If Idaho was a high school student, college wouldn't be a likely option.

The American Society of Civil Engineers has issued a disappointing 2012 Report Card for Idaho's Infrastructure, giving the conditions of local highways a C minus, schools also a C minus, and state highways and bridges both a D plus.

ASCE labels lack of funding across the board as the primary reason for poor physical conditions.

Most North Idaho officials aren't disputing that those appraisals apply here.

"This issue is not new. It's been going on for quite some time," said Barbara Babic, Idaho Transportation Department spokeswoman. "There have always been more needs than could be funded. We're going to be facing that for some time in the future."

Babic agreed with ASCE's findings that more than 50 percent of bridges statewide are within a few years of their design time limit, though figures about local bridges weren't available on Monday afternoon.

She also pointed to the governor's transportation task force stats that more than half the state's bridges are more than 50 years old.

"People don't need to be worried about traveling on our highways or bridges," Babic said. "Our bridges are inspected on a continuous basis. If there was ever any danger, we'd certainly do something about it. There's no reason to panic."

It helps that the Appleway bridge near Stateline was just completed last year, with an expected lifespan of 75 years.

Babic added that the ITD District 1, spanning North Idaho, sees highway operational shortfalls every year.

"The bulk of what we are given as operational funding goes for winter maintenance," she said. "After winter, there's really very little left to do ongoing maintenance, which is so important to keeping up on any issues in the district's state highway system."

She attributed the funding gaps to fuel taxes that have remained stagnant for years, at both the state and federal levels.

"Those are the two primary sources of funding for projects," she explained.

The status of county roads vary, said Chris Fillios, commissioner for East Side Highway District.

"On less traveled, more rural areas, it's almost harder to maintain those roads," he acknowledged.

With the price of oil and road-building materials rising, Fillios said, it's tougher to keep fixing up thoroughfares without placing a greater tax burden on citizens.

Sometimes it makes more sense to just wait to reconstruct a road, he said.

"It's not far off," Fillios said of the C minus rating.

Marv Lekstrum, commissioner for Lakes Highway District, also said that quality could be improved by bumping up Idaho's gas tax, which has remained at 25 cents per gallon since 1996.

"The gas tax is on volume used," Lekstrum pointed out. "As cars get more and more efficient, that number actually shrinks because of the lower consumption of gasoline."

While a C minus for school infrastructure is hard to confirm, said Matthew Handelman, associate superintendent for Coeur d'Alene School District, he acknowledged the district is eager for improvements to address student safety and reduce distractions.

"Absolutely we have need," he said.

Like adding hallways to elementary schools where children cross multiple classrooms to access the lunchroom, he said. And adding new classrooms to replace portable structures, which are cut off from communication in the main building and are more expensive to heat.

"We'd like the kids to be in as safe environments as we can provide," Handelman said.

The Coeur d'Alene School District's Long Range Planning Committee has proposed asking for a $32 million tax initiative to cover these improvements and more.

Handelman added that the state used to provide funding for school infrastructure, but the recession forced legislators to funnel those dollars into districts' general funds, instead.

"We have been very aware of the needs," Handelman said. "It's a question of how do we fund it, how do we educate the public that it's a need?"

Lakeland School District is asking similar questions, after North Idaho voters recently shot down its proposal for a Plant Facilities Levy for $905,000 every year for 10 years. It would have replaced the levy the district has had for decades, to fund capital expenditures like building repairs.

"One of the reasons we've been able to maintain the buildings is we've had a source of revenue every year to take on those things," acknowledged Tom Taggart, district director of business and operations. "Missing that will be a challenge,"

But the district has made improvements to some schools, he said, and besides needs for reroofing and energy efficiency upgrades, "we don't have any glaring problems."

The ASCE Report Card effort was led by industry experts from public agencies, private firms and nonprofit groups. Grades were arrived at by examining physical condition, capacity and future need, funding sources and trends impacting maintenance and upgrades.

Transit in Idaho also received a D, passenger rail a D minus, drinking water a C plus and energy a C plus. To view the 2012 Report Card for Idaho's Infrastructure, visit: http://sections.asce.org/sis/.

Seth Olsen, chair of the ASCE committee for developing the report card, said the goal is to shed light on where funding should be focused in the state.

"I really hope there is more interest from the public," Olsen said. "That's my hope, that this is another tool the public can use to support and improve infrastructure across Idaho."