Idaho has received its formal, 60-day notice from the federal government that it will lose $16 million in child-support enforcement funds if Idaho doesn’t bring its system into compliance with federal rules within 60 days. Idaho Public TV reporter Melissa Davlin reported on her blog...
Shahram Hadian, a Christian pastor from Chattaroy, Wash., who was invited to address Idaho lawmakers by Rep. Vito Barbieri, R-Dalton Gardens, at a Statehouse luncheon on “The True Face of Islam” on March 26, at which he warned of what he sees as evils in…
Idaho’s state Board of Education has approved the lowest tuition increases for the state’s four-year colleges and universities in the last 15 years, ranging from 1.7 percent to 3.5 percent for undergraduate resident tuition and fees next year. Boise State University, the University of Idaho...
Idaho is marking the 150th anniversary of the assassination of President Lincoln with ceremonies today at the Lincoln statue just south of the state Capitol, and at the Idaho State Historical Archives, where a special two-hour open house is planned from 3-5 p.m. at the…
Idaho Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch both joined the majority in a 92-8 vote in the Senate last night to pass H.R. 2, legislation to permanently take care of the “doc fix” Congress has annually been passing on Medicare reimbursement rates, and also provide…
Asked why Gov. Butch Otter signed SB 1066, the bill to create a new $2 million presidential primary the second Tuesday of March, Otter’s spokesman, Jon Hanian, said today, “There were some concerns previously about absentee and military folks not being able to be...
Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Two-time Olympic gold medalist Kristin Armstrong is returning to professional cycling. USA Cycling announced Tuesday that the 41-year-old Boise, Idaho, resident has been named to the 2015 Pan American Continental Road Championships roster....
Sholeh Patrick, a columnist for the Coeur d’Alene Press whose childhood was split between Iran and the U.S., responds today to state lawmakers’ concerns about Sharia law, or Islamic religious law, which played into the rejection of critical child support enforcement legislation on the final…
Here’s a news item from the Associated Press: NAMPA, Idaho (AP) — A former Idaho inmate and his girlfriend have filed a federal lawsuit against the Idaho Department of Corrections, seeking $50 million in damages because they claim correction staffers retaliated against them. According to…
According to a new study, 15.6 percent of Idahoans didn’t know where they’d get their next meal on a given day in 2013, and 21.1 percent of children. That “food insecurity” rating was down 0.2 percent from the previous year’s figures for the state, and...
On April 1, two state representatives and two state senators met with Health & Welfare officials and the Attorney General’s office to air their concerns that a child support enforcement law, SB 1067, would potentially lead to Idaho having to enforce child support decisions rendered…
Keith Reynolds, chief financial officer at the state Department of Administration since 2012, has been named acting director, reports Melissa Davlin of Idaho Public TV’s “Idaho Reports.” Reynolds temporarily replaces Teresa Luna, who resigned, effective at the end of this year’s legislative session. Davlin reports…
Idaho Gov. Butch Otter has issued this statement about the Legislature’s killing of SB 1067, the child support enforcement bill, on the final day of this year’s legislative session: “I am concerned that some members of the House Judiciary and Rules Committee put Idaho’s child...
Gov. Butch Otter signed 41 bills into law on Thursday and Friday. Among them: SB 1066, the bill creating a new presidential primary election on the second Tuesday in March; it carries a $2 million price tag. I’m awaiting comment from Otter’s office on why…
Idaho Health & Welfare officials had a conference call this morning Commissioner Vicki Turetsky of the U.S. Office of Child Support and Enforcement, to find out how things will play out now that the Idaho Legislature has killed SB 1067, the child support enforcement bill....
So, now that the Legislature has adjourned and has approved a $95 million transportation funding package – assuming the governor signs it into law – when would Idaho’s gas tax and vehicle registration fees go up? The answer: July 1. There’s been some confusion about…
Idaho Gov. Butch Otter says he’s reached an agreement with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Bonneville Power Administration to keep North Idaho’s scenic Lake Pend Oreille full through the late summer and longer into September. “Working with our state, federal and tribal partners,...
A brouhaha over the child support enforcement bill killed on the final day of the legislative session is dividing the House GOP. First, former Rep. Cindy Agidius sent out an article by Rep. Lynn Luker, R-Boise, with the message: “Explanation of SB 1067 by Rep…
House and Senate Democrats, in a news conference on Saturday, said they made big strides in this year’s legislative session, from pushing for investments in education to stopping moves to raises taxes for the middle-income, from passing an anti-bullying law to stopping an interstate compact…
Both houses of the Legislature have now adjourned sine die, after 1:30 a.m. - the latest in my experience. "We were optimistic about 7 that we would be up and done by 8 o'clock," said House Speaker Scott Bedke. But there were three major errors…
Rep. John Rusche, D-Lewiston, moved to call the child support enforcement bill, SB 1067, from the House Judiciary & Rules Committee, where it was tabled earlier today on a 9-8 vote. Committee Chairman Rich Wills opposed the motion. “We had two days of testimony …...
The House has voted 51-19 in favor of HB 312aa, the transportation funding bill.
“I’ve been here seven years, and this is the first time I’ve carried a piece of legislation that I am not that comfortable with,” House Transportation Chairman Joe Palmer, R-Meridian, told the House. However, he said he feels HB 312aa is needed and he’ll support…
The House has now convened; it’s just after 1 a.m. in Boise.
The Senate has voted 26-9 in favor of HB 312aa, the revised transportation bill. The nine “no” votes came from Sens. Bayer, Burgoyne, Hagedorn, Martin, Nonini, Nuxoll, Souza, Thayn and Vick. “I reject the notion that we’ve failed,” said Sen. Bert Brackett, R-Rogerson. “We have...
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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