H 728 Idaho House · 68th Legislature, 2nd Regular Session (2026)

EDUCATION – Amends existing law to revise provisions regarding educational staff, teachers, and certificates.

This bill corrects minor technical errors in Idaho's education code, primarily fixing outdated section references (e.g., correcting "33-512D" to the proper code). It revises definitions for educational staff categories, including clarifying terms like "administrative staff" (covering school leaders) and "instructional staff" (certified teachers). These changes affect how school districts categorize and manage teacher certification requirements under existing law. The bill does not create new policies or requirements - only refines the accuracy of current definitions and references.

Bill status signed all 5 stages cleared

Introduction

Feb 2026

Committee Review

Mar 2026

House Passage

Mar 2026

Senate Passage

Mar 2026

Signed into Law

Mar 2026

Introduced Feb 18, 2026 Signed Mar 30, 2026

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What changed between versions

Bill Text → Engrossment 1 · 4 edits

MODERATE

The bill was amended in the Senate to reorganize the list of qualifications for educational leaders and to update the definition of an 'at-risk student.' The most significant change is the addition of new criteria for identifying at-risk students, including those with low grade point averages, failed subjects, or high school mobility, while removing the criterion regarding standardized test proficiency. The definition of 'economically disadvantaged student' was also expanded to explicitly include families receiving Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF).

Scope change

The scope of the 'at-risk student' definition was broadened to include students with specific academic performance issues and school mobility, while the scope of the 'economically disadvantaged student' definition was clarified to include TANF recipients.

ELIGIBILITY

Added three new criteria for 'at-risk student' status: having a GPA below 1.5, failing one or more academic subjects, and attending three or more schools in two years.

Removed the criterion that a student must be below proficient on standardized tests to be classified as 'at-risk'.

DEFINITION

Reorganized the list of qualifications for educational leaders, removing the specific requirement for serving as a mentor or teacher leader and merging administrative duties into a single category.

Expanded the definition of 'economically disadvantaged student' to explicitly include families receiving assistance under the TANF program.

Floor votes · Senate Mar 23, 2026 · House Feb 25, 2026

How they voted

33–1

Passed · 2 other

Total votes 36

Mar 23, 2026

D Democratic6

6 Yea

100% Yea

R Republican30

27 Yea 1 Nay 2

90% Yea

Vote distribution

All Yea All Nay Mixed No data

Full legislative history

Actions timeline

Total actions

Key actions

Committee

Amendments

Mar 27, 2026

Upper · Passed

Signed by President; returned to House

upper

Mar 27, 2026

Upper · Passed

Received from the House enrolled/signed by Speaker

upper

Mar 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported Enrolled; Signed by Speaker; Transmitted to Senate

lower

Mar 26, 2026

Lower · Passed

Rules Suspended: Ayes 68 Nays 1 Abs/Excd 1, read in full as required – PASSED - 67-0-3AYES – Alfieri, Barbieri, Beiswenger, Berch, Bingham, Boyle, Bruce, Burgoyne, Cannon, Cayler, Cheatum, Church, Cornilles, Crane(12), Dygert, Egbert, Ehardt, Ehlers, Erickson, Fuhriman, Furniss, Galaviz, Gannon, Garner, Hall(Stone), Handy, Harris, Hawkins, Haws, Healey, Hill, Holtzclaw, Hostetler, Leavitt, Manwaring, Marmon, Mathias, McCann, Mendive, Mickelsen, Miller, Mitchell, Monks, Nelsen, Palmer, Petzke

lower

Mar 24, 2026

Committee

Bills as Amended Referred to JRA for Engrossing

lower

Mar 24, 2026

Lower · Passed

House Concurred in Senate Amendments

lower

Mar 24, 2026

Introduced

Returned from the Senate Amended; Held at Desk

lower

Mar 23, 2026

Upper · Passed

Read third time as amended in the Senate – PASSED - 32-1-2AYES – Anthon, Bernt, Blaylock, Burtenshaw, Carlson, Cook, Den Hartog, Foreman, Galloway, Grow, Guthrie, Harris, Hart, Keyser, Kohl, Lakey, Lent, Nichols, Okuniewicz, Rabe, Ricks, Ruchti, Semmelroth, Shippy, Taylor, Toews, VanOrden, Ward-Engelking, Wintrow, Woodward, Zito, ZuiderveldNAYS – LenneyAbsent and excused – Adams, Bjerke(Bjerke)Floor Sponsor - CarlsonTitle apvd - to House

upper

Mar 16, 2026

Introduced

Amendments reported printed

upper

Mar 13, 2026

Introduced

Amendments ordered printed

upper

Mar 13, 2026

Upper · Passed

Placed in the Committee of the Whole

upper

Mar 5, 2026

Upper · Passed

Reported out of committee; to 14th Order for amendment

upper

Feb 26, 2026

Introduced

Introduced, read first time; referred to: Education

upper

Feb 25, 2026

Lower · Passed

Read Third Time in Full – PASSED - 70-0-0AYES – Alfieri, Barbieri, Beiswenger, Berch, Bingham, Boyle, Bruce, Burgoyne, Cannon, Cayler, Cheatum, Church, Cornilles, Crane(12), Crane(13), Dygert, Egbert, Ehardt, Ehlers, Erickson, Fuhriman, Furniss, Galaviz, Gannon, Garner, Green, Hall(Stone), Handy, Harris, Hawkins, Haws, Healey, Hill, Holtzclaw, Hostetler, Leavitt, Manwaring, Marmon, Mathias, McCann, Mendive, Mickelsen, Miller, Mitchell, Monks, Nelsen, Palmer, Petzke, Pickett, Pohanka, Price,

lower

Feb 20, 2026

Lower · Passed

Reported out of Committee with Do Pass Recommendation, Filed for Second Reading

lower

Feb 19, 2026

Committee

Reported Printed and Referred to Education

lower

Feb 18, 2026

Introduced

Introduced, read first time, referred to JRA for Printing

lower

0 primary · 0 co-sponsors

What changed between versions

How they voted

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