SANDPOINT — Bonner County Soil and Water Conservation District asked for continued support from Bonner County commissioners last Thursday to include both monetary support and use of office space inside the county’s administration building to cut costs.  

In prior years, the county’s financial contributions were used as a match for the district, unlocking significant funds at a state level for projects and grants that give back to the community by way of infrastructure support and educational events, among other projects. 

Commissioners signaled support for the district’s $25,000 baseline request and the office space inside the county’s administration building, with a formal decision to be made during the county’s budget season. 

Executive Director Sarah Garcia presented the request, noting that the board’s contribution of $18,000 several years prior received a 2:1 state funds match, in addition to $14,500 annual state funding. Garcia reported that for every dollar invested with state, county and matching funds, the district returned $15.56 in grants and projects, where the state average is $2.83, according to the district. Specific to Bonner County, Garcia said that for every dollar contributed by the county, about $50 in grants and programs were brought into the county. 

Commissioners Asia Williams and Brian Domke were present during the budget review and recognized that the county’s $25,000 contribution had produced major infrastructural savings through the district’s conservation efforts.  

“I personally value all the educational programs and other things that the Soil and Water Conservation District is doing, but I would have difficulties having that be a primary reason to provide county tax preparer funding,” Domke said. “But from an infrastructure perspective, I see that being a responsibility and obligation that we have, not just an option to consider funding. So, I'm in support of it from that perspective.” 

Williams shared her support of potentially raising the county’s contribution, but said increasing the budget could be difficult with state budget cuts occurring across the board.  

Commissioners also shared support of a potential in-kind agreement for the district to house two to three employees at the county administration building, but noted the transition would require research on the legalities of it.  

Utilizing the county building would allow the district to free up overhead costs, according to Garcia, who noted the district is facing a $200,000 operations reduction and a $90,000 real-time deficit. 

“Our district right now has seen a $200,000 reduction in our operations, and in real time, that's a $90,000 deficit for us. So, one of our main requests is that we have been utilizing space at the resource center, but with the additional cuts, we would really appreciate it if there is a way to make some office space here for two and a half to three employees. It has some bigger impacts than just being able to make us functional,” Garcia said. 

Outside of monetary support, Garcia also outlined the district’s projects and activities in the prior fiscal year, with the support of the county.  

Garcia spoke on the 30th anniversary of the district’s water festival, which saw approximately 425 students from 15 schools at Riley Creek. The festival integrated hands-on experience into the school’s 5th-grade science curriculum. She also spoke on the Idaho State Forestry contest, nodding to the first all-female winning team and four of the five Bonner County groups placing in the top 10 of the contest. 

Special to her heart, said Garcia, is the Panhandle Seedling Program, which distributed 46,256 seedlings in spring 2026 into Bonner County.  

“These are seeds that are sourced locally here, so that they are already acclimated to our unique environment and are much faster growing with our seed source here, but then we grow them at KNC Forest, just across the Canadian border. We bring them in the first week of April, and this year, 46,000 of those were distributed within Bonner County. Collectively, in the top five counties, we distributed about 140,000 seedlings that are all native to our area,” Garcia said. 

Garcia also provided an update on water quality and invasive species prevention. She noted that Bonner County had conducted 26,000 boat inspections in 2025, stopping 48 boats from infested waters that required full decontamination.  

Garcia said significantly reduced protection for Idaho and Bonner County waterways was a major concern for the upcoming year, as the Samuel inspection station was pulled and relocated to a less-visible location, creating an increased risk of mussels entering local waters. She also said the golden mussel was an emerging threat in county waters, as it's a more adaptable, dangerous variant of the quagga mussel. Its ability to detach and move downstream, and survival with minimal calcium, makes it easily transportable.  

In wrapping up her updates, Garcia shared that the district’s Pack River Restoration project, which was completed four months prior to the region’s historical floods, proved essential in protecting roads, homes and access for several landowners.