Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has reported raising $215,369 in campaign funds since Jan. 1, spending $163,088, and ending the reporting period with $129,209 in cash on hand. But both the contribution and spending figures are pushed up by the forgiveness of a $131,000 loan Otter…
Idaho would get a new U.S. District Court judgeship, under legislation introduced yesterday in the U.S. Senate. The Federal Judgeship Act of 2013, introduced by Senate Judiciary Chairman Patrick Leahy, D-Vermont, and Sen. Christopher Coons, D-Delaware, chairman of the judiciary subcommittee on bankruptcy and the…
The Idaho man who once tried to take control of the cash-strapped Tamarack Resort has been ordered to spend more than 17 years in prison for raiding other people's pension funds to help finance the deal, the AP reports. The sentence was handed down today…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: SPOKANE, Wash. (AP) — A Spokane County, Wash., sheriff's spokesman says a parked deputy was watching traffic in the Spokane Valley when a vehicle zoomed by at what the deputy estimated was nearly 90 mph in a…
A mink farm near Burley was hit by an animal rights group last weekend and 4,800 mink were released, the Twin Falls Times-News reports; the group "Direct Action" claimed responsibility for the incident, writing in its online magazine, "Bite Back," that it acted "with love…
Allen Derr, the Boise attorney who won a landmark case in the U.S. Supreme Court to halt systemic discrimination against women and who left a legacy for Idaho journalists of standing up for openness in government, will be remembered tonight at a celebration memorial at…
The Coeur d’Alene Press reports today that the Coeur d’Alene School District, one of the largest in the state, has decided against opting in to the statewide WiFi contract signed last week by state schools Superintendent Tom Luna and Education Networks of America. Wendell Wardell,…
There's a big grasshopper infestation in Valley County, the AP reports, with the state Department of Agriculture reporting crop damage and an explosion in the insect's numbers since July 4. State standards say a grasshopper outbreak reaches damaging levels when there are eight grasshoppers per…
Idaho's Office of Drug Policy has received a five-year, $1.5 million a year federal grant for to boost substance abuse prevention efforts statewide. Elisha Figueroa, head of the office, said, "We are very excited about this award, as it will provide much-needed resources to the…
Former Minidoka County Sheriff Kevin Halverson has pleaded guilty to misuse of public funds, the Idaho Attorney General reports, and will be sentenced on the felony charge Sept. 13. As part of a plea agreement, Halverson resigned as sheriff and the court may disqualify him…
Idaho Statesman political columnist Dan Popkey reports today that 2nd District Congressman Mike Simpson’s GOP challenger, Bryan Smith, is going “all in” on his challenge against the eight-term congressman, taking a sabbatical from his Idaho Falls law practice from this month through next May and…
The Lewiston Tribune reports today that the U.S. Forest Service is revising one of its interim criteria on megaloads at the request of the Idaho Transportation Department, but the two agencies remain at odds over the prospect of giant truck shipments across U.S. Highway 12…
Here’s a link to my full story at spokesman.com on Gov. Butch Otter expressing concerns today about state schools chief Tom Luna signing a multi-year contract for high school WiFi networks based on a one-time appropriation. The $2.25 million appropriation for the wireless networks was…
Gov. Butch Otter issued a statement today on the controversial, 5- to 15-year high school WiFi contract signed last week by state schools Superintendent Tom Luna, saying, “It’s not necessarily how I would have done it.” If the contract were to run its full 15…
For people who love election stats, Daily Kos, the national Democratic political blog and activist hub, today posted a breakdown of the 2012 presidential election results in Idaho by legislative district, reporting that President Obama won just four of Idaho’s 35 legislative districts, all of…
Stage I fire restrictions have been issued for the Treasure Valley and the West Central Mountains starting this Thursday, according to the BLM’s Idaho Interagency Fire Restrictions website. That means, for those two zones, both campfires and smoking are banned outside of enclosed buildings, vehicles…
Idaho state schools chief Tom Luna met with school district superintendents from around the state this morning, reports Kevin Richert of Idaho Education News; he was asked about everything from the budget to Common Core to the state’s controversial new high school WiFi contract. Richert…
Idaho state schools Superintedent Tom Luna has announced that he's hired Roger Quarles, currently a BSU professor and co-director of the Idaho Leads project at Boise State University, as his chief deputy superintendent; Quarles will start Aug. 19. He is also the former superintendent of…
The controversy over shipping oversize loads to Alberta’s oil patch through an Idaho river corridor took another turn last week, reports Spokesman-Review reporter Becky Kramer. Two giant water-purification units arrived at the Port of Wilma in Clarkston, but it remains unclear when, or if, the…
The State Department of Education has posted the contract it signed with Education Networks of America online here; it’s 410 pages. The first two pages are the notice and acceptance of bid. The next 101 pages are the RFP, which already had been posted online…
In its successful bid for a multi-year, multimillion dollar Idaho WiFi contract, Education Networks of America repeatedly touted its work on the Idaho Education Network broadband project, reports Kevin Richert of Idaho Education News, who also reports that the bid makes several less-than-subtle references to…
Fifteen states have agreed since July 1 to honor Idaho concealed weapons permits when Idahoans visit, and two more have agreed to recognize only the new "enhanced" Idaho permit enacted this year that requires more training. Just eight states have said no; Idaho's waiting to…
The Idaho health insurance exchange board has selected Boston-based Public Consulting Group for its biggest contract, for professional services including information technology. The $1.4 million pact runs from July 1, 2013 to Dec. 31, 2014, though either party can cancel with 30 days notice. The…
Right on the heels of news this morning that two horses, one near Parma and one near Meridian, have tested positive for West Nile Virus, the state now has its first human case of West Nile for the season: A Payette County man in his…
The Idaho Statesman reports today that Tek-Hut Inc., the Twin Falls school wireless networking company that was one of three finalists for the 5- to 15-year WiFi contract for Idaho high schools awarded yesterday to a Nashville firm, undercut the winning bid from Education Networks…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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