Latest news with #HouseBill252
Yahoo
16-04-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Major education bill advances, would boost starting teacher pay
Photo illustration by Getty Images. Sen. John Fuller championed a $55 million education bill by reminding the Senate of his fiscally conservative values. 'Some of you may know that I'm so tight, I squeak when I walk, but I do support public education, and I support it fiercely,' Fuller, R-Kalispell, said on Tuesday. Sen. Sara Novak, a Democrat from Anaconda, said House Bill 252 isn't perfect, but it's a step in the right direction, and it will help especially small rural schools and young educators. 'It is some much-needed funding to our public schools to directly impact our teacher wages and specifically our beginning teacher wages,' Novak said. The Senate voted 40-10 in favor of the STARS Act, or Student and Teacher Advancement for Results, sending it to the Senate Finance and Claims Committee for a closer fiscal analysis. It's among the bills to help public schools that one supporter said bolsters education without adding undue stress to already beleaguered residential property taxpayers. Montana has struggled to increase starting teacher pay, and a proposal from the 2023 legislative session didn't work as planned. Backed by the Governor's Office, HB 252 earned bipartisan support, although some critics said it doesn't do enough for veteran teachers, who also need to be paid well. Sponsor and Rep. Llew Jones, R-Conrad, has said the bill aims to fix an ongoing problem, which is low pay for beginning teachers, and the state doesn't have unlimited funds. The bill would spend more than $110 million from the general fund in the biennium, according to the most recent fiscal analysis. It also has other provisions to support education, such as incentives for academic achievement for students and tools to help teachers in areas with high housing costs. After the Senate floor vote, Lance Melton, with the Montana School Boards Association, said funding proposals before the legislature, including the STARS Act, have been written to guard against a spike in local property taxes. Property tax income goes in part toward public schools. 'All of those proposals have two — front and center — primary stakeholders, the child and the taxpayer,' Melton said. The fiscal analysis estimates an increase to local school property taxes of $800,000 a year, but those dollars are associated with housing support voters might approve through local levies, not incentives for teachers. Melton pointed also to House Bill 483 and House Bill 515, which both passed out of the House with bipartisan support and are in the Senate. Sponsored by Rep. Courtenay Sprunger, R-Kalispell, HB 483 would take any revenue growth that exceeds the state's obligation to a school equalization fund and return it to taxpayers. It has other Republicans and Democrats as co-sponsors and passed with a bipartisan 87-11 vote out of the House. House Bill 515, sponsored by Rep. Linda Reksten, R-Polson, would in part help schools with major maintenance costs without asking property taxpayers for a levy or a bond. On the House floor, Reksten said it has support from the Governor's Office. She said the bill transfers $75 million of one-time-only money from the general fund surplus to fill the school facilities trust fund — without affecting property taxpayers. It passed out of the House on a bipartisan 73-25 vote.
