About 150 sportsmen, many in hunter-orange baseball caps and some in camouflage, are rallying on the Capitol steps today against any sale or transfer of public lands. “We don’t want to risk losing the places where we fill our freezers as well as our hearts,”…
When Rep. Linden Bateman, R-Idaho Falls, today proposed sharply increasing fines for violating the Idaho Open Meeting Law, he ran into a buzz saw of opposition from Reps. Vito Barbieri, Pete Nielsen, Brent Crane and Lynn Luker. “Rep. Bateman, I’m appalled at this tenfold increase...
Both the House and Senate have observances scheduled today for Lincoln Day, in celebration of President Abraham Lincoln’s birthday today. In the House, 4th graders from Riverstone Elementary School recited the Gettysburg Address; Reps. Robert Anderst and Rich Wills read the Emancipation Proclamation; Reps. Melissa…
The House Revenue & Taxation Committee voted unanimously in favor of HB 75 this morning, to grant a sales tax exemption for prescription glasses and contact lenses. Several Idaho optometrists and the Idaho Retailers Association voiced support for the bill; no one spoke against it....
Idaho Sen. Jim Risch announced today that he’s been named chairman of the energy subcommittee of the Senate Committee on Energy and Natural Resources; Risch previously was the ranking Republican on the subcommittee. Risch said he’s “honored.” “My appointment to this subcommittee is important to…
Idaho has filed a notice of appeal following 4th District Judge Patrick Owen’s final ruling yesterday squarely against the state in the lawsuit over the Idaho Education Network. Idaho EdNews reporter Kevin Richert reports that Camille Wells of the IEN sent out an email late…
New state schools Superintendent Sherri Ybarra has hired Brad Foltman, the retired former budget director under five governors, to audit the State Department of Education’s contracting process. Foltman has a 60-day contract for up to $25,000; Tim Corder, special assistant to Ybarra, said the contract…
When former Sen. John Goedde earlier this week told lawmakers the state could lose $245 million in federal funding if the embattled Idaho Education Network goes dark, he apparently exaggerated – Idaho Reports co-host Melissa Davlin reports that the actual amount at risk if Idaho…
Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A House committee has advanced to the full Idaho House a bill aimed at eliminating federal Clean Water Act protections for suction dredges and also opening Wild and Scenic Rivers to the miners.…
4th District Judge Patrick Owen today issued his ruling in the Idaho Education Network case, and his ruling went squarely against the state. Not only is the $60 million contract for the IEN void, the judge found, but also millions of dollars of additional work for state agencies that the state Department of Administration awarded...
Idaho Lottery Director Jeff Anderson said he is preparing a response to the letter he received from Sen. Bob Nonini and three other North Idaho lawmakers, regarding gaming machines at tribal casinos in Idaho. “I just got it yesterday and I’m preparing a response now,…
Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The new director of the Idaho Department of Corrections is asking lawmakers to approve a significant pay increase for experienced prison staffers in hopes of reducing the department's high turnover rate. Kevin Kempf...
Here’s how high feelings were running after today’s Senate committee vote to repeal “instant racing” in Idaho: In the marble hallway outside the Lincoln Auditorium, Idaho ranching icon Harry Bettis, in a white cowboy hat, approached the Coeur d’Alene Tribe’s lobbyist, Bill Roden, who had...
Here's a link to my full story at spokesman.com on today's Senate committee vote to repeal the 2013 law that authorized betting on "historical horse racing" in Idaho, and led to the installation of slot machine-like "instant racing" machines at three locations in Idaho, including...
Sen. Bob Nonini, R-Coeur d’Alene, along with three other North Idaho lawmakers, has sent a letter to the director of the Idaho State Lottery charging that the gambling machines at the Coeur d’Alene Casino on the Coeur d’Alene Reservation may be illegal. “Since slot machines...
The Senate State Affairs Committee has voted in favor of SB 1011, to repeal instant racing in Idaho; that sends the bill to the full Senate for a vote. If it passes there and in the House and receives the governor’s signature, the machines now...
Bill Roden, lobbyist for the Coeur d’Alene Tribe, in his closing statement this morning to the Senate State Affairs Committee, said, “I sympathize with all of the statements that have been made with reference to the horse industry in the state of Idaho. … I…
Sen. Chuck Winder, R-Boise, said, “Just a comment. … I think from my perspective, we’re here to determine whether these machines are legal or not legal and whether or not they meet the test of what we authorized in 2013. And it just seems to…
The Senate State Affairs Committee has asked Deputy Attorney General Brian Kane to respond to questions. Sen. Elliot Werk, D-Boise, said there’s “some lack of clarity about the nature of pooled wagering and pari-mutuel,” and asked Kane to address that. “At the outset, I will…
More testimony from today's instant racing repeal hearing: Nikeela Black, a jockey and attorney from Boise who won 60 races at Les Bois Park last summer, said, “No matter what the terminals themselves look like, what matters is how they work, which in fact is...
In continuing testimony this morning on SB 1011, the bill to repeal instant racing in Idaho: Yvonne “Sam” Sandmire told the senators, “I’m sure many businesses… would love to have revenues from gambling machines save their businesses.” She said she sympathizes with those who have...
In more testimony this morning on SB 1011, the bill to repeal the 2013 law that authorized betting on “historical horse racing” and opened the door to “instant racing” machines in Idaho: Debbie Amsden, executive director of the Idaho Horse Council and coordinator of the…
Among those testifying so far this morning on SB 1011, to repeal “instant racing” in Idaho: Taunja Elison, a horse owner/trainer and the current president of the Idaho Thoroughbred Association, said, “Technology has changed everything that we do today, and that’s no different with racing.”…
As the hearing on repeal of “instant racing” gambling machines in Idaho gets going again this morning, a bit late, Senate State Affairs Chairman Curtis McKenzie offered this “roadmap:” “We are going to continue with the testimony from the people who signed up to testify...
As the Senate State Affairs prepares to continue its hearing this morning on SB 1011, the bill to repeal "instant racing" in Idaho, here's a fact check on some of the claims that have been made on both sides of the debate, from AP reporter…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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