Committees are meeting around the Statehouse this morning, though few have substantive business as yet. The House Health & Welfare Committee meeting is packed this morning, between Health & Welfare staffers, lobbyists, reporters and citizens, as it hears an overview of the programs at the Department of Health & Welfare. In the House Education Committee, new Chairman Reed DeMordaunt, leading an organizational meeting, encouraged his members to use their computers to look at bills and so forth, drawing, amid laughter, concerns from Rep. Pete Nielsen, who said he generally asks his grandkids to help when he has to do something on a computer.

JFAC is mostly going over rules and how the committee works this morning, but later this morning, it’s scheduled to hear a presentation on the impact of the failure of Propositions 1, 2 and 3 on the current year’s public school budget.

In the House Revenue & Taxation Committee, a full slate of state Tax Commission rules is up for review this morning New Rep. Mark Patterson, R-Boise, asked repeated, sharp questions of the presenter, McClean Russell. Rev & Tax Chairman Gary Collins, R-Nampa, cautioned him, “Please go through the chair,” but Patterson just kept on questioning Russell. Collins just smiled. No Senate committees other than JFAC have scheduled meetings today.

This afternoon from 1:15 to 5, all legislators will go through a full session of ethics training in the Capitol Auditorium; the session will be streamed live for all those who want to watch. You can see the agenda here.