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Lesson 2 of 9 · about 17 minutes

The Comprehensive Plan: Components and Amendments

You'll be able to

  • List the components Idaho Code 67-6508 requires and the escape hatch for unneeded ones
  • Lay out the notice and hearing steps for a plan amendment under 67-6509
  • Explain why a missing component can sink a later rezone
  • Describe how much legal weight the plan carries in zoning decisions

The comprehensive plan is the document most people never read and everyone quotes. Idaho Code 67-6508 makes the planning or planning and zoning commission responsible for a planning process that prepares, carries out, reviews and updates it. The plan has to cover all land in the jurisdiction. It has to consider past and present conditions, trends, how land uses fit together, goals, and where the community wants to end up.

Planners shorten the name to "comp plan." This lesson uses the full name, because the full name is the one in the statute and the one a judge will read.

What the plan must cover

Section 67-6508 lists the components a plan must be based on "as they may apply," with maps, charts and reports. A component can be skipped only if the plan itself gives reasons it is not needed. As of October 2026 the list runs from (a) to (q), plus a groundwater duty in (r):

ComponentWhat the statute asks for, in short
(a) Property rightsAnalysis so that policies, conditions and fees do not violate private property rights or create unnecessary limits, tied to the Regulatory Takings Act in Chapter 80
(b) PopulationPast, present and future trends, including age, sex and income
(c) School facilities and transportationPublic school capacity and transportation tied to future development
(d) Economic developmentThe economic base: jobs, industries, income levels
(e) Land useLand types, current uses, suitability for each use, and a map of suitable projected uses
(f) Natural resourcesRivers and other waters, forests, range, soils, wildlife, minerals, thermal waters, watersheds
(g) Hazardous areasFaults, landslides, avalanche paths, floodplains
(h) Public services, facilities and utilitiesGeneral plans for sewer, drainage, power plant sites, transmission corridors, water, fire, schools, solid waste
(i) TransportationMajor roads and streets, prepared with the highway jurisdictions
(j) RecreationParks, trails, greenbelts, playgrounds
(k) Special areas or sitesHistoric, archeological, ecological, wildlife or scenic places
(l) HousingConditions, needs, low-cost housing, manufactured homes
(m) Community designLandscaping, building design, signs, beautification standards
(n) AgricultureThe farm base, farm businesses and agriculture's role in the community
(o) ImplementationThe actions, budgets and ordinances that carry out the plan
(p) National interest electric transmission corridorsRequired after the Public Utilities Commission gives notice of a likely federal corridor; lines of 115,000 volts or more on structures 40 feet or taller
(q) Public airport facilitiesAirport locations, operations, planned development and economic impact
(r) GroundwaterBefore adopting, amending or repealing a plan, the governing board must consider the effect on the source, quantity and quality of groundwater

The statute closes by saying nothing stops a community from adding more components. Plenty do: water, energy, wildfire, historic downtowns.

Why a missing component matters

The Idaho Supreme Court has said a valid comprehensive plan is a precondition to valid zoning. If the plan is missing a required component without explanation, a rezone that depends on it can fall. That rule came up in a real case involving one of the largest projects ever proposed in rural Idaho.

In 2009 a company called Alternate Energy Holdings contracted for about 5,000 acres in Payette County for a proposed nuclear power plant. A neighboring landowner argued the county plan lacked the "general plans" for power plant sites that 67-6508(h) requires. The county responded by amending its plan to say energy producers must apply and each application would be considered individually under LLUPA, the county code and the plan. In 2015 the Supreme Court held that was enough. The statute asks for general plans, the court reasoned, and it would be nearly impossible to plan in detail for every kind of power plant someone might propose.

The bar for each component is real but not high. A plan that says nothing about a required subject is vulnerable. A plan that addresses it in general terms usually survives.

How much weight the plan carries

Zoning must follow the plan. Idaho Code 67-6511 says zoning districts "shall be in accordance with the policies" of the adopted plan, and when a rezone request conflicts with the plan, the governing board can send it back for a plan amendment first. A conditional use permit cannot be granted if it conflicts with the plan (67-6512).

Still, the plan guides zoning. It does not replace the zoning map. Idaho Association of Counties training materials describe it as a "strong guide," and cite Bone v. City of Lewiston for the point that a plan designation does not guarantee an owner a matching zone. Courts look at whether a decision is in accordance with the plan as a whole, not whether every sentence in every chapter lines up.

The plan doesThe plan does not
Set goals and policies the zoning ordinance must followChange what is legally allowed on a parcel by itself
Provide standards a permit cannot conflict withGuarantee that a "future commercial" parcel will be rezoned commercial
Supply reasons in a written decisionReplace the express standards in the ordinance

Adopting and amending the plan

Idaho Code 67-6509 sets the steps. They apply to a brand new plan, an amendment and a repeal.

