North Idaho College President Richard MacLennan made his first budget pitch to state lawmakers on Monday, telling them NIC “stands proudly as the oldest community college in Idaho” and touting its new career-technical education center in Rathdrum. “This $20 million project was funded entirely by…
A southwestern Idaho man has been charged with a federal hate crime after prosecutors said he lured a gay man to a remote location and then badly beat him, causing the man's death. Twenty-three-year-old Kelly Schneider of Nampa was indicted by a grand jury earlier this month, but the case was kept under seal until he was taken into federal...
When Idaho banned dog racing in 1996 amid concerns over reported abuse of greyhounds raced at a North Idaho dog track, the law was firm and far-reaching: It made dog racing a felony. But now, various other types of non-gambling dog racing events, from a...
Women will no longer be banned from receiving abortion-inducing medication through telemedicine in Idaho, under a new legal settlement. Planned Parenthood announced Monday that the lawsuit settlement lifts unnecessary burdens on women seeking safe abortions. "Women in Idaho deserve the right to have access to the safest, highest quality health...
Speaking to a crowd of hundreds of business leaders Monday morning, Gov. Butch Otter repeated his call to make education the state’s top priority, Idaho EdNews reports. Otter delivered his remarks during the Idaho Chamber Alliance’s annual legislative meeting in Boise. His 38-minute speech struck…
Gov. Butch Otter today declared a state of emergency in Washington County due to massive snowfall, which has caved in roughly 100 buildings in the county, including Weiser’s only grocery store. “There is risk to life, property and public infrastructure as a result of extraordinary...
Idaho’s state Department of Health & Welfare currently, under its licensing rules, can’t have a secure area in either of its treatment facilities for people with developmental disabilities. “We are unable to lock doors,” Cameron Gilliland, deputy administrator of the Division of Family and Community…
Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — An eastern Idaho lawmaker is once again backing legislation requiring sign language interpreters to get a professional license from a state board. Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter vetoed a similar proposal in 2014, arguing…
Gov. Butch Otter is taking a second run at an “adult completer” scholarship, reports Idaho EdNews; the governor’s bill, which last year died in the Senate on a narrow 16-17 vote, was introduced on a unanimous vote in the House Education Committee this morning. The…
The College of Western Idaho’s student growth has far outstripped the growth in its state funding, CWI President Bert Glandon told JFAC this morning. “We are, I would say, at the point of desperate for balanced funding to help us move into a parallel basis…
The Senate State Affairs Committee voted unanimously this morning to award $18,060 in attorney fees and $1,711.84 in costs to Sen. Mark Nye, D-Pocatello, at the expense of his unsuccessful GOP challenger, Tom Katsilometes, who filed a formal contest of the election results that the…
This week is “Education Week” at the Capitol, with budget hearings scheduled this week on K-12 schools, higher education and related programs. Starting things off this morning, state Board of Education President Emma Atchley told the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, “You will see how together we…
First, the Bonner County Republican Central Committee passed a resolution supporting Rep. Heather Scott, R-Blanchard, and asking that her committee assignments be reinstated, after they were revoked following her disparaging comments...
This week’s “Idaho Reports” on Idaho Public Television includes a rundown of the events of the week; co-host Melissa Davlin’s one-on-one interview with House Speaker Scott Bedke about the recent hubbub in the House; producer Seth Ogilvie’s look back at impressions of the first two…
A state senator from Boise wants to drastically change Idaho's primary elections. Democratic Sen. Grant Burgoyne has introduced a personal bill that would create a top-two primary system. That means the top two vote-getters in each race during the primary would advance to the November election...
President Donald Trump’s scathing criticism of Army Sgt. Bowe Bergdahl will prevent the soldier from getting a fair trial on charges he endangered comrades by walking off his post in Afghanistan, Bergdahl’s attorneys said Friday. In a motion filed shortly after Trump was sworn in,…
Idaho Sen. Jim Risch had this statement in response to President Donald Trump’s inauguration today: “Congratulations to President Donald J. Trump on becoming our 45th President of the United States. It was a privilege to be a part of today’s ceremonies and to witness the…
Idaho 1st District Congressman Raul Labrador’s statement in response to Trump’s inaugural address is just six words. Here it is, in full: “I’m excited. Let’s get to work.”
Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo issued this statement in response to Donald Trump’s inaugural address today: “Today, we witnessed the peaceful transfer of power that has been the hallmark of our democracy since its founding. In this election, voters chose a candidate who put forth a...
Unemployment in Idaho dropped to 3.7 percent in December, after five straight months at 3.8 percent, the Idaho Department of Labor reports. Year-over-year, Idaho’s total nonfarm job growth for December showed a net gain of 13,300, or 1.9 percent, with all sectors except natural resources…
Idaho is facing a very big expense - $102 million - in the coming years to modernize its accounting, financial, payroll, human resources and procurement technology infrastructure, state Controller Brandon Woolf told legislative budget writers this morning. The process started in 2015 with a study,…
There’s a bit of a tiff between the PERSI board and the Otter Administration, regarding a $100,000 fund transfer request in the PERSI budget for next year. No state general tax funds would be involved; it’s a transfer between PERSI funds that come from fees…
A federal judge has ordered Idaho to destroy all information collected from collars placed on elk and wolves obtained illegally by landing a helicopter in a central Idaho wilderness area. U.S. District Court Judge B. Lynn Winmill in a ruling made public Thursday says it's such an extreme case that the only way...
Well, that was weird. An unusual siren sounded, and then a metal smoke-barrier door slid out and sealed off the Capitol basement corridor where House committee meeting rooms are located, blocking lots of people on the other side who filed outside and upstairs and stood…
Idaho's effective tax rate on natural gas and oil production is less than half the average when compared with eight other producing states, according to a tax-comparison study released Thursday. The study made public at the Idaho Oil and Gas Conservation Commission meeting found Idaho's rate at 4 percent compared with the 9.5 percent average...
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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