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LEGISLATURE
OF
THE
STATE
OF
IDAHO
Sixty-eighth
Legislature
Second
Regular
Session
-
2026
IN
THE
SENATE
SENATE
BILL
NO.
1317
BY
EDUCATION
COMMITTEE
AN
ACT
1
RELATING
TO
EDUCATION;
AMENDING
CHAPTER
3,
TITLE
33,
IDAHO
CODE,
BY
THE
ADDI
-
2
TION
OF
A
NEW
SECTION
33
-
321,
IDAHO
CODE,
TO
PROVIDE
LEGISLATIVE
FIND
-
3
INGS,
TO
DEFINE
TERMS,
TO
PROVIDE
FOR
THE
FORMATION,
APPROVAL,
AND
POW
-
4
ERS
OF
REGIONAL
SERVICE
CENTERS,
TO
PROVIDE
LIMITATIONS,
AND
TO
PROVIDE
5
FOR
FUNDING
CERTAIN
OPERATIONS;
AMENDING
CHAPTER
3,
TITLE
33,
IDAHO
6
CODE,
BY
THE
ADDITION
OF
A
NEW
SECTION
33
-
322,
IDAHO
CODE,
TO
ESTABLISH
7
THE
REGIONAL
SERVICE
CENTER
CONTRACTS
FUND;
AND
DECLARING
AN
EMERGENCY.
8
Be
It
Enacted
by
the
Legislature
of
the
State
of
Idaho:
9
SECTION
1.
That
Chapter
3,
Title
33,
Idaho
Code,
be,
and
the
same
is
10
hereby
amended
by
the
addition
thereto
of
a
NEW
SECTION
,
to
be
known
and
des
-
1
1
ignated
as
Section
33
-
321,
Idaho
Code,
and
to
read
as
follows:
12
33
-
321.
REGIONAL
SERVICE
CENTERS.
(1)
The
legislature
finds
that:
13
(a)
Idaho
school
districts
and
public
charter
schools
face
persistent
14
challenges
in
recruiting,
retaining,
and
sustaining
highly
specialized
15
personnel
required
to
educate
an
increasingly
complex
student
body.
16
This
is
especially
problematic
for
noninstructional
staff
required
un
-
17
der
the
individuals
with
disabilities
education
act
(IDEA),
including
18
psychologists,
speech
-
language
pathologists,
behavior
specialists,
19
occupational
and
physical
therapists,
and
special
education
adminis
-
20
trators.
21
(b)
These
challenges
contribute
to
uneven
service
delivery,
dupli
-
22
cation
of
administrative
structures,
increased
costs,
and
heightened
23
risk
of
federal
noncompliance
under
IDEA
general
supervision
require
-
24
ments.
25
(c)
Regional
service
centers
can
aid
local
education
agencies
in
areas
26
of
accounting,
finance,
human
resources,
recruitment,
professional
de
-
27
velopment,
and
information
technology
services.
28
(d)
Using
shared,
regional
service
delivery
models,
controlled
by
par
-
29
ticipating
local
education
agencies
and
supported
by
predictable
state
30
funding,
can
reduce
duplication,
improve
compliance,
strengthen
work
-
31
force
pipelines,
and
preserve
local
control.
32
(e)
Idaho
requires
a
cooperative,
voluntary
framework
that
en
-
33
ables
local
education
agencies
to
pool
resources
for
high
-
cost
and
34
hard
-
to
-
staff
services
while
maintaining
enrollment,
instructional
35
authority,
legal
responsibilities,
and
governance
at
the
local
level.
36
(2)
As
used
in
this
section:
37
(a)
"Board"
means
a
regional
service
center
board.
38
(b)
"Contracted
services"
means
additional
services
offered
by
an
RSC
39
on
a
fee
-
for
-
service
basis,
elected
by
participating
LEAs
and
outlined
40
under
a
service
-
level
agreement,
memorandum
of
agreement,
or
an
inter
-
41
local
agreement
pursuant
to
section
67
-
2332,
Idaho
Code.
42
2
(c)
"Core
services"
means
services
supported
by
appropriated
baseline
1
state
funding
to
provide
for
administrative
support
of
RSCs.
2
(d)
"Individualized
education
program"
or
"IEP"
means
a
program
devel
-
3
oped
collaboratively
by
a
student's
IEP
team
that
outlines
the
special
4
education
program
for
a
student
with
a
disability,
including
special
-
5
ized
instruction
and
related
services.
