The "Students Come First" technology task force now is hearing an online presentation from the head of the Maine Learning Technology Initiative, Steven Garton, on how that state's laptop computer program for every student has worked. State Sen. John Goedde, R-Coeur d'Alene, who is chairing…
Idaho's tech-focused "Students Come First" school reform plan originally envisioned requiring all Idaho students to take eight online classes to graduate from high school, though that number was later dropped to four, and then left open; Gov. Butch Otter has expressed interest in students taking…
As the "Students Come First" Technology Task Force begins its meeting this morning in the state Capitol Auditorium, facilitator Lauren Morando Rhim reminded members to turn off their technology items, like smartphones, to focus on the business at hand. A committee member, Keven Denton, suggested…
Idaho's newest state tax commissioner, longtime CPA and prominent Republican Rich Jackson, says he's going above and beyond legal requirements to step away from professional and political involvements as he moves into his new role. Among the positions he's resigning: He's withdrawing from his CPA…
An unpleasant announcement on this sunny Friday from the Idaho DEQ: High levels of E. coli bacteria have been identified at Sandy Point Beach below Lucky Peak Dam, a popular swimming area and park. Warning signs have been posted; there's no swimming or wading until…
When Gov. Butch Otter today appointed Ada County Deputy Prosecutor Lynn Graham Norton to be a 4th District judge, replacing retiring Judge Darla Williamson, he kept the state's number of women judges the same - the lowest in the country, at just over 11 percent.…
The Idaho Supreme Court has rejected an appeal by Allied Bail Bonds after the firm lost a lawsuit against Kootenai County, charging that the county sheriff was infringing on its business by steering jail inmates toward credit card bonds rather than its bail bonds. The…
Two men with developmental disabilities and their guardians are suing the state over a recent money-changing change to Idaho's Medicaid program, saying the state is violating their right to freely choose providers, the Associated Press reports. The two are seeking class-action status on behalf of…
Idaho is planning a fall wolf hunt with no overall limit - and no limits in four zones, the Panhandle, Lolo, Selway and Middle Fork zones - because of "documented impacts to elk and other prey species in those zones," Idaho Fish and Game officials…
The "Students Come First" Technology Task Force will meet Monday and Tuesday at the state capitol; the agenda includes presentations on the Maine Learning Technology Initiative, the Denver Public Schools Instructional Management System, and one from several executives and the sales director for Discovery Education;…
Two of the five members of the Idaho Land Board - Gov. Butch Otter and state schools Supt. Tom Luna - now say they erred last year when they voted to spend $2.7 million to buy a storage business whose revenue benefits Idaho public schools…
Idaho Democratic Party Chairman Larry Grant has issued a news release slamming the recent decision by Ada County Prosecutor Greg Bower to forgo prosecuting former state Tax Commission Chairman Royce Chigbrow because statute of limitations had expired. “It is outrageous that Chigbrow won’t be called…
A national group that's filed petitions or lawsuits in all 50 states seeking dramatic reductions in greenhouse gas emissions hit a brick wall in Idaho, according to reporter Sean Ellis, who reports in this week's Capital Press that the Idaho Board of Environmental Quality unanimously…
Idaho is one of 23 states that will share in a multimillion-dollar national settlement with JP Morgan Chase & Co. over bid-rigging deals on public bond offerings. The Associated Press reports that J.P. Morgan Securities LLC made at least 93 secret deals with companies that…
The "extreme couponing" movement is catching on in Idaho, reports Associated Press reporter Jessie Bonner, with a TLC program about the phenomenon highlighting shoppers who cut their grocery bills by hundreds through rigorous coupon-clipping, classes on how to do it drawing interested adherents, and two…
Idaho has had its first confirmed rabid bat, as a bat from southeastern Idaho tested positive for rabies last week, prompting a warning from the state Department of Health & Welfare for precautions, from making sure pets and horses are vaccinated against rabies, to avoiding…
Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has appointed CPA Rich Jackson to the Idaho State Tax Commission, filling the vacancy created by Otter's appointment in June of Commissioner Sam Haws to head the Idaho Commission on Aging (replacing Kim Toryanski, now deputy administrator of the Idaho Division…
House Minority Leader John Rusche, D-Lewiston, has penned an op-ed piece panning Idaho's approach to implementing both the new longitudinal data system for schools, ISEE (Idaho System for Educational Excellence), and the earlier troubled implementation of a new Medicaid claims system last summer; Rusche said…
More than 42,000 poor or disabled Idahoans lost their non-emergency dental coverage last Friday due to state budget cuts, and there's some question about whether the state's expected $1.7 million in annual savings really will pay off in the long run. "Some of this stuff,…
Gov. Butch Otter has appointed Kenny Anderson of Rigby to the Idaho Fish & Game Commission, to replace Cameron Wheeler, whose term expired June 30. Anderson, 60, is the founder and owner of Anderson Cabinet and Millwork, and avid sportsman and a lifelong eastern Idaho…
Neither Sen. John McGee nor his lawyer has responded to requests to release medical records backing up his lawyer's claim in court that a concussion contributed to his bizarre behavior before a Father's Day drunken driving arrest, the Associated Press reports. Ada County Sheriff Gary…
Here's a link to the 22-page decision from U.S. District Judge Lynn Winmill granting a motion for a preliminary injunction to block a new Idaho anti-union law from taking effect; Winmill issued his decision on Friday. At issue is SB 1007, the "Fairness in Contracting…
Boise State University will offer classes in Meridian starting in August, at a site formerly occupied by the University of Phoenix. Classes that BSU previously offered at Columbia High School in Nampa will be at the new Meridian site, along with graduate programs in bilingual/ESL…
Redistricting hearings last week in the Magic Valley turned up plenty of questions and differing views about what divides or unites communities there, according to reporter Ben Botkin of the Times-News. Among them: Whether the Snake River Canyon creates a "natural separation" between Twin Falls…
The holiday weekend was marred by sad news for state Rep. Ken Roberts of Donnelly, whose wife, Mary Jo, drowned in the Payette River; her body was recovered Saturday about six miles downstream from McCall. Mrs. Roberts, 49, was the subject of a search along…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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