IBE releases open letter to Idaho Legislature

BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) - There is growing outrage over the State House's decision to reject the more than $630 million higher education budget last week.

Dozens of members of the Idaho Business for Education group sent an open letter to lawmakers Thursday.

It says the vote "ironically" makes it harder for Idaho to achieve its goal of having 60% of our 25-34-year-olds holding a postsecondary credential by 2025.

"A strong higher education system is critical to building the workforce that Idaho's businesses need to grow and thrive," the letter says. "When you weaken our colleges and universities you are also putting Idaho's economic future at risk."

They urge lawmakers stop turning our critical education infrastructure into a "political football in the culture wars."

The bill now goes back to the joint-finance committee for revision.

Opponents say there needs to be language prohibiting discrimination and critical race theory ideas.

You can read the full letter HERE.

Tuesday the House also rejected a more than $1 billion budget for teacher salaries for K-12 education based on the same concerns.