Bill Analyses and Ratings
Bill Information: S1403 – DEQ Supplemental Appropriation FY2027
Bill Summary
Senate Bill 1403 makes supplemental appropriations to the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality for fiscal year 2027, totaling $2,011,700 across water quality and waste management programs. Key allocations include $381,700 to the IPDES Program Fund for water quality, $1,230,000 to the Environmental Remediation (Triumph Mine) Fund, and $400,000 to the Solid Waste Regulatory Fund. The bill simultaneously reduces the Water Quality Program’s federal fund allocation by $181,700 in personnel costs and authorizes four additional full-time equivalent positions at DEQ.
Beyond direct appropriations, the bill directs three fund consolidations: transferring the balance of the DEQ Air Permitting Fees Account into the Idaho Air Quality Permitting Fund, transferring the DEQ Drinking Water Fees Account balance into the Public Water System Supervision Fund, and moving $400,000 from the Hazardous Waste Emergency Fund into the Solid Waste Regulatory Fund. These consolidations are administrative in nature, eliminating redundant accounts rather than changing regulatory policy.
The bill takes effect July 1, 2026, under an emergency declaration to align with the start of the fiscal year.
Overall Assessment
This bill’s primary fiscal impact is expanding the Department of Environmental Quality’s budget and workforce — adding four permanent positions and $400,000 to the Solid Waste Regulatory Fund — which grows the size and cost of state government without a corresponding reduction elsewhere. The fund consolidations are administrative housekeeping that streamline accounting but do not alter DEQ’s regulatory authority or mission. Taxpayers and those who favor limiting government growth bear the direct cost of the expanded agency footprint.
Rating Breakdown
ARTICLE I. Responsibility in Government (-1)
The bill's marked change adds $400,000 to the Solid Waste Regulatory Fund (Section 1) and Section 3 authorizes four additional full-time equivalent positions at DEQ, directly increasing the size and cost of state government. This expansion of agency staffing and spending runs counter to principles of limiting government growth and reducing taxpayer burden.
ARTICLE II. Citizen Involvement in Government (0)
This bill is an internal budgetary and administrative measure for DEQ. It makes no changes to elections, public participation processes, voting, or citizen access to government decision-making.
ARTICLE III. Education (0)
The bill appropriates funds exclusively to the Department of Environmental Quality for waste management and water quality programs. It has no bearing on schools, curricula, parental rights, or education funding.
ARTICLE IV. Agriculture (0)
The bill funds DEQ environmental programs but contains no provisions addressing agricultural operations, water rights for farms, agricultural markets, or rural land use. The environmental appropriations do not target or regulate agricultural activity.
ARTICLE V. Water (0)
While the bill includes appropriations to the IPDES Program Fund and transfers the DEQ Drinking Water Fees Account balance to the Public Water System Supervision Fund (Section 5), these are administrative fund consolidations and spending authorizations. They do not alter water law, prior appropriation doctrine, inter-basin transfer rules, or state water policy.
ARTICLE VI. Natural Resources and Environment (0)
The bill adds $400,000 to the Solid Waste Regulatory Fund, expanding DEQ's regulatory capacity in solid waste management, which cuts against preferences for minimal government regulation. However, the transfer consolidates existing funds rather than creating new regulatory authority, and the appropriation supports state-level — not federal — environmental oversight, which aligns with state primacy principles. These competing effects produce a neutral outcome.
ARTICLE VII. Energy (0)
The bill transfers the DEQ Air Permitting Fees Account balance to the Idaho Air Quality Permitting Fund (Section 4), but this is a technical account consolidation with no change to permitting policy, energy regulation, or energy resource development.
ARTICLE VIII. Idaho National Laboratories (0)
The bill contains no provisions related to the Idaho National Laboratory, nuclear research, or technology development programs.
ARTICLE IX. Private Property Rights (0)
The bill makes no changes to property regulations, eminent domain authority, or land use restrictions. It is a DEQ appropriations measure with no direct effect on private property rights.
ARTICLE X. State and Federal Lands (0)
The bill does not address federal or state land ownership, management authority, or transfer of federal lands to state control. Its scope is limited to DEQ budget and fund administration.
ARTICLE XI. Wildlife Management (0)
The bill funds water quality and waste management programs at DEQ. It contains no provisions on wildlife, fish and game management, hunting, fishing, or predator control.
ARTICLE XII. Economy (0)
The bill appropriates funds to a state regulatory agency but does not modify business regulations, tax policy, labor law, or commerce rules. The spending increase does not directly target economic growth or impose new burdens on private industry.
ARTICLE XIII. Health and Welfare (0)
The transfer of drinking water fee funds to the Public Water System Supervision Fund (Section 5) is an administrative consolidation, not a change in public health policy, healthcare delivery, or welfare programs. No provisions address insurance, medical decision-making, or health services.
ARTICLE XIV. American Family (0)
The bill is an environmental agency appropriations measure. It contains no provisions addressing family policy, parental rights, marriage, abortion, or child welfare.
ARTICLE XV. Older Americans (0)
The bill makes no changes to programs, services, or policies affecting older Idahoans. Its scope is limited to DEQ environmental program funding.
ARTICLE XVI. Law and Order with Justice (0)
The bill contains no provisions related to criminal justice, firearms, law enforcement, incarceration, or state sovereignty in legal matters.
ARTICLE XVII. National Defense - Securing the Border (0)
The bill addresses state environmental agency funding exclusively. It has no connection to military affairs, veterans' programs, National Guard deployment, or border security.
ARTICLE XVIII. Election of Judges and Idaho Supreme Court Justices (0)
The bill makes no changes to judicial selection, court structure, or constitutional interpretation. It is an environmental appropriations bill with no judicial dimension.
ARTICLE XIX. Religious Liberty (0)
The bill contains no provisions affecting religious exercise, conscience protections, or government interaction with religious institutions.