BOISE - Idaho lawmakers made public schools, collective bargaining and school funding a top-ticket item during the 2013 Legislature, despite a ballot box beat-down of a series of public education initiatives last fall.

Apparently undaunted by voters' strong message in November, lawmakers, along with the Idaho School Boards Association, made bold moves to reinstate some "Students Come First" laws during the 88-day session that ended Thursday.

For example, the association teamed with Republicans to pass bills allowing teacher salaries to be cut and eliminate benefits for early teacher retirement - all amid protest from the teachers union and most Democrats.

But Gov. Butch Otter said there was enough consensus among lawmakers and stakeholders to revisit some of the features of the defeated Propositions 1, 2 and 3, including a bill approved in the session's final hours giving districts leverage to shorten teacher contracts.

"There were some elements of all Propositions 1, 2 and 3 where there was favor, but there was also some problems with some of those," Otter said at his end-of-session news conference Thursday. "I think we picked the low hanging fruit ... those things that seemed reasonable."

For the Idaho School Boards Association, the session was about getting back the collective bargaining advantage spelled out in the Students Come First overhaul, initially approved by the GOP-dominated Legislature in 2011.

The bill allowing districts to cut salaries drew criticism from teachers across the state, who said during crowded public hearings they've already been hit with recession-era pay cuts. The measure was defeated early in the session on a 14-19 Senate vote, then revived and approved with amendments that impose conditions on districts seeking to roll back salaries.

Overall, lawmakers gave a nod to 15 of 16 major Idaho School Boards Association bills.

"For us, I would say it was an 'A,"' the association's executive director, Karen Echeverria, said of its legislative success this year.

But the organization's hallmark legislation - a bill giving districts the power to impose a "last, best offer" if teacher contracts talks stall - didn't fare as well. The measure died in the Senate after clearing the House.

Idaho Education Association President Penni Cyr said it was disappointing to see Students Come First ideas re-emerge after voters sent such a strong message in November.

"None of these bills should have come forward to this legislative session," she said. "Many of them were taken word for word" from the failed collective bargaining laws.

Lawmakers also made time to provide financial aid to the state's network of 40 charter schools.

For the first time since charter schools emerged on the scene more than a decade ago, legislators agreed to help them pay their bills, rent or mortgage. Unlike public schools, charter schools lack the authority to ask local voters to approve bond levies to offset facility and operating expenses.

A bill approved by both chambers would give charter schools $1.4 million this fall to support facilities and maintenance costs next year.

Other education highlights include:

* Salary grid: During the recent recession, lawmakers froze the system used to fund teacher pay based on years of service and education. Republican Sen. Dean Cameron of Rupert won out in his bid to restore it, arguing lawmakers had promised teachers they'd thaw the "salary grid" once the budget crisis abated. All told, the 2014 education budget got a 2.2 percent boost to $1.3 billion, an improvement over 2013 but still behind the education budget zenith of 2009.

* Religious school tax breaks: The House narrowly passed a measure to give up to $10 million in tax credits to those who donate to scholarships for private or religious schools. But the Senate Government and Taxation Committee killed the bill, arguing it's unfair to give donors benefits at the expense of the rest of taxpayers.

* University funding: Idaho public universities can expect a 3.8 percent general fund hike this year, or $466.9 million. Still, the universities won't get the $6.8 million sought for performance pay. The funding increase is lower than Otter's recommended 5 percent increase, but includes $2.5 million for operating costs and building maintenance for Boise State University, the University of Idaho and Idaho State University campuses.