Idaho GOP Sen. Mike Crapo announced today that he’ll run for re-election in 2016, seeking a fourth six-year term in the Senate. Crapo named Gov. Butch Otter, Sen. Jim Risch and Reps. Mike Simpson and Raul Labrador as his campaign co-chairs. In a statement from...
Washington's Legislature passed its version of the same child-support bill that's prompted a special session in Idaho with little fanfare; the bill passed both houses unanimously and was signed into law on Friday. Spokane Valley legislators proposed amendments to ensure foreign law wasn’t imposed in…
Dick Armstrong, director of the Idaho Department of Health & Welfare, has sent out an op-ed piece to Idaho newspapers urging support for child support enforcement legislation to be taken up in a special session of the Idaho Legislature on Monday. “It is critical that...
Idaho’s pre-K enrollment numbers rank among the nation’s lowest, reports Idaho Education News, lagging even in comparison to the handful of other states that have no state-funded preschool. EdNews reporter Kevin Richert writes that a new report from the National Institute for Early Education Research…
Idaho Attorney General Lawrence Wasden has announced settlements with Sprint and Verizon Wireless over allegations of imposing unauthorized charges on Idaho customers’ mobile phone bills, a practice known as “cramming.” It’s part of a larger $158 million settlement between the two companies, 49 states, the…
The Institute for Women’s Policy Research has released its “Status of Women in the States: 2015” report, and Idaho came out 50th among the 50 states and Washington, D.C. for women's employment and earnings, ranking better than only West Virginia. The study, which compares data on poverty and opportunity, violence...
Two North Idaho lawmakers topped spending on travel during this year’s legislative session, the AP reports today. Sen. Bob Nonini, R-Coeur d’Alene, had the highest in-state travel reimbursements, at nearly $8,800. Rep. Vito Barbieri, R-Dalton Gardens, had the highest combined in-state and out-of-state tab of…
I’m back after a restful week visiting with family, and catching up on some of the news I missed. Here are some links, from April state tax revenues, which put the state nearly $92M ahead of forecasts for the fiscal year to date, to water, a tax incentive's impact, transportation, and more...
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