Yahoo
15-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Kinship program will begin after rulemaking this summer
About 36,000 New Mexico children were raised by their grandparents or other next-of-kin in 2023. (Photo courtesy of New Mexico Aging Services) Kinship caregivers in approximately half a dozen counties will be part of a new pilot program expected to start this summer designed to help support older New Mexicans and other relatives who take over raising children when parents are unable to do so. That program is a result of House Bill 252, which establishes the Kinship Caregiver Support Pilot program, signed last week by Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham. Joey Long, a spokesperson for the Aging and Long-Term Services Department, told Source NM that the department does not anticipate services starting before the beginning of the next fiscal year, which begins in July. The process will also include a 30-day public comment period. According to the Los Alamos National Laboratory Foundation, about 36,000 New Mexico children were raised by grandparents or other next of kin in 2023 – an increase from about 30,000 in 2017. The bill states that the pilot program will be established in five to seven counties in the state with 50 participants chosen in each county. A previous version of the bill identified Rio Arriba, Santa Fe, Taos, McKinley and Doña Ana counties as communities participating in the program, but the specific counties were struck from the final version of the bill. Long told Source in a written statement that the department is 'assessing geographic areas based on data, stakeholder consultations, and availability of private funding to support participant stipends, as well as other considerations' before choosing communities to participate. Program participants will eventually be connected to case management assistance, legal assistance, mental health support and respite care. 'Too often kinship caregivers—especially grandparents—are left to navigate complex systems alone while providing childcare,' Kaltenbach said in a statement. 'This pilot program will help us establish more resources to help keep families together and ensure caregivers have the support they need to provide the best care possible.' The program is a three-year pilot, meaning the state will evaluate the outcomes of all participants to help create a possible statewide program in future years. An annual report with outcomes and recommendations is due each December to the Legislative Finance Committee. SUBSCRIBE: GET THE MORNING HEADLINES DELIVERED TO YOUR INBOX
Yahoo
12-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Montana Federation of Public Employees members rally at Capitol
Amanda Curtis, president of the Montana Federation of Public Employees, describes successes of the union at the 2025 Montana Legislature, urges more union members to run for office. (Keila Szpaller/The Daily Montanan) 'Union busting bills' and a school voucher bill that threatened to siphon $100 million from public schools were on the table earlier this session, said Amanda Curtis, president of the Montana Federation of Public Employees. And back in February, the state pay play wasn't scheduled for a hearing in the Senate yet, she said. But despite snowstorms and single digit temperatures, union members showed up to engage with lawmakers, Curtis said. 'Because we broke bread and had thoughtful, one-on-one conversations with legislators of both parties, we won,' Curtis told a few dozen rally-goers. She said union members helped push off unfriendly bills and pulled the pay plan forward.. At a rally Friday at the Capitol with, at most, 18 days left in the session, Curtis praised the work union members had done, including 22 MFPE members who serve in the Montana Legislature. The MFPE is the largest union in the state with more than 20,000 members. Rep. Eric Matthews, D-Bozeman, said the legislature has passed the pay plan, and it's a fair one. Matthews, a teacher, said the STARS Act, a comprehensive bill addressing starting teacher pay, still needs to pass, but it's a positive proposal. The Student and Teacher Advancement for Results and Success Act, House Bill 252, passed the House 88-9 and is making its way through the Senate. 'We still have to get the STARS Act out, which will definitely help the education system across Montana,' Matthews said. Rep. Denise Baum, D-Billings, said Montana's pensions are healthy, and they need to resist attacks. She said 73% of public employees report they would be more likely to leave their work if their pensions are cut. Baum, a recently retired detective with the Billings Police Department, also urged Gov. Greg Gianforte to sign Senate Bill 7, which she said helps correct a wrong from last session. The bill revises the retirement criteria for some law enforcement officers. Instead of being eligible after 20 years of service and at the age of 50, it allows an officer to tap their retirement after reaching just one of the criteria. The bill passed the legislature and is headed to Gianforte's desk. A spokesperson for the Governor's Office did not respond to an email for comment about the governor's planned action. Rep. Jill Cohenour, D-Helena, praised increases in the pay plan, including a minimum $10,400 for employees working for the state of Montana and the university system over the course of three years, 'raises exceeding anything that has been there in the past two decades.' 'Hear me when I say that public employees in Montana deserve the pay plans that we have negotiated,' Cohenour said. 'We deserve so much more. 'We are the people that Montanans go to when they need help starting a business, when they're trying to find a job, when they're trying to get back on their feet, when their roads need plowed, and when they're experiencing a health crisis. We make families successful in communities across Montana.' At the rally, Curtis also encouraged other union members to run for office in the future, even though '22 member legislators may be unheard of.' 'We need reinforcements in 2027, and it doesn't matter what party you identify with,' Curtis said. 'If you believe that public service is a public good, if you believe that we must support public employees, if you believe that working people should have a voice and protections at work, we need you in this Capitol building.'
