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SJM101.........................................................by EDUCATION
PUBLIC LANDS AND EDUCATION - Stating findings of the Legislature and
supporting and endorsing the "Action Plan for Public Lands and Education";
supporting and endorsing an initiative urging the federal government to
provide an expedited land exchange process for land not intended for
wilderness designation; and supporting and endorsing an initiative seeking
just compensation from the federal government for the impact its ownership
of lands within the western states has on the ability of the states to fund
public education.
01/22 Senate intro - 1st rdg - to printing
01/23 Rpt prt - to Educ
01/30 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 10th Ord
02/05 10th Ord - ADOPTED - voice vote
Floor Sponsor - Lodge
Title apvd - to House
02/06 House intro - 1st rdg - to Educ
02/27 Rpt out - rec d/p - to 2nd rdg
02/28 2nd rdg - to 3rd rdg
03/03 3rd rdg - ADOPTED - voice vote
Floor Sponsor - Nielsen
Title apvd - to Senate
03/04 To enrol
03/05 Rpt enrol - Pres signed
03/06 Sp signed
03/07 To Secretary of State
|||| LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF IDAHO ||||
Fifty-seventh Legislature First Regular Session - 2003
IN THE SENATE
SENATE JOINT MEMORIAL NO. 101
BY EDUCATION COMMITTEE
1 A JOINT MEMORIAL
2 TO THE PRESIDENT OF THE UNITED STATES, TO THE SENATE AND HOUSE OF REPRESENTA-
3 TIVES OF THE UNITED STATES IN CONGRESS ASSEMBLED, AND TO THE CONGRESSIONAL
4 DELEGATION REPRESENTING THE STATE OF IDAHO IN THE CONGRESS OF THE UNITED
5 STATES.
6 We, your Memorialists, the Senate and the House of Representatives of the
7 State of Idaho assembled in the First Regular Session of the Fifty-seventh
8 Idaho Legislature, do hereby respectfully represent that:
9 WHEREAS, for many years western states, including Idaho, have grappled
10 with the challenge of providing the best education for their citizens and
11 western states face unique challenges in achieving this goal; and
12 WHEREAS, from 1979 to 1998, the percent change in expenditures per pupil
13 in 13 western states was 28%, compared to 57% in the remaining states; and
14 WHEREAS, in 2000-2001, the pupil per teacher ratio in 13 western states
15 averaged 17.9 to one compared with 14.8 to one in the remaining states; and
16 WHEREAS, the conditions in western states are exacerbated by projections
17 that enrollment will increase by an average of 7.1% compared to an average
18 decrease of 2.6% in the rest of the nation; and
19 WHEREAS, despite the wide disparities in expenditures per pupil and pupil
20 per teacher ratio, western states tax at a comparable rate and allocate as
21 much of their budgets to public education as the rest of the nation; and
22 WHEREAS, the ability of western states to fund education is directly
23 related to federal ownership of state lands and the federal government owns
24 an average of 51.9% of the land in 13 western states, compared to 4.1% in the
25 remaining states; and
26 WHEREAS, the enabling acts of most western states promise that five per-
27 cent of the proceeds from the sale of federal lands will go to the states for
28 public education; and
29 WHEREAS, a federal policy change in 1977 ended these sales resulting in an
30 estimated 14 billion dollars in lost public education funding for western
31 states; and
32 WHEREAS, the ability of western states to fund public education is further
33 impacted by the fact that state and local property taxes upon which public
34 education relies heavily to fund education cannot be assessed on federal
35 lands; and
36 WHEREAS, the estimated annual impact of this property tax prohibition on
37 western lands is over 4 billion dollars; and
38 WHEREAS, the federal government shares only half of its royalty revenue
39 with the states and royalties are further reduced because federal lands are
40 less likely to be developed and federal laws often place stipulations on the
41 use of state royalty payments; and
42 WHEREAS, the estimated annual impact of royalty payment policies on west-
43 ern states is over 1.86 billion dollars; and
44 WHEREAS, much of the land that the federal government transferred to
2
1 states upon statehood as a trust for public education is difficult to adminis-
2 ter and to make productive because it is surrounded by federal land; and
3 WHEREAS, federal land ownership greatly hinders the ability of western
4 states, including Idaho, to fund public education; and
5 WHEREAS, the federal government should compensate western states for the
6 significant impact federal land ownership has on the ability of western states
7 to educate their citizens; and
8 WHEREAS, just compensation will allow western states to be on equal foot-
9 ing with the rest of the nation in their efforts to provide education for
10 their citizens.
11 NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the members of the First Regular Session
12 of the Fifty-seventh Idaho Legislature, the Senate and the House of Represen-
13 tatives concurring therein, that we support and endorse the "Action Plan for
14 Public Lands and Education," we support and endorse an initiative urging the
15 federal government to provide an expedited land exchange process for land not
16 intended for wilderness designation, and we support and endorse an initiative
17 seeking just compensation from the federal government for the impact its own-
18 ership of lands within western states has on the states' ability to fund pub-
19 lic education.
20 BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Secretary of the Senate be, and she is
21 hereby authorized and directed to forward a copy of this Memorial to the Pres-
22 ident of the United States, to the President of the Senate and the Speaker of
23 the House of Representatives of Congress, and the congressional delegation
24 representing the State of Idaho in the Congress of the United States.
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE
RS 12459
*Changes in federal policy through the years and, most recently,
in 1977 have left the 13 western states at a considerable
disadvantage with respect to our share of federal funds devoted
to education. This memorial, patterned after one passed at the
Council of States Governments West meeting in Lake Tahoe last
year, calls on our federal government remedies.
FISCAL IMPACT
*If corrected, Idaho would receive its share of some $20B spread
across the 13 western states. Idaho specific numbers are $811M in
one time funding and $328M in ongoing funding.
Contact
Name: Senator John Goedde
Phone: 332-1340
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE/FISCAL NOTE SJM 101