Little’s budget protects giveaways while families pay the price

By Lauren Necochea
Reader Contributor

Gov. Brad Little just laid out his budget proposal for the year ahead. It shows what he’s willing to invest in and what services he wants to take away. It speaks volumes about what — and who — he values.

Little is telling Idaho families they must swallow cuts to health care, education, public safety and more. In the same breath, he’s defending reckless giveaways that blew a $450 million hole in our budget, including legislation he admitted we couldn’t afford before signing it anyway. Now the bill is coming due, and it will be paid by your family, your community and all of our kids.

Notably, Little’s budget is an all-out attack on Medicaid. Idaho already made a 4% cut to reimbursement for hospitals, nursing homes and other care providers. Essential therapies for kids with disabilities have been slashed. 

Now Little is proposing eliminating these therapies altogether, along with a slew of other services. His proposals will prevent children from reaching their full potential, force people with disabilities into expensive institutions and block preventive dental care, to name a few of the harms. 

Cuts like this strain our entire health care system, endangering care for all Idahoans.

Your neighborhood school will feel the pinch of this budget. Idaho schools face a $100 million funding gap for special education. When the state won’t step up to serve kids with special needs, your district either seeks levies or cuts services.

Water bills will reflect these choices. The plan pulls back support for drinking water and wastewater upgrades. Cities still have to fix pipes and treatment systems, so rates rise or repairs get delayed while the price tag grows.

If you drive to work or move products on Idaho roads, this budget affects you. His plan pulls $275 million from transportation, including $110 million for local highway districts, and sweeps $375 million from local transportation projects. That means road and bridge projects delayed, safety improvements pushed back and higher repair costs later.

While pushing these deep cuts, the governor ignores commonsense solutions. He could repeal the $50 million voucher scheme that sends public dollars to private and religious schools with little accountability. He could also reverse the latest round of tax giveaways for the rich.

Then comes full federal tax conformity. The governor says it costs $155 million. Independent estimates put it far higher, including $435 million from the Idaho Center for Fiscal Policy. That is a massive revenue hit that mostly benefits profitable corporations, including companies getting tax advantages for investments made out of state. Idaho should adopt changes that help working people and reject the rest.

Show me your budget, and I’ll tell you your values. Little’s budget shows he’s not looking out for you.

Lauren Necochea is chair of the Idaho Democratic Party and a former District 19 legislator. Necochea spent a decade leading nonprofit programs dedicated to research and advocacy in tax policy, health care and children’s issues.