Boise, ID – Today, the Freedom Foundation filed a series of complaints alleging that certain Idaho school districts are violating state ethics and labor laws by using taxpayer-funded payroll systems to collect union dues when part of the funds are used to finance electoral political activity.
The complaints, filed with the Idaho Attorney General and the prosecuting attorneys in Bonner, Bonneville, Canyon and Kootenai Counties, allege that some school districts’ practice of deducting dues for the Idaho Education Association (IEA) and National Education Association (NEA) from educators’ paychecks violates the Public Integrity in Elections Act (PIEA) and Idaho’s Right to Work Law (RTWL).
While nothing in Idaho law authorizes or requires school districts to collect dues for unions, about 52 school districts out of the approximately 82 districts with active teachers unions do so. There are 117 traditional public-school districts in Idaho.
According to Freedom Foundation research, Idaho school districts collected at least $4.4 million in union dues from the paychecks of about 5,000 teachers’ paychecks in 2023 alone. The funds are divided among the district affiliate, the statewide IEA, and the Washington, D.C.-based NEA, which received about $1.1 million of the dues collected that year.
Using government records, the complaints document how the NEA spends tens of millions of dollars on political activity and lobbying each year, including $1.8 million spent on Idaho since 2018 including, most recently, a $20,000 contribution to Idaho Students First, a political committee focused on backing the union’s preferred state legislative candidates in the 6th District in the 2024 general election.
The PIEA prohibits the use of “public property or resources to advocate for or against a candidate or a ballot measure.” Violations of the law may be punished by civil penalties of up to $2,500.
Additionally, the RTWL prohibits employers from deducting funds from employees’ wages “for political activities,” with violations constituting misdemeanors punishable by a fine of up to $1,000 and/or up to 90 days’ imprisonment.
The school districts subject to the first set of complaints include:
- Bonneville
- Caldwell
- Coeur d’Alene
- Idaho Falls
- Kuna
- Lake Pend Oreille
- Marsing
- Middleton
- Mullan
- New Plymouth
- Post Falls
- Shelley
Legislation under consideration by state policymakers in Boise would, among other things, specifically prohibit school districts from collecting dues for teachers unions and shield districts from liability under the PIEA and RTWL for doing so in the past.
The bill — HB 98 — passed the House on Feb. 12 but, with the session drawing to a close, it has yet to receive a hearing in the Senate State Affairs Committee.
A statewide poll commissioned by the Freedom Foundation last year found that Idaho voters support ending government collection of dues for teachers unions by an overwhelming 66-22 percent margin.
The Freedom Foundation is a nonprofit policy advocacy and public interest litigation organization dedicated to promoting individual liberty, free enterprise, and limited, accountable government. Founded in 1991 in Olympia, Wash., today the organization operates around the country, with staff and supporters in Idaho. It is not affiliated with the Idaho Freedom Foundation, which was formed in 2009.
