O-SenseLast Tuesday, Bonneville County voters went to the ballot box and by a vote of 71% to 29% created Idaho’s newest community college.
The new College of Eastern Idaho will take over the current campus of Eastern Idaho Technical College in Idaho Falls and add to the existing vocational programs a full array of undergraduate academic classes.
Back in 1991, the exact same electorate rejected a similar ballot measure by a 2-1 margin. Since then, Bonneville County’s tax base has grown by six times and the EITC campus is built-out, dramatically reducing the cost of creating a community college.
I formulated the campaign plan for this effort but it was truly a team effort. Idaho Falls Mayor Rebecca Casper, Ammon Mayor Dana Kirkham and Bonneville County Commissioner last year appointed a study panel that established a detailed budget of what the new college would cost local taxpayers ($13.37 a year for the average local homeowner).
Local state legislators, including Sen. Dean Mortimer and Rep. Wendy Horman, backed by Gov. Butch Otter, secured $5 million in startup funds (the same amount provided to kickstart the College of Western Idaho).
Three prominent local leaders were the public face of the campaign: Mario Hernandez of Teton Auto Group, prominent local physician Dr. John Liljenquist and Doug Crabtree, CEO of Eastern Idaho Regional Medical Center. Their credibility was important.
Local business leaders stepped up to the plate. The Greater Idaho Falls Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Idaho Falls Association of REALTORS openly backed the effort (their assistance was critical) as did the Idaho Associated General Contractors. Many local businesses featured signs on their property.
The community support was widespread and deep. The final endorsement ad featured over 500 named local supporters all across the ideological and partisan spectrum.
The Vote YES effort was not unopposed. A local political action committee called IdaHope actively contested the measure, distributing hostile yard signs, using Facebook ads, a website and a highly visible public spokesman.
The bigger opposing splash was by the Bonneville County Republican Central Committee. This group spent money trying to sink the community college effort, including a radio campaign and two direct mail pieces that seemed targeted to past Republican primary voters. They were seriously undercut when the Bonneville County Republican Women’s organization voted unanimously to back a community college.
The campaign plan in favor of a community college was simple: Identify supporters and turn them out to vote.
Supporters were identified through the gathering of 3,000+ signatures on the petition to put the measure on the ballot, a massive door-to-door effort, a phone effort and through social media.
Social media was a key method of spreading the word. The campaign developed videos featuring local residents touting the benefits of a community college. Those videos were viewed 135,834 times in the final month. The campaign Facebook page reached over 40,000 local residents the final month.
To get them to the polls, the campaign targeted supporters with requests to submit absentee ballots and vote early, reinforcing direct mail, and last minute door hangers. It all worked.
By election day, 14,299 Bonneville County voters had cast a vote on the community college issue. That was a full 28% of the overall electorate and was nearly as many as voted in the presidential primary in 2016.
The new College of Eastern Idaho is expected to open its doors as such this fall. Other East Idaho counties may move to join the new community college district to reduce tuition costs for their own students and to eliminate the requirement for local taxpayers to provide up to $500 a semester subsidy to their residents who attend. Such action requires 100 valid signatures, State Board of Education approval and a simple majority vote.
Steve Taggart is an Idaho Falls attorney specializing in bankruptcy (www.MaynesTaggart.com). He has an extensive background in politics and public policy. He can be reached at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .
