Out of all the amendments proposed, just one set, sponsored by Sen. Russ Fulcher, R-Meridian, and John Goedde, R-Coeur d'Alene and developed by Jason Hancock of the state Department of Education, has passed the Senate to amend HB 256, the bill to cut state reimbursements…
The Senate is locked in debate on an array of amendments to HB 256, the bill that cuts state reimbursement to school districts for their student busing costs. The amendments would do everything from strike the bill's enacting clause, to cut out a clause that…
It's not actually in the bill, but for some reason, there's been a continuing typo in the House calendar in reference to SB 1159, legislation proposed by Sen. John Goedde, R-Coeur d'Alene, to eliminate what he says is a financial incentive for school districts to…
Legislation to make several changes in the way Idaho funds catastrophic health care costs for the indigent - including upping the deductible for counties from $10,000 per case to $11,000, while instituting cost-saving measures - has passed the House on a 54-15 vote, but only…
The budget bill for the state Department of Environmental Quality, a tiny piece of which includes funding authorization to begin implementation of the Coeur d'Alene Lake Management Plan, has passed the House on a 53-16 vote. Just last Friday, several lawmakers spoke out against the…
The House has just delayed consideration of HB 135a, the bill to increase the gas tax, until Thursday. Majority Leader Mike Moyle asked for unanimous consent for the delay, and no one objected.
Rep. Phil Hart's bill aimed at imposing liability against those who bring "dangerous or vicious animals" into Idaho that cause damage to people or property also would make it a felony for anyone to knowingly give false or misleading testimony to a local Planning &…
Rep. Marge Chadderdon, R-Coeur d'Alene, who said yesterday she was introducing a new version of her flag manufacturing bill, instead today urged the House to pass it as-is, and they did, 67-0. "I know you're waiting for this bill," Chadderdon told the House. She said…
The Idaho State Board of Education has approved fee hikes ranging from 5 to 7 percent for Idaho state universities for next year. At the University of Idaho, the fees called "matriculation fees," since UI can't charge "tuition," will rise 6.5 percent, to $4,934 for…
House Speaker Lawerence Denney says things aren't as off-track for ending the legislative session as they may seem. "Actually, I think we're doing pretty well," he told Eye on Boise. "JFAC still has one more big battle with personnel costs." The joint budget committee will…
Rep. Marge Chadderdon, R-Coeur d'Alene, says she's got a new version of her flag bill in the works, after problems cropped up with amendments already made to the bill. Chadderdon originally sought to prohibit state or local agencies in Idaho from buying any U.S. or…
Jan Eyth has been the supervisor of the legislative advisers, the lobbyists who use the legislative advisers' room in the Statehouse and check in with her for messages and such, for the past 25 years. Today, the lobbyists threw her a surprise 80th birthday party,…
The House has decided not to take up any bills this morning, with so many of its members gone for the funeral in Pocatello today of Brenda Malepeai, the late wife of Sen. Edgar Malepeai, D-Pocatello. House GOP Caucus Chairman Ken Roberts, R-Donnelly, said leadership…
Idaho Congressman Walt Minnick has named Pocatello City Councilman and state women's prison warden Brian Underwood as the nominee to be the next U.S. Marshal for Idaho. “He is bright, talented, and recommended by people I know and trust from across the political spectrum," Minnick…
The collection of "Lost and Found" items at the information desk in the Capitol Annex has included various items all session, like a broken umbrella, a set of car keys, etc. It's been growing, however. And today, the collection includes, among other items, a tie,…
Bob Hoover, president of the College of Idaho in Caldwell and former University of Idaho president, has been named the new CEO of the Idaho Community Foundation, a position he'll start in mid-July. Alice Hennessey will continue as interim president and CEO of the statewide…
Here's a link to the 12th week of the Legislature in photos as a slide show. It was another week of grappling, without resolution, with big issues like state employee pay cuts and transportation funding. This photo shows House GOP caucus members just after the…
Sun Valley Mayor Wayne Willich disputed an earlier account on this blog that suggested he had grabbed a reporter's arm during a tiff after a legislative committee hearing today, saying, "I didn't touch anybody. That actually would be a very low-I.Q. thing to do, and…
Gov. Butch Otter, who is interviewed along with Lt. Gov. Brad Little on tonight's "Idaho Reports" program on Idaho Public TV, says during the interview that he sees legislation that would allow him to fire the Idaho Transportation Department's director as "problematic." "I didn't ask…
Idaho House members threatened to kill funding for implementing the new Coeur d’Alene Lake Management Plan today, causing a delay in voting on the budget bill for the Idaho Department of Environmental Quality. Rep. Dick Harwood, R-St. Maries, told the House he thought the management…
Legislation to sell commemorative gold medallions to benefit the state highway account has passed the House on a 44-19 vote. "We should be creative and industrious and proactive and bold, and we should have tools like this in our toolbox ... to address highway funding,"…
Rep. Marge Chadderdon's flag-manufacturing bill, HB 249, was up in the House this morning, but when it came time, members of leadership from both sides and Rep. Chadderdon, R-Coeur d'Alene, were called up to the speaker's desk, and a rather long confab followed, while House…
The House has voted 32-32 on HB 263, Rep. Phil Hart's bill to move the state toward constructing and compiling a searchable database of all the state's spending and putting it online. "It is part of our public policy that we do provide this transparency,"…
After a long and bitter hearing that pitted some Sun Valley city council members against others and ultimately resulted in the Senate State Affairs Committee killing a bill brought by a temporary senator who's a former mayor of Sun Valley, the general manager of the…
As Idaho's legislative session dragged through its 81st day Thursday, legislative reporters have donned the traditional ugly ties that signify it's been long enough. Tradition has it that once reporters have decided it's time for the session to end, by sporting hideous neckwear they can…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