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Gov. Lujan Grisham has signed more than half the legislation sent up by lawmakers
Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham has signed more than half of the legislation sent to her from the 2025 session. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham signed another 10 bills into law on Wednesday, including bills to require all schools to install heart defibrillators; adding additional crimes to the state's organized crime laws and approving a pilot project for grandparents raising grandchildren. House Bill 54 requires all public schools to develop plans for addressing cardiac emergencies and have electronic devices on site. The bill originally requested high schools to meet the requirements, but lawmakers amended it to include all schools. High schools are required to install automated external defibrillators by the 2026 school year, and elementary schools must comply by 2027. Senate Bill 70 adds additional crimes that qualify for racketeering charges, including dog and cockfighting, human trafficking, sexual exploitation of children, criminal sexual penetration; criminal sexual contact and bringing contraband into prisons and jails. House Bill 252 develops a $4 million dollar pilot project for the Aging and Long Term Services Department to provide funding for grandparents or next-of-kin raising children. The bill will address 50 families in five to seven counties. Lujan Grisham has signed 128 bills — about 65% — of the 195 bills the Legislature passed, and vetoed two bills. That leaves 67 bills pending, including the $10.8 billion budget funding the state government in House Bill 2. Lujan Grisham has until Friday to approve or veto bills. Any legislation not signed by the April 11 deadline will not go into law, a move called a pocket veto. Lawmakers unanimously passed a measure to remove the governor's pocket veto power in House Joint Resolution 2. Voters will have the chance to vote on the constitutional change in 2026, unless officials call a special election before then. Here's a full list of the bills signed into law on Wednesday: House Bill 6: IRB Project Minimum Wage House Bill 20: Technology & Innovation Division Senate Bill 59: Public Works Minimum Wage Definitions House Bill 54: Defibrillators In Every High School House Bill 532: Student Water Safety Guidance Senate Bill 070: Add Racketeering Crimes Senate Bill 168: Travel Insurance Act House Bill 172: New Mexico Red & Green Chile Month House Bill 218: Tax Changes House Bill 252: Kinship Caregiver Support Pilot Program
Yahoo
10-03-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
North Idaho legislator wants all employers to use E-Verify. What would that mean for Idaho?
Eddie Melendrez, a Chicano artist, speaks in a megaphone while showcasing his mural representing the United Farmworkers of America, a labor union that advocates for farmworker rights. Melendrez, and nearly 100 others, protested President Donald Trump's immigration policies in front of the Idaho State Capitol in Boise on February 7, 2025. (Mia Maldonado / Idaho Capital Sun) Para leer esta historia en español, haga clic aquí. Elected Idaho officials have introduced multiple bills pushing to regulate immigration in Idaho, making it clear that addressing unauthorized immigration is a priority. At least one legislator is pushing to require all employers use E-Verify, a program meant to check an individual's work authorization status. In 2021, there were about 35,000 unauthorized immigrants living in Idaho, according to a report from the University of Idaho's McClure Center for Public Policy, and Rep. Jordan Redman, R-Coeur d'Alene, said he introduced House Bill 252 with the goal to give people who are in the country with proper work status more opportunities. However, his bill could significantly impact the labor supply in some of the state's most critical industries — including the construction workers his region relies on and the dairy workers that supply Idaho's top agricultural export. Redman represents one of Idaho's fastest growing counties, which has seen the third-highest percentage increase in housing units over the last decade — or nearly 12,000 homes built between 2010 and 2020, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. Many of the homes built in his region were likely built by unauthorized workers. Unauthorized immigrants make up a disproportionate share of the U.S. construction workforce. One in five unauthorized workers in the U.S. is employed in construction, primarily working a job to install drywall, roofs or painting buildings, according to the Center for American Progress. Idaho Gov. Brad Little has repeatedly shared his strong support for President Donald Trump's immigration policies; however, he said an E-Verify requirement would be a burden for Idaho employers. 