The Idaho House on Monday killed legislation from the state Department of Labor to allow it to conduct FBI background checks on employees, even though the bill sponsor warned that the state could lose millions of dollars the department relies on to pay federal unemployment…
Despite efforts by members and the chairman of the Senate Education Committee to convince their House counterparts to go along with approving new state science standards without deleting five sections referring to climate change, the senators reported today that the House wouldn’t sign on. “Those...
Idaho Superintendent of Schools Sherri Ybarra issued a statement today praising the public school budget set this morning in JFAC. Here’s her full statement: “The public schools budget set today shows the state’s commitment to education. This budget not only funds our priorities and initiatives,…
Secretary of State Lawerence Denney says Boise businessman Tommy Ahlquist has promised to file as a registered candidate for governor following a complaint, the AP reports. Denney said Monday he received an informal complaint last week...
The Idaho House unanimously approved legislation Monday that would create a statewide standard on how long physical evidence in sexual assault investigations should be retained. According to the proposal, rape kits involved in felony or anonymous cases would have to be retained for 55 years or...
A common virus that can cause severe birth defects if pregnant women are exposed to it is the target of legislation that cleared the Idaho Senate today on a 31-3 vote, calling for the state Department of Health and Welfare to distribute information to health…
Idaho would join 20 other states currently offering sales tax incentives to data centers under newly introduced legislation. Officials with the Idaho Department of Commerce are backing a measure that would offer sales tax rebates to eligible server equipment...
House legislative leaders say they have found a palatable solution to funneling $17 million to repair Idaho's roads and bridges without hurting the Idaho State Police budget. House Majority Leader Mike Moyle says that his latest proposal would replace the fuel tax funding ISP receives with 1 percent of the state's general funds...
The House has voted unanimously in favor of HB 123, Rep. Robert Anderst’s bill to ban “motorcycle profiling.” Anderst, R-Nampa, told the House, “For years, the motorcycle community has been working diligently to bring legislation to prohibit what are commonly referred to as profiling stops.”…
With no disagreement on the final divisions of the public school budget, the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee has now set the public schools budget for next year at $1.685 billion in state general funds, a 6.3 percent increase in state general funds. Gov. Butch Otter had called for a 6.4...
JFAC has voted 13-6 in favor of Rep. Wendy Horman’s motion for the Operations Division of the public school budget, which means Sen. Dean Mortimer’s proposal – which was framed around setting up a separate line item for health insurance cost increases within the school...
Sen. Dean Mortimer, R-Idaho Falls, arguing for his motion for the Operations Division of the public school budget, said he believes the public school budget needs a line item for health insurance costs. “More and more districts are saying that they need a line item,”...
Sen. Dean Mortimer’s motion to cut $4.25 million for professional development out of the Teachers Division of the public school budget – in order to allow that money to be shifted to a new line item for health insurance – has failed on a 7-12...
The public school budget is divided into six divisions, or seven counting educational services for the deaf and blind. Each division is funded through a separate debate and motion in the joint budget committee. The first one to come up, for the Administrators Division, was…
After a 10-9 vote on the public health services division budget within the Department of Health & Welfare, JFAC is now taking up the public schools budget. Sen. Dean Mortimer, R-Idaho Falls, noted that there are two competing motions: One from him and JFAC Co-Chair…
The first vote that JFAC took this morning, on the budget for Medicaid for next year, was unanimous, 19-0, and there were no competing motions and no debate. The budget was developed by a working group that included Reps. Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise; Phylis King, D-Boise;...
As the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee enters its second week of agency budget-setting, there’s been little news thus far, but there will be today: Both the state Department of Health & Welfare, the state’s largest agency, and the K-12 public schools budget, the single largest slice...
U.S. Attorney for Idaho Wendy Olson, whose last day in office was Friday, is joining the law firm Stoel Rives LLP as a partner effective today, joining the litigation practice group in its Boise office. Tim Snider, head of the firm’s litigation practice group, said,…
Here’s a link to my full Sunday column, on last week’s presentations to lawmakers on early-childhood education, for which Idaho is one of six states that provides no state funding; and on a proposed fee increase for out-of-state boaters to help fund Idaho’s boat-inspection stations…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