6
(e)
"Local
education
agency"
or
"LEA"
means
school
districts
and
public
7
charter
schools
that
are
not
part
of
a
school
district.
8
(f)
"Participating
LEA"
means
a
school
district
or
public
charter
9
school
that
has
entered
into
an
interlocal
agreement
with
an
RSC.
10
(g)
"Regional
service
center"
or
"RSC"
means
a
voluntary,
cooperative
1
1
public
entity
supporting
two
(2)
or
more
LEAs
through
an
interlocal
12
agreement
for
the
purpose
of
providing
shared
educational
and
adminis
-
13
trative
services.
14
(3)(a)
A
prospective
RSC
shall
provide
a
governing
charter
and
appli
-
15
cation
to
establish
a
new
RSC
to
the
state
superintendent
of
public
in
-
16
struction.
17
(b)
The
charter
and
application
shall
specify
the
proposed:
18
(i)
Geographic
service
region;
19
(ii)
Governance
structure,
including
board
officers;
20
(iii)
Services
to
be
provided;
21
(iv)
Procedures
for
LEA
participation
and
withdrawal;
22
(v)
Rules
to
modify
or
amend
the
charter
governing
such
RSC;
and
23
(vi)
Fiscal
management
and
accountability.
24
(4)
Upon
the
state
superintendent
of
public
instruction's
approval
of
25
a
prospective
RSC's
charter
and
application,
a
board
for
that
RSC
shall
be
26
established,
which
shall
be
vested
with
the
authority,
control,
and
super
-
27
vision
of
the
RSC
and
its
service
programs
and
which
shall
have
the
powers
28
required
to
perform
the
duties
set
forth
in
this
section.
Each
RSC
charter
29
shall
designate
its
board,
which
shall
consist
of
at
least
two
(2)
superin
-
30
tendents
or
charter
administrators,
or
their
designees,
from
LEAs
receiving
31
contracted
services
from
the
RSC.
The
superintendent
of
public
instruction
32
shall
appoint
one
(1)
additional
member
to
the
board
who:
33
(a)
Shall
not
vote
on
board
matters,
except
in
order
to
break
a
tied
34
vote;
35
(b)
Shall
ensure
compliance
with
this
section;
and
36
(c)
Shall
report
the
decisions
of
the
board
to
the
superintendent
of
37
public
instruction.
38
(5)
RSC
boards
shall
have
and
may
exercise
the
following
powers
and
du
-
39
ties:
40
(a)
To
hire
staff
as
necessary
to
complete
the
board's
mission
as
out
-
41
lined
in
this
section.
42
(i)
Staff
requiring
certification
shall
be
properly
certified
43
and
endorsed
for
the
service
being
rendered
pursuant
to
section
44
33
-
1201,
Idaho
Code.
45
(ii)
All
staff
working
for
an
RSC
shall
be
eligible
for
the
public
46
employee
retirement
system
pursuant
to
chapter
13,
title
59,
Idaho
47
Code.
48
3
(iii)
Staff
working
for
an
RSC
shall
maintain
their
career
ladder
1
and
experience
growth
as
if
they
were
employed
directly
by
an
LEA
2
pursuant
to
section
33
-
1004B,
Idaho
Code;
3
(b)
To
cooperate
or
enter
into
contracts
or
agreements
to
provide
ser
-
4
vices
or
do
such
other
things
as
specified
in
the
agreement,
subject
5
to
the
limitations
described
in
this
subsection.
An
agreement
entered
6
into
pursuant
to
this
paragraph
may
be
between
the
superintendent
of
7
public
instruction,
institutions
of
higher
education,
and
one
(1)
LEA
8
or
multiple
LEAs.
The
board
may
enter
into
agreements
to
render
ser
-
9
vices
to
or
for
agencies
in
exchange
for
a
charge
reasonably
calculated
10
to
cover
the
cost
of
rendering
such
service.
This
authority
is
to
be
1
1
limited
to
services
voluntarily
rendered
and
voluntarily
received;
12
(c)
To
determine
the
location
of
its
main
office
and
to
determine
the
13
location
of
branch
offices,
if
any.
