Asked how their backgrounds - Luna's as a businessman, and Olson's as an educator - qualify them to serve as state superintendent, Olson, answering first, said he, too is a businessman, recounting the budget he oversaw at the Boise School District, the large number of…
Asked about teacher pay, Luna said, "We have to do something about low teacher pay not just in Idaho but across the country. ... We have to give teachers in Idaho more control over how much money they make." He said he's a proponent of…
Asked about the state's math initiative, Luna said it's had "tremendous impact." He noted that, among other changes, students are choosing to do additional math through the Apangea math program he's added in classrooms. "We have states from all over the country that are coming…
Reporter panelist Michelle Edmonds of KIVI-TV asked the two candidates if they'd take the ISAT test themselves and publicize their scores, a question that was submitted by a viewer online. Olson said, "I would not want to take especially the math portion of the ISAT.…
Challenger Stan Olson was describing a program in the Boise School District, which he headed as superintendent until his retirement this summer, and said, "It's kind of like defending a dissertation - I'll have to tell you about that some day." That was a crack…
Asked about testing and the Idaho Standards Achievement Test, Olson said of Idaho educators, "They know like I know that ISAT is a low-bar assessment." Among the standards Idaho's students should be tested for, he said, is "post-secondary readiness, and we're lying to our children…
There was a pretty heated back-and-forth between the two candidates when they were asked by reporter panelist Adam Cotterell of Boise State Public Radio what they would have done differently in this year's cuts in school funding. Luna said, "I would have preferred that the…
Incumbent state Supt. Tom Luna said he went to the state Land Board for more money for schools "when everybody else threw up their hands." He said, "I fought that battle and in many ways fought it alone, and we were successful in getting $22…
Reporter panelist Bill Roberts of the Idaho Statesman asked the two candidates if they'd support more revenue to spare schools from additional cuts next year. Olson said, "Before we spend the next dollar, we've got to ... define a thorough system of education. ... We…
The first question for the two candidates, from moderator Thanh Tan of Idaho Public Television, was why each candidate is running for the position of state superintendent of schools. Incumbent Republican Tom Luna, who was first to answer, said, in part, "When I ran for…
People are filtering in for tonight's debate, the first of the "Idaho Debates" this fall and the big face-off between the candidates for state Superintendent of Public Instruction. Here, reporter panelists and moderator Thanh Tan, left, of Idaho Public Television, get set up. Here's a…
Gov. Butch Otter says on Friday he'll sign a temporary rule proposed by the state Board of Pharmacy to add the chemicals used in "Spice," a form of synthetic marijuana, to the state's controlled substances list. The state Legislature then will consider making that move…
You can read my full story here about Congressman Walt Minnick's latest campaign commercial, which is out today and replaces both of his earlier ads; the new one, like one of the earlier ones, faults Minnick's GOP challenger, Raul Labrador, on immigration. Labrador decried the…
Tonight is the big debate in the race for state superintendent of schools - incumbent Supt. Tom Luna vs. challenger Stan Olson. You can watch the debate live on Idaho Public Television starting at 8 p.m. Mountain time, 7 p.m. Pacific time, and submit your…
Here's a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Republican Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter has refused to take a public stand on three proposed constitutional amendments on the Nov. 2 ballot, playing it safe on an issue he knows could alienate voters…
Here's a link to our full story in today's Spokesman-Review on Maricopa County, Ariz. Sheriff Joe Arpaio's appearance in Coeur d'Alene at a Republican fundraiser yesterday, where he endorsed Raul Labrador's run for Congress, saying Labrador will "help America solve the problem of illegal immigration."…
According to an article in today's Coeur d'Alene Press, the Republican Party in Kootenai County has fractured, in part over the tax woes of Rep. Phil Hart. "What you've got is a group of wackos that have taken over the party," Sen. Mike Jorgenson, R-Hayden…
The IRS has reversed itself and now says the new liens it filed last week against tax-protesting Idaho Rep. Phil Hart as a nominee of a trust could duplicate other liens it earlier filed against Hart personally; it's a nearly half-million-dollar difference when it comes…
It's debate season, with major debates set in the coming weeks in Idaho's top political races, giving voters who tune in a chance to see and compare the candidates. The Idaho Debates, which have been sponsored by the League of Women Voters and the Idaho…
The first shipments of oil field equipment for Imperial Oil/ExxonMobil's Kearl oil sands project in Canada will arrive at the Port of Vancouver from Korea on Monday, the Columbian newspaper in Vancouver, Wash. reports; those are the mega-loads that ExxonMobil hopes to truck through Idaho…
The news that Canyon County Prosecutor John Bujak was resigning on Friday was quickly followed by the revelation that Bujak owes the county hundreds of thousands of dollars, money he collected under a contract to have the county handle prosecutions for the city of Nampa,…
The Internal Revenue Service has filed another nearly $300,000 in tax liens against Idaho Rep. Phil Hart, R-Athol, bringing the total that public records show Hart owes in back taxes, interest and penalties to nearly a million dollars. The IRS filed two liens for $292,935…
Idaho filed an appeal to the 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals today, asking the appellate court to reverse U.S. District Judge Donald Molloy's decision to return wolves to the endangered species list. Gov. Butch Otter, in a news release, denounced the Montana judge, saying…
Here's a link to my full story at spokesman.com on this morning's arguments at the Idaho Supreme Court in the Highway 12 mega-loads case, in which the justices raised complex legal issues along with lots of questions; they then took the case under advisement and…
Here are the campaign promises offered by the five candidates for governor of Idaho this year:Butch Otter, Republican incumbent: “I am committed to keep working tirelessly to grow Idaho's economy and career opportunities for our citizens and our communities; I promise to keep protecting the…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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