Gov. Butch Otter knew for months that the federal government had withheld funding for Idaho's now-failed school broadband program, but lawmakers remained in the dark until much later, the AP reports. According to a letter obtained by The Associated Press, Otter wrote to one of the program's contractors on Nov. 4, 2013, that federal funding —known as "e-rate" dollars which come from monthly fees on landline and cellphone bills— had stopped because of a recent whistleblower complaint regarding the state's $60 million statewide broadband contract. However, state lawmakers weren't informed until near or after the start of the 2014 legislative session in January.

You can read AP reporter Kimberlee Kruesi’s full report here.