The Idaho Senate was locked in debate much of the morning over a proposed amendment to the chain-up bill, SB 1379. The bill now would require tire chains in dangerous, snowy conditions only for interstate truckers on three specific North Idaho mountain passes – Lookout, Fourth of July, and Lolo. Sen. Gary Schroeder, R-Moscow, proposed an amendment to add White Bird Hill. The other three passes had been targeted as particular problem spots where there’s already sufficient chain-up area to impose the requirement on semi-trucks. Schroeder said White Bird Hill meets that criteria too, but others disagreed. After extensive debate, only a handful of senators supported the amendment, and it failed.

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