David Irwin, director of communications for AARP Idaho, told lawmakers on the health care task force that Idaho could face "unintended consequences" if it decides to opt out of federal health care reform. "A move to opt out could reduce or cut federal relief for…
Among the items being discussed in the congressional health care debate, NCSL health policy director Joy Wilson told Idaho lawmakers, is extending the boost to the federal match for Medicaid funding that came with the economic stimulus legislation for an additional six months. That would…
The Idaho Legislature's health care task force has interrupted its panel discussion on whether Idaho should opt out of federal health care reform for a conference call with the National Conference of State Legislatures on the status of federal reform legislation. "There is still a…
Susie Pouliot, CEO of the Idaho Medical Association, told lawmakers just now that "with all due respect, it is very difficult to pin down the pros and cons" to Idaho of possibly opting out of national health reform measures, when federal legislation hasn't been finalized.…
The Medicaid shortfall that Idaho could face next year could require cutting as much as $500 million out of the state's Medicaid program, Idaho Health & Welfare Director Dick Armstrong told the Legislature's health care task force today, including $130 million in state funds. There…
So far, Idaho has been allocated 165,200 doses of H1N1 swine flu, state epidemiologist Dr. Christine Hahn reported to lawmakers this morning. Normally, about a third of the state's 1.5 million residents are vaccinated for seasonal flu. Hahn said even if that were the goal…
After the Idaho Republican Party took the unusual step of passing a central committee resolution backing party involvement in non-partisan city races, one county's GOP central committee endorsed a challenger, Alex Creek, in a city council race in Idaho Falls; some party activists portrayed a…
Coeur d'Alene city attorney Mike Gridley says the campaign finance law that Sen. Mike Jorgenson may have violated when he ran a $1,090 ad for Coeur d'Alene city council challenger Jim Brannon is a state law, not a city ordinance. Idaho Code 67-6610A limits contributions…
Sen. Mike Jorgenson, R-Hayden Lake, says he didn't mean to violate campaign finance laws when he placed an ad for Coeur d'Alene City Council challenger Jim Brannon, and he's working with Coeur d'Alene City Clerk Susan Weathers to clear the matter up. "I was just…
It was a little surprising to get a media advisory today that Idaho GOP Chairman Norm Semanko will hold a press conference call tomorrow morning "to discuss the 2009 elections and what they mean for Idaho in 2010," because Idaho's 2009 elections - today is…
This past summer saw a big jump in participation in Idaho libraries' summer reading programs for kids, which registered 63,300 children, 38 percent more than 2008. "Every year we hope to see the numbers of children being reached by these valuable programs increase, but we…
Idaho's wolf hunting season has closed in the Upper Snake zone in eastern Idaho, where hunters have now taken the limit of five wolves. It remains open in the remaining 11 zones, but two others are nearing their limits: In the McCall-Weiser Zone, with a…
The J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation announced today that it's giving $7.5 million to the College of Western Idaho, fulfilling an earlier pledge to give a total of $10 million to Idaho's newest community college. In December of 2008, the foundation awarded the college $2.5…
The Idaho League of Women Voters has endorsed an initiative petition to let Idahoans request permanent absentee ballot status, rather than have to request an absentee ballot every time there's an election, a change that's been supported in the past by the state's county clerks…
Dozens of Idaho state employees lost their jobs in the past month as a result of midyear state budget holdbacks imposed in late September, and more cuts are coming. Gov. Butch Otter’s decision to impose varying budget cuts at different agencies meant some were hit…
Yesterday was a day of sharp contrasts for me, when I went from photographing Idaho's maximum security prison - likely the least accessible of all our public buildings in the state - to the state Capitol, which traditionally has been the most accessible, but has…
Gov. Butch Otter celebrated today at a ceremony marking the completion of a project to widen the most-traveled section of I-84 in Idaho, between Meridian and Garrity Road. "Finally we’re turning this twice-a-day, six-and-a-half-mile-long parking lot into a real highway again,” Otter said. “Now it’s…
Idaho Secretary of State Ben Ysursa notes that the law that permits candidates for federal office to run as long as they're a resident of the state they'll represent on the day of the general election is the U.S. Constitution - and the rule applies…
Idaho Lt. Gov. Brad Little launched his re-election campaign today under a fine drizzle in Capitol Park in Boise; now, he's off to Idaho Falls and Coeur d'Alene for additional announcements. "Government should only be there to protect and create opportunity for individuals and businesses,…
Idaho’s maximum security prison marked its 20th anniversary on Thursday, with two of its units sitting vacant. It’s not that Idaho doesn’t have enough prisoners — it’s short on money. Inmates have been shifted to the cheapest beds available, like those down the road at…
The Idaho AARP says the combination of state budget cuts with cutbacks in health coverage for part-time state workers and shifting state retirees off the state health plan onto Medicare is "a combination that spells health care disaster for many Idaho residents," and the organization…
When Idaho's senior senator, Mike Crapo, last sought re-election, he made history by drawing no challenger on the ballot, just a write-in. This time, Crapo has drawn a Democratic challenger well in advance of Idaho's May 2010 primary election - but it's a lawyer from…
The Idaho Department of Water Resources is asking for the public's help to identify improperly abandoned wells, after a hunting dog fell 270 feet into one near Twin Falls, an accident the dog barely survived. "Wells that have not been properly abandoned can be deadly…
Cameron Burke, who has served as court executive for the U.S. District and Bankruptcy Courts in Idaho for the past 18 years, has accepted a new position working with federal courts across the country. Burke will become a federal court financial management liaison, working for…
Idaho's Anne Frank Human Rights Memorial in Boise has been selected as one of 11 locations to receive a sapling grafted from the chestnut tree that grew outside the secret annex in Amsterdam where Anne Frank hid from the Nazis, which Anne frequently wrote about…
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