SJR 107 (Permanent endowment fund)
What it will do:
If the amendment is adopted, 80 percent of the tobacco settlement money Idaho receives each year will be deposited into a newly created permanent endowment fund and 20 percent will be deposited into the existing Idaho Millennium Fund. All money in the permanent endowment fund will remain in the fund, with the exception that every year 5 percent of the fund's average monthly fair market value will be deposited into an income fund that is subject to appropriation. In addition, each year any amount in the Idaho Millennium Fund in excess of a maximum amount, as provided by law, will be transferred to the permanent endowment fund.
Supporters say:
Placing 80 percent of tobacco settlement money in a constitutional, permanent endowment fund will protect the settlement money from transfer to the General Fund in years of financial difficulty, while still allowing a fixed amount to be distributed and spent each year. The creation of a permanent endowment fund will provide the State Treasurer with the opportunity to make long-term investments, at higher rates of return, with Idaho's tobacco settlement money. Greater return on the long-term investment of money in the permanent endowment fund will result in more money being available for purposes such as tobacco prevention and cessation programs.
Opponents say:
The proposed amendment is unnecessary because an existing law already provides for a fund into which Idaho's tobacco settlement money is deposited, and the amount of the distribution of money from a permanent fund should not be fixed in the Idaho State Constitution. Changes to the Constitution should be made only for major issues of interest to the entire state or in the event of a constitutional crisis. Protection of the tobacco settlement money from transfer to the General Fund in years of financial difficulty for the purpose of balancing the budget can be addressed through governmental constraint rather than a constitutional amendment.
Sponsor:
Senate joint resolution
