Senate Majority Leader Bart Davis, speaking on the floor of the Senate tonight before it adjourned for the evening, reacted to Senate Democrats' press conference earlier today calling this year's legislative session the "worst in memory." Davis said, "Rather than the worst session in memory,…
The Idaho Senate has passed HB 351, the new closed-primary election bill, on a straight party-line, 28-7 vote. The bill just was introduced this morning in the House; it's rocketed through both houses in a single day and now heads to the governor's desk.
Last-minute legislation to declare a disaster emergency in Idaho due to wolves has cleared the Senate on a 27-8 vote and headed to the governor's desk, after just being introduced in the House two days ago. "There's anti-wolf coalition groups all over the state that…
Click below for a full report from AP reporter John Miller on this morning's dramatic spiking of a wind turbine siting bill amid ethics claims and emotional testimony.
The House has adjourned for the day, but first, Rep. Cliff Bayer, R-Boise, apologized to the House for the distribution earlier today, just before the House was to vote on HB 346, his last-minute bill to lift the charter school cap, of bright yellow fleece…
The House has voted 30-39 to kill SB 1111a, the measure pushed by the Meridian School District to allow ads on school buses, a move the district estimated could bring it hundreds of thousands in much-needed revenue. Even after the bill was amended to narrow…
The amended version of SB 1111a, to allow ads on school buses, is being debated now in the House. "Certainly we're not talking about wrapping the bus, we're talking about a simple ad on the bus and as a result, generating some funds," Rep. Reed…
The House has passed the new version of the closed-primary election bill, HB 351, on a 51-16 vote. House Minority Leader John Rusche, D-Lewiston, said, "As I see it, this is a bill that was created behind closed doors by Republicans to address an internal…
The Senate Resources Committee has voted 7-2 in favor of HB 343, the wolf emergency bill, passing it on a party-line vote despite objections from Sen. Elliot Werk, D-Boise, that the bill has constitutional problems. The measure, which earlier passed the House, now moves to…
The House has moved on to the closed-primary election bill, which is now HB 351. Meanwhile, the Senate Resources Committee got a round of applause from its audience in the Capitol auditorium for having a motion made and seconded to move HB 343, the wolf…
The motion to lay HB 346 on the table has passed on a 37-31 vote in the House. Here's a look at the scarf, the promotional gift that prompted the brouhaha.
House Minority Leader John Rusche, D-Lewiston, has objected to consideration of HB 346, the bill to eliminate the cap on new charter schools, because of the "offensive" distribution of gifts and promotional materials "on the very floor of the House, attempting to influence the vote…
The Senate Education Committee is meeting and has on its agenda four "trailer" bills to the already-passed school reform bills, including three that add emergency clauses to the three reform bills. That prevents a referendum to overturn the bills, should it gain the required signatures…
Idaho Republican Party Chairman Norm Semanko has declined repeated requests from Eye on Boise this week for the reasons why the party chose to engage its attorney for the primary election lawsuit on a contingent-fee basis, and request that his costs be paid by the…
The House has voted 44-22 in favor of SB 1202, the bill to pay $100,000 to the Idaho Republican Party for legal fees in its recent successful lawsuit against the state to overturn Idaho's primary election system. Nine Republicans joined all 13 of the House…
Sen. Joyce Broadsword, R-Sagle, said she's asked Gov. Butch Otter to veto HB 187, the "narrow fix" to last year's conscience law that Idaho seniors and the AARP decried, saying it doesn't protect dying patients' end-of-life care decisions. "We'd been promised a fix," Broadsword said.…
Senate Democrats held a press conference just now to reflect on this year's legislative session, which they called the "worst in memoray" and said was dominated by "an off-shoot of the Republican party" that put ideology ahead of the state's best interest. "If there's one…
About two dozen wolf opponents are gathered on the Statehouse steps to celebrate yesterday's House passage of HB 343, declaring a disaster emergency in Idaho due to wolves, on a 64-5 vote. Anti-wolf activist Don Gillette told the group, "It's the first time in 12…
House Majority Leader Mike Moyle, R-Star, just announced that the House will break until 1 p.m., and the majority party will head into a closed-door caucus now. House Minority Caucus Chairman Brian Cronin, D-Boise, said the minority party will do the same. Meanwhile, the Senate…
The Senate has voted 22-11 in favor of HB 341, the budget bill for the state Department of Health & Welfare, which includes the Medicaid program. Opponents included freshman Sen. Steve Vick, R-Dalton Gardens, who said people have been writing to him, telling him that…
The House has gone at ease for its page graduation presentation, which includes young pages spoofing the lawmakers; the Senate also will hold its page graduation today. Meanwhile, the Senate has passed HB 326, on registration reinstatements after vehicle emission violations; and taken up HB…
The House Education Committee has voted 13-4 to pass a last-minute bill, HB 346, to remove the cap on creation of new charter schools in Idaho, which is now set at six per year; the bill now moves to the full House. Times-News reporter Ben…
The House State Affairs Committee, after a heated debate, has voted 11-8 to kill HB 342, Rep. Tom Loertscher's bill to give veto power over wind turbines to property owners within 2 miles, and instead refer the issue to the Legislature's interim committee on energy.…
Rep. Tom Loertscher, R-Iona, is passionately presenting HB 342, legislation to give any residential property owner within 2 miles veto power over a wind turbine project, to the House State Affairs Committee. "I think we have to be just as concerned about the one landowner…
A new version of SB 1198, the closed primary bill, has been introduced and sent directly to the full House, on a party-line vote in the House State Affairs Committee. The new version has just one change from the previous one, at the urging of…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
