JFAC members are gathered in the 5th-floor library of the Capitol Annex to try to figure out how to fashion budget bills that implement the proposed 5 percent cut in personnel funds across the state budget. Among the options they're kicking around: Mandating a 2…
Stunned backers of the governor's gas tax bill said they hope the governor will be able to come up with some kind of plan that will clear the House. “I’ll continue to work with the governor’s office to see if there’s another proposal that would…
Here's Gov. Butch Otter's response to the failure of his gax tax increase bill in the House:“I’m disappointed by today’s outcome, but I appreciate the constructive debate and I am not giving up. My staff and I continue to talk with legislators, as do representatives…
The governor's legislation to increase Idaho's gas tax has failed in the House, on a 27-43 vote.The debate in the House lasted for close to two hours, with representatives from throughout the state speaking out for and against the bill. "I'm going to support this…
The first six representatives to speak in the debate on the gas tax bill after the opening debate were two in favor, four against. Rep. Frank Henderson, R-Post Falls, spoke out in favor, citing Gov. Butch Otter's executive order promising stricter accountability measures for transportation…
Here's a link to the governor's executive order and letter to lawmakers promising new accountability measures for the Idaho Transportation Department. "If you don't think the governor is serious about running a tighter ship at the Department of Transportation, you have another think coming," House…
The House has begun debating HB 246, the governor's bill to increase Idaho's gas tax by 7 cents over the next three years, to raise money for road maintenance. The tax is now 25 cents per gallon. "This is a bill that you've all been…
Rep. Frank Henderson, R-Post Falls, says he's been promoting his idea about changing the "bands," or groupings, for car and light truck registration fees for the past year, dropping to three groups rather than five. "I've submitted that idea for over a year, but nobody…
Under the governor's new vehicle registration fee bill, after three years, owners of new cars would pay 37.5 percent more than they do now in annual registration fees, while owners of the oldest cars - those more than eight years old - would pay 75…
The new vehicle registration fee bill introduced this morning will go to a full hearing in the House Transportation Committee, the Ways & Means Committee decided this morning. "The recommendation is to the Transportation Committee for full hearing," said Rep. Rich Wills, R-Glenns Ferry, chairman…
The House Ways & Means Committee has voted unanimously to introduce an entirely new bill on raising car and truck registration fees, proposed this morning by the governor's office. "This is another attempt at vehicle registration legislation - it's another approach," Jason Kreizenbeck, Gov. Butch…
Former state schools Superintendent Marilyn Howard says she’s “pretty much kept my mouth shut and my eyes and ears open” since leaving office in 2006 after two terms. But in a guest opinion in the Idaho Statesman today, she offered her ideas on how the…
Here’s a link to my full story at spokesman.com about how, on the eve of a big do-or-die vote on Gov. Butch Otter’s transportation tax package, the governor’s office discovered a $10 million math error in its main bill and a citizens group released a…
The House Ways & Means Committee will hold its first meeting of the session in the morning, to introduce another new version of the governor's key transportation bill, to raise car and truck registration fees. The leadership-dominated committee, which rarely meets, has a proposal from…
The Coeur d'Alene Lake Management Plan will be funded one way or another, Idaho state lawmakers declared today. The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee voted unanimously in favor of a budget for the state Department of Environmental Quality for next year that includes an either-or: Either the…
The governor's office says there was a math error at the Idaho Transportation Department in calculating the revenue raised by his new vehicle registration fee proposal, and it actually will raise $10 million less than originally thought. Instead of $43.7 million after three years, "The…
There was lots of testimony this morning on the big election consolidation bill, HB 201, but the Senate State Affairs Committee ran out of time and had to end its meeting before finishing the hearing, so there was no vote today. The committee next meets…
A rare meeting of the Senate Finance Committee - the Senate half of the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee - was held today to consider introducing legislation from Sen. Dean Cameron, R-Rupert, regarding the state's catastrophic fund. The fund, which picks up costs for medically indigent patients…
Hoping to avoid a $2.1 million cut in funding for statewide substance abuse treatment, Sen. Nicole LeFavour, D-Boise, this morning proposed filling the gap by dipping into the $45 million in discretionary federal stimulus funds that Gov. Butch Otter wants to direct into road and…
Funding to operate the state Office of Drug Policy would come from the Millenium Fund, which holds the proceeds from a tobacco settlement, under a budget set this morning in JFAC. Rep. Janice McGeachin, R-Idaho Falls, tried to take the money from the general fund…
Legislative budget writers have set a budget for the state Department of Revenue and Taxation that restores funding for 31 of the 47 temporary tax auditors who were laid off as a result of this year's budget holdbacks. "When you take a look at this,…
A non-binding memorial declaring Idaho's sovereignty from the federal government cleared the House State Affairs Committee this morning, at the urging of Rep. Dick Harwood, R-St. Maries. Harwood said the federal government shouldn't pressure states to do this or that or face losing federal funding.…
Rep. Tom Loertscher's bill to give pharmacists or "any person" the right to refuse to fill a prescription for a patient on the basis of conscience is headed for the House's amending order, to revise the bill so it applies only to pharmacists - not…
Legislative budget writers have set a budget for the state Parks Department that's a 57.9 percent cut from their current year general-fund level, and 18.8 percent overall. "They've limped along - it's sad," said Rep. Wendy Jaquet, D-Ketchum. The vote in the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee…
Senate Transportation Chairman John McGee, R-Caldwell, has unveiled legislation to give the governor authority to fire the state transportation director, who now reports to the Idaho Transportation Board. The clash between McGee and ITD Director Pam Lowe that the bill symbolizes comes just as the…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
