Idaho Supreme Court to weigh parents’ record-access rights in school privacy fight

The Idaho Supreme Court will hear arguments Oct. 15 over whether a federal FERPA deadline can override Idaho’s five-school-day rule for parents seeking child education and health records. The case could shape how quickly schools must disclose information when parents invoke the state’s Parental Rights in Education Act.

Why it matters: - The case could decide whether Idaho parents can force faster access to their child’s education and health records under the state’s parental-rights law. - A ruling for the school district could limit the practical reach of Idaho’s five-school-day disclosure rule in routine records requests. - The dispute also tests how a federal privacy timeline under FERPA interacts with Idaho law.

What happened: - The Idaho Supreme Court will hear oral arguments on Oct. 15, 2026, in Case No. 53530-2025. - The hearing is set for 10:00 a.m. at the Bannock County Courthouse, 624 E. Center Street, Pocatello, in Courtroom 301. - Boise attorney Kristian Beckett is representing Richard Kollmann in the appeal. - Kollmann says Soda Springs Joint School District delayed release of records about his child and wrongly relied on federal privacy rules. - A district court dismissed the original case in Caribou County after finding the controlling statutory language was not ambiguous.

The details: - Idaho lawmakers passed HB-163 in 2023, strengthening parents’ rights to timely access and visibility into their child’s education and health records. - The dispute centers on Idaho Code § 33-6001(3). - Kollmann filed the original case in November 2025. - Court filings say the case arose after Kollmann’s autistic, nonverbal child lost consciousness during a school assembly and suffered a head injury. - Kollmann says he learned about the incident from other students, not from school administrators. - Beckett argues the school district had a duty to inform Kollmann and provide records within five school days. - The school district argues Idaho law allows timelines set by applicable federal law when those timelines are specifically provided. - The district says FERPA’s 45-day maximum fits that exception. - The district also argues Kollmann sued before the 45-day period expired and had other remedies available.

Between the lines: - The legal fight is less about whether parents can eventually get the records and more about when they must get them. - If the court accepts the district’s reading, schools could rely on longer federal deadlines to slow disclosure even when Idaho law appears to require faster action. - If the court sides with Kollmann, Idaho’s five-school-day protection could become a stronger tool for parents seeking records tied to student safety and health. - Beckett says the state law and FERPA should be read to require release as soon as records can be produced, not at the end of a maximum waiting period.

What’s next: - Oral arguments are scheduled for Oct. 15, 2026. - The Idaho Supreme Court is not expected to issue a decision the same day. - The court has not announced when it will rule.

The bottom line: - The case could determine whether Idaho’s parent-access law is a real five-day deadline or one that can be stretched by federal privacy timing.