The Idaho Spending Index serves to provide a fiscally conservative perspective on state budgeting while providing an unbiased measurement of how Idaho lawmakers apply these values to their voting behavior on appropriations bills. Each bill is analyzed within the context of the metrics below. They receive one (+1) point for each metric that is satisfied by freedom-focused policymaking and lose one (-1) point for each instance in which the inverse is true. The sum of these points composes the score for the bill.

Analyst: Niklas Kleinworth

Rating: (-1)

Bill Description: Senate Bill 1174 is an enhancement of $702,300 and 0.00 new full-time positions for the Industrial Commission for fiscal year 2026. This legislation appropriates a total of $21,932,900 and 130.25 full-time positions to the agency.

Is the continuation or growth in ongoing spending, if any, inappropriate for the changes in circumstances, scope of the agency, or current economic environment? Conversely, is the continuation or growth in ongoing spending appropriate given any change in circumstances or economic pressures?

This legislation funds ongoing spending for the Industrial Commission at $21,408,700, growing from the base by 16.7% in the last three years. This rate is faster than what would be prescribed by inflationary pressures and growth.

Because of the accelerated growth in this budget over the last three years, a truly fiscally responsible enhancement budget for FY2026 would reverse the growth with a negative appropriation — a reduction to the base budget.

(-1)

Does this budget perpetuate or expand state dependence on federal dollars, thereby violating principles of federalism? Conversely, does this budget actively reduce the amount of federal dollars used to balance this budget?

This budget continues the federal funding in the base appropriation for the agency, totaling $1,639,000. This represents only a small portion of the agency’s budget — at 7.5% of the total — and does not go to support any full-time positions at the agency. This does not constitute a significant level of federal dependency.

(0)

Does this budget contain hidden fund transfers or supplemental expenditures that work to enact new policy or are not valid emergency expenditures? Conversely, are fund transfers only made to stabilization funds or are supplemental requests only made in the interest of resolving valid fiscal emergencies?

Senate Bill 1174 includes one supplemental request to transfer funds between several dedicated accounts. These have a net-zero funding impact on the state budget and correct an error where appropriations made in the prior legislative sessions were mistakenly sent to the wrong fund. This is an appropriate use of a supplemental request and is not a hidden fund transfer since it does not stow additional spending in dedicated accounts.

(0)