  1. Commission hearing. At least one public hearing. Notice of time, place and a summary goes in the official newspaper at least 15 days ahead. The commission must also offer a notice to other papers, radio and TV as a public service announcement.
  2. Notice to service providers. At least 15 days ahead, notice of intent goes to every political subdivision providing services in the jurisdiction, including school districts and the manager of the local public airport.
  3. Material change. If the commission recommends a material change after its hearing, it must give notice and hold another hearing, unless the governing board will hold its own hearing. Then the board's notice must include the commission's recommendation.
  4. Board action. The governing board may hold its own hearing with the same notice. It cannot hold a hearing, give notice of one, or act at all until the commission's recommendation arrives.
  5. Adoption by resolution. The plan takes effect only when the governing board adopts it by resolution. A copy goes on file with the clerk.

Anyone can petition for a plan amendment at any time, under 67-6509(4), unless the governing board has set a minimum interval between requests by resolution. That interval cannot exceed six months. The commission can recommend amendments whenever it wants.

Worked example: a plan amendment calendar

The invented city of Tellford wants to change 80 acres on its future land use map from "agricultural transition" to "light industrial." The planning and zoning commission sets a hearing for May 14.

StepRuleLatest date
Newspaper notice and summary15 days before May 14April 29
Notice to school district, fire district, highway district, airport manager15 days beforeApril 29
Commission hearingMay 14
Commission recommends shrinking the area to 60 acres (a material change)City council will hold its own hearing, so the council notice must describe the recommendationCouncil hearing June 11, notice by May 27
Council adopts resolutionEffective on adoptionJune 11 or later

The council has set a six-month interval between amendment requests. A landowner whose separate request was heard February 10 cannot have it considered again until August 10.

New state mandates that reach into the plan

The Legislature sometimes orders every plan to say something. Idaho Code 67-6509A requires plans and rules to allow manufactured homes where single-family homes are allowed. Two 2026 laws go further for cities over 10,000 people. Idaho Code 67-6541 bars them from banning accessory dwelling units in residential zones. The starter home law, passed as Senate Bill 1352 and printed as 67-6541 [67-6542] because two new sections got the same number, bars them from banning starter home subdivisions. Both require those cities to amend their plans and land use rules by February 1, 2027. Expect a wave of plan amendment hearings this winter.

Common mix-ups

  • Claim: The plan is an ordinance. What the evidence shows: It is adopted by resolution under 67-6509(3). Zoning and subdivision rules are the ordinances.
  • Claim: The property rights component is boilerplate a county can drop. What the evidence shows: It is component (a). Like the others, it can be omitted only if the plan states reasons it is unneeded.
  • Claim: A plan amendment can be appealed to court like a permit. What the evidence shows: In Burns Holdings v. Madison County (2009), the Supreme Court found no statute authorizing judicial review of a denied plan amendment. A plan challenge can be heard when it is part of an appeal of a reviewable decision, as in the 2015 Payette County case.

Reporting angle

  • Get the adopting resolution and every amending resolution since. Plans get amended in pieces, and the posted PDF is not always current.
  • Run a component check against the table above. Where a component is missing, look for the stated reason.
  • For any recent amendment, find the record showing the board considered groundwater, as 67-6508(r) requires.
  • Compare the future land use map with the zoning map. Big mismatches predict future rezone fights.
  • For cities over 10,000, ask where the ADU and starter home amendments stand against the February 1, 2027 deadline.

Research angle

Check yourself

1. How is a comprehensive plan made effective in Idaho?

2. A plan leaves out the recreation component entirely and gives no reason. What does 67-6508 say about that?

3. How far in advance must the commission publish notice of a plan amendment hearing?

4. A county's governing board has set a 6-month minimum interval between plan amendment requests. What is the longest interval the statute allows?

5. In the 2015 Payette County nuclear plant case, why did the Idaho Supreme Court uphold the plan against a challenge under 67-6508(h)?

6. What must the governing board consider before adopting or amending a plan, under 67-6508(r) and 67-6537(4)?

Terms in this lesson

Comprehensive plan
The policy document Idaho Code 67-6508 requires every city and county to adopt, built on a list of required components and adopted by resolution.
Future land use map
The map required in the land use component showing suitable projected uses. It guides zoning but does not zone land by itself.
Plan amendment
A change to the plan text or map, adopted through the hearing process in 67-6509.
Material change
A significant change the commission recommends after its hearing, which triggers new notice and another hearing under 67-6509.

Full glossary

Sources