'It's not black and white,' Little told legislative reporters in a meeting on Feb. 25. 'If we could give people certainty that their workforce is not going to be disrupted, that burden — the paperwork burden on one side — would be outweighed by the risk on the other side.' House Bill 252 has not yet received a committee hearing. A hearing could take place in the coming days or weeks, or it could have the same fate as a similar bill Redman introduced last year that died as the legislative session ended. Legislative leadership is aiming to adjourn the session by March 21, but the end date could be extended. If it were to pass both chambers of the Legislature and receive approval from the governor, House Bill 252 would take effect on July 1. The E-Verify program was established in 1996 to reduce employment of unauthorized workers. The service is managed by the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and it works by comparing new hires' information in a Form I-9 against Social Security Administration and DHS records. As of 2024, more than 1.3 million U.S. employers were enrolled in the program. Many states have no state-mandated requirement to use the program. States in the southeast have the most concentration of laws that require all or most employers to use E-Verify, while two states, California and Illinois, have restrictions against the use of E-Verify, according to Equifax. Idaho's only E-Verify requirement mandates that state agencies use the system — a policy established in 2009 by an executive order from former Gov. Butch Otter. Most states in the West — aside from Idaho, Utah and Arizona — do not have E-Verify requirements. In Utah, employers with 150 or more employees are required to use the program. In Arizona, the law is stricter, and it requires all employers to use it. E-Verify is technically free for anyone to use. However, attorney Chris Thomas, a partner at Holland & Hart, told the Sun there are costs associated with having to use the program. Using E-Verify is expensive for companies that use a third party software to manage E-Verify compliance — such as Equifax, Workday or ADP — and reduce their administrative burden, Thomas said. Additionally, employers could face costs if they lose workers who do not pass the E-Verify process. Thomas represents companies all over the U.S. who are concerned about federal investigations into unauthorized immigrants in their workplace. E-Verify is not always accurate, he said, with the most common loophole being identity theft — where individuals assume a real person's identity and obtain fake documents with their name, date of birth, and Social Security number. This allows them to pass the E-Verify process undetected. 'Compounding the issue is the fact that individuals can use E-Verify personally to check to see whether their information passes,' Thomas said. 'So you can come up with a high degree of confidence on your first day of employment knowing that you'll pass E-Verify.' When advising companies during DHS investigations, he said that employers often complied with the law by enrolling in E-Verify. However, over the course of the investigation, they would discover that many employees had submitted fraudulent documents, ultimately resulting in the loss of a significant portion of their workforce. SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE Arizona's law to require all employers to use E-Verify went into effect in January 2008, and it was meant to prevent identity theft and employers from hiring unauthorized immigrants. A migration studies publication found that Arizona's population of non-naturalized citizens dropped after the state's E-Verify mandate took effect. However, the early days of the law coincided with the start of the Great Recession, which was likely the main cause of the decline in the unauthorized immigrant population, the report found. Since it was implemented, at least three companies have faced punishment for hiring unauthorized immigrants. That's not because Arizonan employers are complying with the E-Verify law, but it's because no state law enforcement agency is routinely looking for violations, the Arizona Republic reported. Today, there is limited government enforcement of E-Verify requirements in Arizona, Thomas said. 'It feels like window dressing,' Thomas said about E-Verify, noting that even in states with stricter enforcement, the focus is only on whether employers are enrolled in E-Verify rather than ensuring that unauthorized workers are actually being prevented from employment. In Idaho's case, Redman said the Idaho Department of Labor and the Office of the Attorney General would be in charge of enforcing the E-Verify statute if it were implemented. There are also other ways to get around E-Verify, according to José Patiño — the vice president of education and external affairs at Aliento, an Arizona nonprofit dedicated to supporting unauthorized, DACA, and mixed-immigration status families. Between 2004 to 2013, Patiño worked in the construction sector in Arizona. He was unauthorized to work in the country at the time. In his experience, Patiño said if one person in the crew had legal permission to work, then that individual would disperse the funds as they were paid by project, rather than given an hourly wage. 