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Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Huckleberries Online

North Idaho Loses Clout

Twenty years ago, when I was charged with recommending endorsements for the SR editorial board, I thought it was important that North Idaho accrue clout in the Legislature. I wanted to see North Idaho legislators serving on important committees like JFAC (budget) and holding chairmanships. Now? I'd like to see North Idaho legislators, particularly those from Kootenai County, assigned to no more important duties in the Statehouse than taking out the trash and cleaning the bathrooms. That's how bad I consider the current batch. I'm OK that Kootenai County legislators will hold only one chairmanship (Vito Barbieri/House Business, pictured) in the next session. And wished they held none. I'm happy that the best of the batch, Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint, and Rep. Luke Malek, R-Coeur d'Alene will serve on the budget committee. You can see all the committee assignments for North Idaho legislators in the Eye on Boise report here.



D.F. Oliveria
D.F. (Dave) Oliveria joined The Spokesman-Review in 1984. He currently is a columnist and compiles the Huckleberries Online blog and writes about North Idaho in his Huckleberries column.

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