Rep. Rick Youngblood, R-Nampa, is plenty steamed about the demise of his bill, HB 514, in a Senate committee today; the measure would have removed state elected officials’ exemption from the requirement for a concealed weapons permit. “I guess I’m surprised that a senator would…
Idaho’s Office of Performance Evaluations will conduct an investigation into the workload of the Idaho Attorney General’s office and the cost of contracting out for legal services for the state rather than doing them in-house, the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee decided this afternoon. Also picked…
There’s a new worst-case scenario for the Idaho Education Network e-rate funds debacle: If the feds decide Idaho granted the multimillion-dollar contract for the IEN improperly, the state could not only have to pay back the $13.3 million in federal e-rate funds it’s already received…
With no debate, the House has passed SB 1277a, legislation to authorize the state to again start doing land exchanges with state-owned cottage sites at Priest and Payette lakes that are part of the state’s land endowment. Exchanges were halted earlier this year after legal…
The Senate has voted 21-13 in favor of SB 1314, controversial payday lending legislation from Sen. Lee Heider, R-Twin Falls, that was opposed by advocates of reform in payday lending for not going far enough, and backed by major payday lending firms. The bill would…
The House has voted to remove the indexing of the homeowner’s exemption from property taxes, instead setting it at a fixed maximum level of $90,000 or 50 percent of home value, whichever is less. In 2006, the Legislature raised the exemption from its previous cap…
Led by Sen. Russ Fulcher, who is running for governor, and Sen. Jeff Siddoway, R-Terreton, a divided Senate State Affairs Committee this morning voted to dump House-passed legislation to remove lawmakers’ special privilege to carry a concealed weapon without a permit. Siddoway said, “We are…
On a party-line vote, the House Revenue & Taxation Committee this morning agreed to introduce legislation to expand the personal property tax exemption for business equipment from $100,000 per taxpayer per county to $250,000, at a cost to the state of about $8.7 million a…
Former House Speaker Lawerence Denney, who is running for Secretary of State, was involved in a conflict that sparked accusations of theft, private work done on state time, political retribution, state contracts that benefited his family, undeclared conflict of interest and more – all involving…
Idaho’s proposed $2 million wolf control fund won’t be getting $2 million next year, reports the Twin Falls Times-News’ Kimberlee Kruesi; with millions needed to shore up the Idaho Education Network in the face of missing federal funds, legislative budget writers instead are looking at…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
