The father of a 22-year-old man accused of killing a monkey after breaking into an Idaho zoo said he believes the tragedy was a drunken prank that got out of hand and "turned into a horrible situation," the Idaho Statesman newspaper reports. Michael J. Watkins…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) ― A 32-year-old eastern Idaho man is headed to prison for a year after acknowledging he stole thousands from an Indian reservation casino. John R. Mejia of Rigby was sentenced Tuesday to 12 months…
Idaho's state Land Board has voted unanimously in favor of a land exchange to trade the University of Idaho's McCall Outdoor Science School property for a 32,138-square-foot office building in Idaho Falls that houses Battelle Energy Alliance, the contractor for the Idaho National Laboratory. The…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: LEWISTON, Idaho (AP) ― A construction worker digging with a backhoe in Lewiston struck a 4-inch natural gas line, sparking an explosion and fire that rocked the downtown area, destroyed the backhoe and damaged a nearby building.…
In this year's wildfire season, about 1.75 million acres burned in Idaho, while about 9.1 million acres burned nationwide. "That puts us close to 20 percent of the acres nationally that burned, occurred in this state," Idaho state Lands Director Tom Schultz told the Land…
Michael Watkins, 22, of Weiser, has been charged with two felonies, burglary and grand theft, in connection with the death of a Patas monkey at the Boise Zoo early Saturday morning. He was arrested this afternoon in Washington County, where he is currently in custody;…
Police have arrested one person in connection with the death of a monkey at Zoo Boise, the AP reports. Police spokeswoman Lynn Hightower said no other information was immediately available, but officers and a representative from Zoo Boise were expected to hold a press conference…
The land exchange that's at the heart of the University of Idaho's plan to take ownership of the lakeshore McCall Outdoor Science School campus it's leased from the state endowment for the past 65 years is up for approval by the state Land Board at…
Sad news surfaced over the weekend in Boise, with the news that intruders at the Boise Zoo had killed a beloved Patas monkey. The future of the monkey's cagemate, shown here, is uncertain, as the social primates don't like to be housed alone; the Boise…
Col. Jerry Russell, director of the Idaho State Police since January of 2007, plans to retire on Jan. 18, Gov. Butch Otter announced today. “I couldn’t have asked for a better director, a better leader or a better example of a true public servant than…
After its 7-1 vote to repeal the requirement that every Idaho student take two online courses to graduate from high school, the State Board of Education today voted unanimously, with no discussion, to repeal its rules covering "fractional ADA," a funding scheme that was part…
It was Idaho Superintendent of Schools Tom Luna himself who made the motion at the state Board of Education this morning to repeal the rule requiring that every Idaho high school student take at least two online classes to graduate from high school. "Proposition 3…
Only state Board of Education member Milford Terrell is attending today's special board meeting in person; all other board members, including state Superintendent of Schools Tom Luna, are participating by phone. Members of the public who would like to listen in by phone can call…
Idaho's State Board of Education has unanimously approved the University of Idaho's purchase of its McCall campus, which is along the shore of Payette Lake adjacent to Ponderosa State Park. It's currently endowment land managed by the state Land Board, and the UI has leased…
Radioactive waste that the U.S. Air Force couldn't get permission to dump at a Bakersfield, Calif. dump has been brought to Idaho, to U.S. Ecology's hazardous waste site at Grand View, according to California Watch. The non-profit investigative reporting site, which was founded by the…
Rep. Stephen Hartgen, R-Twin Falls, offers this summary of House GOP leadership races on his Facebook page: "For speaker, Scott Bedke is running against Lawerence Denney. For majority leader, Rich Wills is running against Mike Moyle. For assistant majority leader, there are three candidates: Brent…
Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has decided to delay a decision on how to proceed on a health insurance exchange in Idaho, now that HHS chief Kathleen Sibelius has agreed to give governors more time; a decision had been due today, but now the deadline has…
Ken Edmunds of Twin Falls, president of the Idaho State Board of Education, said what the voters said last week "matters a great deal." He said, "If people aren't satisfied with what we're doing, they're not going to support further change." The board will hold…
There also are two other rule changes on the State Board of Education's agenda for Monday's special meeting that are a result of the rejection of the "Students Come First" laws by voters: One regarding "fractional ADA," and another regarding teacher and principal evaluations. The…
The Idaho State Board of Education has set a special meeting for Monday, at which it could decide to repeal a rule requiring all Idaho students to take at least two online courses to graduate from high school, now that the "Students Come First" law…
Idaho's unemployment rate continued to fall in October, dropping another tenth of a percentage point to 7 percent, the lowest level in 3-1/2 years, the Idaho Department of Labor reports. That was nearly a full percentage point below the national unemployment rate, which rose a…
Fourth-graders who failed to achieve reading goals had their faces scribbled on with permanent marker by other students last week at Declo Elementary School under the supervision of their teacher, the Times-News reports today. Some parents are concerned about the effect on the targeted students,…
In response to a request from the Republican Governors Association, U.S. Secretary of Health & Human Services Kathleen Sibelius has sent out a letter giving governors extra time to make their decisions on how to proceed on health insurance exchanges - a decision for which…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: COEUR D'ALENE, Idaho (AP) ― A northern Idaho county and a snowmobile group have sued the U.S. Department of Interior in federal court, the latest step in their bid to have Endangered Species Act protections lifted from…
In a victory for sport shooters, the Idaho Supreme Court today lifted an injunction that has kept the Farragut State Park shooting range closed for almost six years; you can read our full report here from S-R reporter Scott Maben. The decision will permit the…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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