Here's something odd: I've been hunting for the existing language in the Endangered Species Act that would be modified by the new legislation introduced today by three members of Idaho's congressional delegation, Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch and 1st District Rep. Raul Labrador, to…
The U.S. Justice Department has awarded $1.9 million in grants to the Coeur d'Alene Tribe and Nez Perce Tribe in Idaho to "enhance law enforcement practices and sustain crime prevention and intervention efforts." The grants are for eight specific aims: Public safety and community policing;…
Dave Dahms, boating law administrator for the Idaho Department of Parks and Recreation, has been awarded the Innovations in Technology Award from the National Association of State Boating Law Administrators, for developing an online grant application for county sheriff's offices to request Safe Boating Act…
Three members of Idaho's congressional delegation - Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch and 1st District Rep. Raul Labrador - are introducing legislation aimed at amending the Endangered Species Act in the wake of the Jeremy Hill case, in which a North Idaho man was…
The Idaho House Health & Welfare Committee has scheduled an interim meeting for Sept. 29. to talk about health insurance exchanges. The meeting will from from 8-10 a.m. in the Capitol Auditorium; the committee is also inviting members of the Senate Health & Welfare Committee,…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The committee that holds the purse strings to the Idaho governor's mansion says the family of the late french fry billionaire J.R. Simplot is willing to help the state sustain the home for…
Idaho Secretary of State Ben Ysursa has issued his formal order establishing a new redistricting commission, which starts the clock ticking. The appointing authorities - the House speaker, the Senate president pro-tem, the House and Senate minority leaders, and the state Democratic and Republican party…
Boise State University officials, commenting on the NCAA's report today on infractions in five sports, said they've taken steps to address the concerns raised by the NCAA. “We defended the athletic program to the best of our abilities at the hearing and had hoped our…
The NCAA has announced its findings on rule violations by Boise State University, citing BSU for major violations in five sports, with the biggest focusing on women's tennis. Penalties, some of which were self-imposed by the university and adopted by the NCAA's Division I Committee…
Judges of the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals will convene a special session Friday in Boise to celebrate the memory of the late Senior Circuit Judge Thomas G. Nelson of Boise, who died in May at the age of 74. The session will be held…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho missed tax revenue forecasts in August by 4.4 percent or $8.7 million, as individual income tax and sales tax receipts lagged expectations. After two months of the fiscal year, total collections are…
Instead of next Monday, it now looks like a new Idaho redistricting commission won't be convened until Sept. 28th. Secretary of State Ben Ysursa had originally asked all the appointing authorities to get him new names by this Wednesday - tomorrow - so he could…
Marc Johnson's "Johnson Post" blog today offers an alternative on Idaho's current redistricting mess, saying, "When Idaho’s “citizen” reapportionment panel deadlocked recently everyone in the state looked to the Big Man on the second floor of the state capitol building for guidance. And for good…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: LEWISTON, Idaho (AP) — Former gubernatorial candidate Rex Rammell has been charged with felony battery in Idaho County after authorities say he confronted a couple for trespassing. The Lewiston Tribune report (http://bit.ly/rppC7J ) Rammell tried to place…
You can read my full story here at spokesman.com on how Idaho officials on a task force planning for the state's purchase of computers for every high school student have had to cancel a trip to Redmond, Wash. to meet with Microsoft officials, after concerns…
Idaho has to appoint an entirely new redistricting commission - not including any of the six commissioners who blew their deadline last week - and start the process over, Idaho Secretary of State Ben Ysursa announced this morning. The reason: A 2009 law that the…
Roll Call has published an article noting that of the five states with the easiest task in redrawing congressional districts lines - those with just two districts - two, Idaho and Maine, have seen "some of the most contentious redistricting battles of the summer." You…
The "Students Come First" Technology Task Force will take up funding timelines, the timelines for putting out the requests to vendors for computers, and hear from Rep. Reed DeMordaunt, R-Eagle, on the results of a "mobile computing device" survey, as its meeting continues this morning;…
State Superintendent of School Tom Luna told state purchasing officer Sarah Hilderbrand, "We were invited by a vendor to go to that vendor's location" and hear from "a parade of these international experts" on online education, "to basically be their guests. We would travel at…
Several committee members are raising concerns about warnings to school technology task force members to avoid contacts with computer vendors. "Certainly the members of this committee are not the experts and need to be looking to the outside community, whether it be schools or vendors…
The "Students Come First Technology" Task Force has opened a two-day meeting this morning in the Capitol Auditorium; you can listen live here. State Superintendent of Schools Tom Luna urged the members to focus on "features of a high-quality online course" and bring recommendations forward…
Idaho's State Board of Education voted 8-0 on Friday to approve a rule requiring all Idaho students to take two online courses to graduate from high school, despite strongly negative testimony at seven public hearings around the state. One of the two courses must be…
The Idaho Supreme Court has issued an unexpected order this afternoon on redistricting, tossing out the GOP commissioners' lawsuit and Secretary of State Ben Ysursa's lawsuit, and declaring that the court has no authority to order the redistricting commission back to work - because the…
On last night's "Dialogue" program on Idaho Public Television, Idaho redistricting commissioners Lou Esposito and George Moses were asked whether they think the redistricting commission should pay for the GOP commissioners' lawyers in their separate legal challenge, which was filed in addition to the Secretary…
Idaho Republican Party Executive Director Jonathan Parker has sent out a guest opinion entitled "Idaho's Redistricting Process is Broken and Needs to be Fixed," in which he writes, "Due in part to an even-numbered commission, Idaho’s redistricting process is systematically designed for failure and has…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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