Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon, has made a new motion to match the governor’s recommendation for 3 percent merit raises for state employees, but charge employees for 1 percent of the cost of the increase in health insurance costs, and direct what the state would have spent for that portion of the increase to boosting the pay grades that are falling the farthest short of targets. “The motion probably won’t go anywhere, but that is my motion,” he said. Sen. Steven Thayn, R-Emmett, seconded the motion. Some questions were raised as to whether the cost-shift to state workers would affect the grandfathered status of the state employee health insurance plan; it's grandfathered in under the Affordable Care Act as a non-compliant plan, but if the state transferred too much of the cost to employees, it would lose the grandfathered status. 

Sen. Fred Martin, R-Boise, made a substitute motion to adopt the governor's recommendation, and Sen. Jim Rice seconded it.

Committee Co-Chair Rep. Neil Anderson, R-Blackfoot, said he has put a request in to leadership about a possible interim committee to explore how the state funds and structures its state worker health insurance plan.