'During the 2020-2021 housing boom here, the employers just looked the other way, and there was nobody who was going to go after them because they needed the labor,' he told the Sun. 'These were the only people who were willing to go out of work in those conditions for that.' Construction jobs in Arizona's desert landscape are not highly desirable by U.S. citizens, Patiño said. 'It's really difficult to recruit an 18-year-old and say, 'Hey, do you want to wake up at 4 a.m. to drive to a construction site until 5 a.m. in the summer when it's over 100 degrees until 2 or 3 p.m., and basically be exhausted,' he said. And like Idaho, the agricultural industry in Arizona relies on unauthorized workers to pick the state's top agricultural commodities, Patiño said. 'Many U.S.-born don't want to put their bodies through the difficulty of picking lettuce or cotton, or working in a construction job where you're carrying 200 to 300 pounds for a set amount of time for limited pay,' Patiño said. Every time Patiño talks to employers in those sectors, he's told they need more labor 'For me, how do we have an actual conversation on solutions that are going to actually work, not necessarily thinking, 'If we deport all the undocumented folks, then we'll attract U.S. citizens,'' Patiño said. 'A lot of them will not be attracted. Even if the pay increases, it's the quality of life that has really risen in workers' mindsets post pandemic.' Unauthorized immigrants are key players in Idaho's economy, agricultural sector, study shows Unauthorized immigrants living in Idaho largely work in the state's agriculture, construction and hospitality industries, according to the McClure Center's report. Redman told the Idaho Capital Sun he understands that his bill would impact those industries in Idaho, but his bill fits in with a national movement aimed at curbing unauthorized immigration. 'I think there definitely would be an impact there,' Redman told the Sun. 'But again, we're here down at the Legislature to enforce laws and create laws for residents of the country and the state, and so that's kind of the point behind it.' Redman said he believes it is the federal government's responsibility to create visa programs as a solution to supplement for a lost workforce. The U.S. only offers two kinds of seasonal visas, one is known as the H-2A visa, which allows employers to hire foreign farmworkers but they must provide transportation and housing. The second is the H-2B visa, which allows employers to bring workers to fill nonagricultural jobs such as landscaping, meatpacking, poultry, construction, among others. At least two industries oppose Idaho's House Bill 252. Idaho Home Builders Association state President Todd Webb told the Idaho Capital Sun the association opposes the bill as it is written. Similarly, Rick Naerebout, the CEO of the Idaho Dairymen's Association, said the E-Verify bill would put significant sector's of Idaho's economy that do not have access to visa programs in 'very precarious positions.' About 90% of the Idaho dairy jobs are filled by foreign-born individuals who are Spanish-speaking. Dairy work is year round, and workers do not have access to a visa program, so the Idaho Dairymen's Association relies on the unauthorized workforce, Naerebout said. Naerebout said the association is willing to work with legislators to find a way he could support the bill, but there would have to be changes so it would not impact his industry's workforce. 'We would have to see some sort of trigger language where the bill would only apply to that industry sector after they got access to a visa program,' he said. Like Naerebout, legal experts have said the country's current visa system is not sufficient enough for the country's labor demand. Alycia Moss, an immigration attorney and partner at Hawley Troxell law firm, said at a Boise City Club panel on Feb. 25 that the country needs a middle ground, comprehensive immigration reform. Just as there needs to be enforcement at the border, Moss said the country needs an immigrant workforce. 'We know that the workforce is suffering,' Moss said at the panel, noting that she's lobbied congressmen in Washington, D.C. to expand worker visas. 'We can have H2-Ds for dairies. We can have H2-Cs for construction. We can have a better system.' SUPPORT: YOU MAKE OUR WORK POSSIBLE
