When state Superintendent of Schools Tom Luna presents his education reform plan to a joint meeting of the House and Senate education committees tomorrow, his talk will be entitled, "The Three Pillars of Student-Centered Education," according to the agenda. The meeting starts at 8:30 in…
It turns out that the House Ethics Committee will, in fact, be considering Rep. Eric Anderson's ethics complaint against Rep. Phil Hart when it meets in executive session tomorrow, along with two citizen complaints the panel has received. The committee, at its last meeting, requested…
The House and Senate minority caucuses held a press conference this morning to give their response to the governor's State of the State message and budget. "In the face of enormous challenges and widespread economic hardship, the governor and many legislators have no plans to…
After Wayne Hammon, Gov. Butch Otter's budget chief, told JFAC that it's an honor to be the first presenter to the joint budget committee each year, JFAC Co-Chair Maxine Bell, R-Jerome, responded with a smile, "We sharpen our swords on you."
Wayne Hammon, Gov. Butch Otter's budget chief, is fielding questions now about the governor's budget proposal from legislative budget writers. Among them: Whether water quality monitoring is funded in the Department of Environmental Quality in 2012. The answer: Yes, but it's funded on a one-time…
The governor's proposed budget for next year includes $1 million for Opportunity Scholarships, but that's just enough to continue funding renewals of the scholarships for students who already are receiving them; it's not enough to add any new ones. It would be the third year…
Gov. Butch Otter still is concerned about state workers' salaries lagging below market levels, Otter's budget chief, Wayne Hammon, told legislative budget writers; it's an issue Otter emphasized at the outset of his first term as governor, calling for a series of big pay boosts.…
Wayne Hammon, Gov. Butch Otter's budget chief, has begun his presentation to JFAC this morning on the governor's proposed budget. "The December revenue numbers are still not final," Hammon told the budget writers. He said the Division of Financial Management "was hoping to get it…
The House Ethics Committee has scheduled an executive session meeting for tomorrow at 9:30 a.m. This is a change - heretofore, all proceedings and documents of the ethics committee have been open to the public, a point emphasized by the chairman, Rep. Tom Loertscher, R-Iona.…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
