After Idaho lawmakers this year rejected five proposed school science standards regarding climate change, saying they weren’t sufficiently balanced, the state Department of Education is gathering public input on how to rewrite the standards. So far, meetings in Twin Falls, Idaho Falls and Fort Hall have drawn comments overwhelmingly in favor...
The Coeur d’Alene Tribe has made national news, as NPR reports that the tribe’s developed an innovative “Powwow Sweat” program that promotes fitness through traditional dance. The program features a series of workout videos that break down six traditional tribal dances, including the “Jingle Dress”…
The Idaho Department of Finance has filed a civil complaint against Richard F. “Rick” Guyon, and is warning of investment schemes run by the “man of many names” in Idaho. Guyon, of Nampa, was released on probation from federal prison in May of 2015 after…
Now that the critical first 100 days of the new Trump administration are nearly at an end, Congressman Raul Labrador says he’ll be turning his thoughts to Idaho’s 2018 gubernatorial race, reports Lewiston Tribune reporter Bill Spence. There’s long been speculation that Labrador would make a bid to succeed three-term Gov. Butch Otter...
Bar owners in southwest Idaho say they are moving forward with their lawsuit against the state despite Idaho lawmakers tweaking the same liquor laws that prompted the legal action. Idaho law currently bans serving alcohol during nude or sexually explicit live performances. However, the Legislature amended that statute this year...
Two eastern Idaho state representatives and a former GOP congressional candidate are threatening to sue to overturn Gov. Butch Otter’s veto of the grocery tax repeal bill, contending it occurred after the deadline and the bill actually became law without Otter’s signature, reports Melissa Davlin of Idaho Public Television. You can read Davlin’s...
Idaho Lt. Gov. Brad Little issued this statement on Gov. Butch Otter’s veto of HB 67a, the grocery tax repeal bill: “While I am disappointed by the governor’s veto, I remain committed to tax reform, including a more sustainable solution for all Idahoans on the…
The governor of Idaho has vetoed a legislative measure that would have repealed the state's 6 percent sales tax on groceries, the AP reports. Gov. Butch Otter rejected the tax repeal Tuesday evening. Otter wrote in his veto message that the costs of the proposal are too high and the potential for imminent financial need too great...
A frustrated Idaho Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter allowed a $320 million transportation funding plan to become law on Tuesday, despite lodging multiple criticisms against key aspects of the measure, the AP reports. "Transportation has been one of the central focuses and primary frustrations of my three terms as governor," Otter wrote in his transmittal...
I’m off for the next week, and will be back and blogging on Monday, April 17th. There will be news between now and then – the final shoes dropping from the legislative session, for example, with the fate of the grocery tax repeal and the…
Two major construction projects on U.S. Highway 95 in North Idaho are at the top of the list for funding if Gov. Butch Otter signs a major transportation bill that lawmakers passed in the closing days of this year’s legislative session.
It’s Gov. Butch Otter’s turn, as the Legislature left town with hundreds of bills awaiting his signature or veto. Last week, the governor signed more than 100 bills into law, including...
The Coeur d’Alene metro area ranked 11th highest in the nation for population growth from July 1, 2015 to July 1, 2016, according to a new analysis of U.S. Census data from the Idaho Department of Labor; there was a 2.6 percent increase in its…
Idaho’s state tax revenues in March came in 3.2 percent below projections, though they were 2.1 percent higher than the same month last year. It’s just the second month in the fiscal year in which collections fell short of forecasts. For the fiscal year to…
On tonight’s “Idaho Reports” on Idaho Public Television, there’s a rundown of the week’s events, and a report on Idaho’s welfare program, Temporary Assistance to Needy Families, or TANF. On the pundits panel, I join BSU Professor Stephanie Witt, Idaho Statesman Managing Editor Bill Manny,...
Federal officials are considering approving a plan to truck 200,000 gallons of low-level radioactive waste water from a closed eastern U.S. nuclear power plant to Idaho. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission earlier this week said an environmental assessment found no significant impact to the environment...
Idaho Sen. Mike Crapo and 1st District Congressman Raul Labrador both issued responses this morning to the U.S. strike against Syria last night. Here are their full statements: CRAPO: “The brutality of the Syrian regime seems to know no bounds. I support the president’s decisive…
Idaho Gov. Butch Otter broke out his big, red “VETO” stamp yesterday, vetoing four bills: Two regarding funding a new policy adviser in the governor’s office for invasive species, to the tune of $142,700; one that was a hard-fought compromise in the Legislature on changes…
Idaho Sen. Jim Risch, a member of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, had high praise for the U.S. missile strike against Syria on Thursday night. “I support it,” Risch told Eye on Boise. “This is a pivotal point, really, in our standing in the world.”…
Gov. Butch Otter today signed SB 1141 into law, providing $52 million from the state’s current-year budget for emergency road repairs around the state. The bill includes an emergency clause making it effective as soon as it’s signed into law, so today’s signing means the...
Federal officials say the Boise River that's already past flood stage will be raised again, as flood insurance sales spike in the region. The U.S. Bureau of Reclamation and U.S. Army Corps of Engineers on Thursday announced that the river will go up to 8,500 cubic feet per second...
Backers of a sweeping constitutional amendment on victims rights say they’ll be back next year, after an Idaho House committee rejected the amendment this year following days of emotional hearings. “The impact is so deep on a victim,” Sen. Todd Lakey...
Two more candidates have announced their intent to run for Idaho lieutenant governor in 2018. Republicans Kelley Packer of McCammon and Janice McGeachin of Idaho Falls have filed to run for the position. Packer is currently serving her third term in the Idaho House. Meanwhile, McGeachin is a businesswoman who also...
Boise’s downtown convention center, the Boise Centre, has landed its biggest convention ever, reports Don Day on his BoiseDev blog, which covers development in Boise. The Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists will hold a 1,400-person confab in Boise in June, Day reports, after the...
State Sen. Grant Burgoyne, D-Boise, is one of 12 attorneys who have applied for an upcoming vacancy on the Idaho Court of Appeals, the Idaho Statesman reports. The vacancy will come when current Appeals Court Judge John Melanson retires June 30. Statesman reporter Bill Dentzer…
News, happenings and more from the Idaho Legislature and the state capital.
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