Services
are
encouraged
to
be
pro
-
14
vided
in
person
to
the
maximum
reasonable
extent
for
student
-
oriented
15
or
staff
-
oriented
positions;
16
(d)
To
deposit
all
moneys
or
payment
received
or
collected
by
gift,
17
grant,
devise,
or
any
other
way
to
the
respective
division
or
subaccount
18
of
the
RSC;
19
(e)
To
establish
a
fiscal
control
policy;
20
(f)
To
purchase,
exchange,
or
sell
real
property
and
construct,
rent,
21
or
lease
such
buildings
as
may
be
required
for
the
accomplishment
of
22
the
duties
imposed
on
the
RSC
and
to
further
obtain
such
other
personal
23
property
as
may
be
necessary
to
its
functions;
24
(g)
To
accept,
receive,
and
utilize
any
gifts,
grants,
or
funds
and
per
-
25
sonal
and
real
property
that
may
be
donated
to
it
for
the
fulfillment
of
26
the
purposes
outlined
in
this
section;
and
27
(h)
To
establish
a
charge
whereby
the
board
agrees
to
render
services
to
28
or
for
education
entities
for
an
amount
reasonably
calculated
to
cover
29
the
cost
of
rendering
such
services.
30
(6)
For
the
purposes
of
this
section,
an
RSC
is
not
a
subdivision
of
the
31
state
and
shall
be
considered
an
independent
body
corporate
and
politic
pur
-
32
suant
to
section
1,
article
VIII
of
the
constitution
of
the
state
of
Idaho
and
33
is
not
authorized
hereby
to
levy
taxes
or
to
obligate
the
state
of
Idaho
con
-
34
cerning
such
financing.
35
(7)
Neither
the
board
nor
the
staff
of
an
RSC
has
any
authority
or
powers
36
over
curriculum,
instruction,
or
student
enrollment,
which
shall
remain
the
37
responsibility
of
each
LEA.
38
(8)
RSCs
shall
receive
funding
administered
by
the
department
of
educa
-
39
tion,
subject
to
legislative
appropriations,
for
the
administration
of
the
40
RSCs.
Nothing
in
this
section
shall
be
construed
to
create
an
entitlement
to
41
funding
or
to
obligate
the
state
to
provide
ongoing
financial
support.
Funds
42
appropriated
pursuant
to
this
section
shall
be
separate
from
and
shall
not
43
modify,
supplant,
or
replace
distributions
made
pursuant
to
the
Idaho
public
44
school
funding
formula.
Baseline
funding
shall
cover
core
services
and
ad
-
45
ministrative
operations
that
include
but
are
not
limited
to:
46
(a)
Supporting
workforce
recruitment,
training,
and
retention
initia
-
47
tives
aligned
with
statewide
needs;
48
(b)
Supporting
shared
instructional
and
noninstructional
services,
49
including
special
education
technical
assistance
and
related
supports;
50
4
(c)
Supporting
IDEA
compliance,
monitoring,
and
technical
assistance;
1
(d)
Providing
training
and
technical
assistance
to
improve
compliance
2
with
federal
and
state
requirements;
3
(e)
Offsetting
administrative
and
operational
costs
necessary
to
de
-
4
liver
regional
services
efficiently;
and
5
(f)
Reducing
contracted
service
costs
charged
to
participating
LEAs.
6
SECTION
2.
That
Chapter
3,
Title
33,
Idaho
Code,
be,
and
the
same
is
7
hereby
amended
by
the
addition
thereto
of
a
NEW
SECTION
,
to
be
known
and
des
-
8
ignated
as
Section
33
-
322,
Idaho
Code,
and
to
read
as
follows:
9
33
-
322.
REGIONAL
SERVICE
CENTER
CONTRACTS
FUND.
(1)
There
is
hereby
10
established
in
the
state
treasury
the
regional
service
center
contracts
fund
1
1
to
be
administered
by
regional
service
centers.
12
(2)
Moneys
in
the
fund
shall
consist
of:
13
(a)
Legislative
appropriations;
14
(b)
Donations
and
contributions
made
to
the
fund;
15
(c)
Interest
earned
on
idle
moneys
in
the
fund;
and
16
(d)
Moneys
received
for
contracts
authorized
pursuant
to
section
17
33
-
321(5)(b),
Idaho
Code.
18
(3)
Moneys
in
the
fund
shall
be
used
exclusively
to
finance
fee
-
for
-
19
services
program
costs
outlined
in
memorandums
of
agreement
or
interlocal
20
agreements
authorized
pursuant
to
section
33
-
321,
Idaho
Code,
and
are
hereby
21
continuously
appropriated
for
such
purposes.
22
SECTION
3.
An
emergency
existing
therefor,
which
emergency
is
hereby
23
declared
to
exist,
this
act
shall
be
in
full
force
and
effect
on
and
after
its
24
passage
and
approval.
25