Bill Analyses and Ratings
Bill Information: H0848 – FY2027 Legislative Branch Appropriations
Bill Summary
House Bill 848 appropriates $13,089,100 to the Idaho Legislative Branch for fiscal year 2027 (July 1, 2026 through June 30, 2027). The Legislative Services Office receives $11,999,400 drawn from five funds: the General Fund ($8,943,600), Technology Infrastructure Stabilization Fund ($142,300), Miscellaneous Revenue Fund ($211,800), Legislative Capitol Facilities Fund ($440,000), and the Professional Services Fund ($2,261,700). The Office of Performance Evaluations receives $1,089,700 from the General Fund.
The bill’s only new language inserts the Professional Services Fund line item amounts — $2,109,200 for personnel costs and $152,500 for operating expenditures — into the Legislative Services Office budget. Both the Legislative Services Office and the Office of Performance Evaluations are exempted from Idaho Code Section 67-3511(1), (2), and (3), giving them unlimited authority to transfer funds between expense classes and programs, though transfers between funds require explicit legislative approval.
Section 3 reappropriates any unexpended ARPA State Fiscal Recovery Fund balances from FY2026 to the Legislative Technology Program for nonrecurring expenditures in FY2027, with the State Controller required to confirm amounts with the Legislative Services Office before processing. The bill is declared an emergency measure, taking effect July 1, 2026.
Overall Assessment
This bill funds the day-to-day operations of Idaho’s Legislative Branch for fiscal year 2027, with the only substantive change being the addition of $2,261,700 from the Professional Services Fund to the Legislative Services Office budget. The appropriation keeps legislative staff paid and legislative support functions operational, while the transfer-limitation exemption gives both offices flexibility to move money between programs without additional legislative approval. The bill has no direct effect on Idaho citizens, businesses, or policy outside the internal administration of the legislature itself.
Rating Breakdown
ARTICLE I. RESPONSIBILITY IN GOVERNMENT (0)
The bill funds the legislature's own operations, including $2,261,700 newly added from the Professional Services Fund. While one could argue that exempting the Legislative Services Office and Office of Performance Evaluations from transfer limitations (Section 2) reduces spending controls, these exemptions apply only to internal legislative accounts and are a standard feature of legislative appropriations bills. The net fiscal policy impact of the specific new language — inserting dollar amounts for an existing fund line — is administrative rather than a meaningful change to government accountability or spending discipline.
ARTICLE II. CITIZEN INVOLVEMENT IN GOVERNMENT (0)
This bill allocates operational funding to legislative support offices and makes no changes to election law, voting procedures, citizen petition processes, or public participation mechanisms. It has no effect on how Idaho citizens engage with their government.
ARTICLE III. EDUCATION (0)
The bill appropriates funds exclusively for the Legislative Services Office and the Office of Performance Evaluations. It contains no provisions related to schools, curriculum, parental rights, teacher policy, or education funding.
ARTICLE IV. AGRICULTURE (0)
This is a legislative branch operations appropriation with no provisions touching agricultural policy, farm programs, water rights for irrigation, or rural economic issues.
ARTICLE V. WATER (0)
The bill funds internal legislative operations and makes no changes to water law, water rights administration, inter-basin transfers, or federal water policy affecting Idaho.
ARTICLE VI. NATURAL RESOURCES AND ENVIRONMENT (0)
This appropriations bill is limited to legislative branch staffing and operations. It contains no provisions related to natural resource management, environmental regulation, or federal land policy.
ARTICLE VII. ENERGY (0)
The bill makes no changes to energy policy, utility regulation, or resource development. Its scope is confined to funding the Legislative Services Office and Office of Performance Evaluations.
ARTICLE VIII. IDAHO NATIONAL LABORATORIES (0)
This bill addresses legislative branch appropriations only and contains no provisions related to the Idaho National Laboratory, nuclear research, or technology development partnerships.
ARTICLE IX. PRIVATE PROPERTY RIGHTS (0)
The bill funds legislative operations and makes no changes to property rights law, eminent domain procedures, or regulatory frameworks affecting private landowners.
ARTICLE X. STATE AND FEDERAL LANDS (0)
This appropriations bill is confined to the Legislative Branch's internal budget and makes no changes to state or federal land management, ownership, or administration.
ARTICLE XI. WILDLIFE MANAGEMENT (0)
The bill appropriates funds for legislative support offices and contains no provisions related to fish and game management, hunting and fishing regulations, or predator control policy.
ARTICLE XII. ECONOMY (0)
This bill funds the legislature's own administrative operations and makes no changes to commercial regulation, small business policy, labor law, or transportation infrastructure.
ARTICLE XIII. HEALTH AND WELFARE (0)
The bill is a legislative branch appropriations measure with no provisions affecting healthcare delivery, health insurance markets, Medicaid, or welfare programs.
ARTICLE XIV. AMERICAN FAMILY (0)
This bill funds legislative operations only and makes no changes to family law, parental rights, marriage policy, abortion law, or child protection statutes.
ARTICLE XV. OLDER AMERICANS (0)
The bill appropriates funds for the Legislative Services Office and Office of Performance Evaluations and contains no provisions affecting services, benefits, or policies for older Idahoans.
ARTICLE XVI. LAW AND ORDER WITH JUSTICE (0)
This is a legislative branch operations bill with no provisions related to criminal justice, firearms law, drug policy, incarceration, or state sovereignty over law enforcement matters.
ARTICLE XVII. NATIONAL DEFENSE – SECURING THE BORDER (0)
The bill funds internal legislative functions and makes no changes to policies affecting veterans, the National Guard, border security, or military installations in Idaho.
ARTICLE XVIII. ELECTION OF JUDGES AND IDAHO SUPREME COURT JUSTICES (0)
This appropriations bill is limited to the Legislative Branch's operational budget and contains no provisions related to judicial selection, judicial elections, or constitutional interpretation standards.
ARTICLE XIX. RELIGIOUS LIBERTY (0)
The bill funds the Legislative Services Office and Office of Performance Evaluations and makes no changes to religious freedom protections, conscience clauses, or related statutory frameworks.