COEUR d’ALENE, Idaho – In the September 3 Coeur d’Alene City Council meeting, Councilmember Dan Gookin employed a politicking tactic to imply that nine Kootenai County legislators do not support North Idaho College (NIC).
During discussion on Council Bill No. 24-1013 which created a new zoning district called the University District and rezoned properties around North Idaho College, Gookin listed three education appropriation bills, along with the name and nay vote of all lawmakers in Legislative Districts 3, 4, and 5.
“Looks to me like we have a problem with the support for higher education with our local delegation,” chimed in Councilmember Christie Wood.
Following Wood’s remark Gookin stated, “We have a problem. The Republican Party, of which I am a member, adopted Article III, Section 6 which requests that there be no support using taxpayer funding for programs beyond highschool. And every Republican legislator who’s running supports this platform.”
It appears Gookin is relying on voter ignorance concerning legislative budget processes and political platforms to paint a “defund education” label on Republican legislators grappling with complex funding issues at the state level.
When contacted by Kootenai Journal for comment, several legislators took time to discuss the state’s budget process, and they believe Gookin disingenuously misled the public to grandstand.
“It is almost certain that Mr. Gookin has objected to certain budget item requests from different Coeur d’Alene departments,” said Rep. Tony Wisniewski. “This does not mean he wishes to defund those departments.”
Sen. Carl Bjerke pointed out that a nay vote on a budget bill does not equate to defunding. “All it does is send a bill back to committee to continue fine-tuning the appropriations.” As a member of the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee (JFAC), where all budgets are developed through an exhaustive deliberative process, Bjerke is intimately familiar with the complexities.
“Every state agency receives funding from the legislature,” reiterated Wisniewski. “A vote against a particular bill does not mean that a legislator wants to defund that program. A no vote simply means that the legislator feels that the budget needs a bit of tightening before it is considered acceptable.”
“I work directly with NIC President Swayne to assist in getting our college the most funding possible,” stated Bjerke, who joined Rep. Jordan Redman and Sen. Ben Toews in a scheduled strategy session with NIC administrators on September 5. The meeting focused on funding for three areas: the NIC nursing program, cyber security, and facilities for an Emergency Vehicle Operator Course (EVOC) as part of the Peace Officer Standards and Training (POST) program.
“You can’t judge support for NIC based on a budget vote,” contends Bjerke. “All good legislators have the intent of doing what is right and no budget is perfect.”
Senate Bill 1176 (2023), House Bills 267 (2023), and House Bill 734 (2024), which were referenced by Gookin, all passed on the first vote, albeit without strong support. “On average these bills had over a 40% rejection rate by both the House and Senate Republicans,” stated Wisniewski.
The main concerns of the Republican lawmakers who opposed the three funding bills centered around prioritizing primary education and rejecting DEI initiatives.
“Legislators must consider more than just the amount of financing academics and must consider curriculum as well,” asserted Rep. Vito Barbieri, Chair of the House Environment, Energy, and Technology Committee. “Just as importantly, we must consider how the millions are being spent.”
“Unfortunately, today’s education system doesn’t just focus on education, but on social issues as well,” explained Rep. Elaine Price, who sits on the House Education Committee. “We have to take that into consideration when looking at funding.”
“The current proficiency rates in Idaho’s 4th and 8th grade math and reading skills hover in the low to mid 30% range,” stated Wisniewski, also a member of the House Education Committee. “There is close to a billion dollars of deferred maintenance on K-12 facilities. To spend an inordinate amount on higher education while neglecting these fundamental needs is putting the cart before the horse. If a child can’t read at proficiency levels by the time he graduates high school, we have not only wasted taxpayers’ money, but we have ruined future lives.”
Price points out that the part of the IDGOP platform referenced by Gookin was based on opposition to the LAUNCH Program. “It’s creating a welfare program for our graduating students, and I don’t know how I can support that,” she stated.
Bjerke noted that Gookin “flat out lied” by stating all Republican legislators support the entirety of the IDGOP platform.
