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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Eye On Boise

Senate Commerce votes 8-1 in favor of governor’s exchange bill

The Senate Commerce Committee has voted 8-1 in favor of SB 1042, the governor’s health insurance exchange bill. The only “no” vote came from Sen. Branden Durst, D-Boise, who said he was concerned about the lack of legislative oversight in the exchange as proposed.

Sen. Todd Lakey, R-Nampa, said, “I can’t stand there and let the federal government do it to us. I feel obligated to try to exercise some discretion at the state level.” Sen. Dean Cameron, R-Rupert, said, “I wish I had another choice. The only choice I see is for us to follow what I think was the lead of Gov. Otter, and I think he should be commended, not criticized. He’s trying to protect our rights, he’s trying to protect our sovereignty.”

The bill now moves to the full Senate; to become law, it needs passage both there and in the House and the governor's signature.



Betsy Z. Russell
Betsy Z. Russell joined The Spokesman-Review in 1991. She currently is a reporter in the Boise Bureau covering Idaho state government and politics, and other news from Idaho's state capital.

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