Here's a link to my full story at spokesman.com on the Idaho House and Senate Democrats' decision today to abandon open caucus meetings and instead move all their caucuses behind closed doors. "It was unanimous," said Senate Minority Leader Kate Kelly, D-Boise. "It was a…
Amid all the hubbub in the Capitol today, the Coalition of Idaho Charter School Families had to hold its rally on the Statehouse steps - with 550 kids and parents in attendance - without any amplification, because the state-owned P.A. system it planned to use…
The Capitol is filled with people - parents and children watching from every floor of the rotunda at the state's official Martin Luther King Jr./Idaho Human Rights Day ceremony; high school and college students, some of whom took part in rallies earlier; older folks who…
Idaho's House and Senate minority caucuses have voted to close their meetings to the public, after having them open to the public for nearly a decade while GOP caucuses remained closed. "This change is effective immediately," according to a press release from Democratic leadership. "If…
A day of demonstrations has begun on this Martin Luther King Jr./Idaho Human Rights Day, as an array of social-justice groups released "Facing Race, 2009 Legislative Progress Report on Racial Equity" at a rally on the east steps of the Capitol. The groups, the ACLU…
The Senate State Affairs Committee has voted unanimously to reject a rule proposed by the Endowment Fund Investment Board to charge school districts a fee of up to $1,000 and up to 5 basis points for guarantees the board issues for districts' school bond issues.…
JFAC has started budget hearings for state agencies with the Legislative Services Office. It's the first of an array of hearings that will reveal how budget cuts have translated into changes on the ground in agencies throughout state government; also up today are the state…
Today is an official state holiday - Martin Luther King Jr./Idaho Human Rights Day - but there's a reason all the lights are on in the state Capitol. Unlike all other state agencies, the state Legislature doesn't take holidays - it's in session. You'll find…
Rep. Wendy Jaquet, D-Ketchum, has drafted legislation calling for setting up a state commission that would review all Idaho state sales tax exemptions one or more times every eight years, and report its findings and recommendations to the Legislature, including whether each one should be…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
