Governor outlines his priorities for the upcoming legislature
BOISE, Idaho (KIFI) — Idaho Governor Brad Little addressed the news media Friday morning about his priorities for the 2025 Legislature.
The governor mentioned that his theme for Monday’s State of the State address will be keeping promises. He said Idaho is doing great economically and has the fastest-growing personal income in the nation.
Little said the state has invested in education, roads, and natural resources. He said much of the federal money is gone, but Idaho is still in good shape thanks to growth and all the investments being made.
The governor said the state went through most of its fire budget this year. “It’s about $60 million on a year with no fires. It takes about $15 million just to pay the fixed costs,” Little said. “This year, we spent almost 60. And we won’t know that for a while because of the federal government’s reimbursement.”
Little said his top priority is education. Since becoming governor, education funding has increased by 80%, whether for teacher pay, discretionary funding, or facilities. He said the Launch program has really helped.
Other topics discussed were school choice, medicaid and fixing more bridges.
Little mentioned he would talk in State of the State address about sending Idaho State Police to the border to help with the drug interdiction.
The State of the State address is scheduled to begin at 1 p.m. Monday, Jan. 6, 2024, in the House chambers.
