SODA SPRINGS — Idaho lawmakers' passage of House Bill 93 earlier this year sparked the "Save Our Schools" campaign, an effort to protect and support public school districts where funding remains consistently challenging.

School District 150's "Save Our Schools" town hall in Soda Springs was packed last Wednesday night, just weeks before the start of the 2025-26 school year.

The central question: Should Idaho tax dollars go to private schools?

House Bill 93 creates a tax credit program to help families cover education expenses for students not attending public schools. The program provides up to $5,000 annually for qualifying students and up to $7,500 for students with disabilities.

With an annual statewide program cap of $50 million, public school officials worry about the impact on rural school districts across the state, where funding is already strained.

The panel for last Wednesday's "Save Our Schools" event at Soda Springs City Hall included former Soda Springs school board member and current construction teacher Alan Erickson, Thirkill Elementary teacher Summer Fullmer and Soda Springs School District Trustee Mike Veile. Sonia Galavis served as moderator.

After years of attending education conferences in Boise, Erickson said, "I think a lot of our legislators were influenced by the giving parents a school choice idea. But it doesn't work in the rural communities very well at all because you don't have a choice."

Idaho is predominantly rural, made up of public school districts where private school options simply aren't available.

Fullmer explained that due to open enrollment and public school funding structures, large class sizes at public schools are beyond their control and ultimately result in less one-on-one teacher attention.

Veile reminded the audience that public schools face disadvantages when bound to state-mandated curriculum standards and graduation requirements, unlike home-school and private school programs.

Galavis noted that some have proposed removing the $50 million spending cap, which would create even greater financial concerns for public schools. Fullmer, who researched similar programs in other states, said many comparable programs — whether voucher, savings account or tax credit systems — exceeded their budgets after the first year.

"There are states already showing research that says this isn't working and we're already spending more money," Fullmer said.

Community members expressed concerns at the town hall about potential fund abuse regarding the money now available to families via House Bill 93 and pointed out that in rural Idaho, public schools are often the only option for in-person classes and are already desperately short of funding.

Among the many elected officials at the town hall was state Sen. Mark Harris, R-Soda Springs.

He said, "It was good to see the great attendance and interest from the community regarding this issue. It shows the importance of the education of our kids and the role our public schools play in all our communities, especially rural communities."

"Save Our Schools" organizers gathered signatures at the town hall from those who are against the changes brought on by House Bill 93 to show that many are concerned about the direction the state's headed.