – Remove all exceptions for abortion and prosecutes abortion from the moment of fertilization as murder.

S1063 – Allow the raising of “small-scale livestock” for personal or production purposes within urban and suburban properties.

S1072 – Creates a Too Great for Hate license plate

S1097 – Allow any school district to become a charter district.

S1101 – Improve consistency in standards for coroners.

SCR102 – Create a study committee to revisit how the state handled the COVID epidemic.

SJR101 – Require of signatures from all 35 legislative districts to place an initiative on the ballot.