Could stimulus affect earlier holdbacks?
HB 61, the legislation that makes Gov. Butch Otter's 4 percent holdbacks, or mid-year budget cuts, permanent, passed the House 68-1 a week ago, but when it came up for a vote today in the full Senate, Senate Finance Chairman Dean Cameron, R-Rupert, asked to hold off for another week. "Since the actions of last Friday, we're trying to get a handle on whether all of those actions were necessary," Cameron told the Senate. Part of what's needed, he said: More information on "that five-pound bill that Washington has sent us." Federal economic stimulus legislation that passed Friday will send millions to Idaho, including money targeted specifically to avoid state budget cuts in certain areas.