Rep. Jason Monks, R-Meridian, persuaded the House State Affairs Committee this morning to introduce his bill for strict new limits on government entities or officials running ads or sending out other communications in the weeks or months prior to an election. But Monks said this…
After an emotional hearing that stretched for close to two hours on Tuesday, the House Judiciary Committee this afternoon voted to kill legislation proposed by the state Department of Juvenile Corrections and the Association of Idaho Counties to grant law enforcement officer status for retirement...
At 4 this afternoon in the Lincoln Auditorium, New Mexico Supreme Court Chief Justice Charles Daniels will deliver this year’s Denton Darrington Annual Lecture on Law and Government. The topic is, “Pretrial Justice Reform: Promoting public safety and constitutional rights through evidence-based release and detention.”…
The Idaho House has backed legislation requiring sign language interpreters to get a professional license from a state board. Gov. Butch Otter vetoed a similar proposal in 2015, arguing that the plan would have created a strain on already limited resources...
Freshman Rep. Scott Syme, R-Caldwell, led a move in the House Education Committee this morning to delete references to climate change and human impact on the environment from a new set of science standards for the state’s schools, Idaho EdNews reports. Syme said he thought...
Ada and Boundary Counties have been added to a state disaster declaration signed by Gov. Butch Otter in response to winter storm and snowmelt damages, bringing the total number to six. Already included were Canyon, Custer, Payette and Washington counties, according to the Idaho Office…
The House has rejected legislation from Rep. Ron Nate, R-Rexburg, to remove the requirement for a front license plate on cars that aren’t manufactured with a spot or bracket for them. The vote was 28 in favor, 42 against. The bill was opposed by major…
A proposed amendment to the Idaho Constitution to lower the supermajority required for bond issues from 66-2/3 to 60 percent was introduced yesterday in the House Local Government Committee, and read across the desk in the House this morning. HJR 3, sponsored by House Minority…
An Idaho House panel has approved new K-12 science standards, but only after striking key references to climate change caused by human behavior. This is the third year the Idaho Legislature has struggled to agree on science standards for public schools. Previous efforts that included references to global warming...
Idaho’s prison system, which currently has about 8,000 inmates behind bars and 16,000 people under supervision statewide, is up for just a very small budget increase next year, with Gov. Butch Otter recommending a 1.4 percent increase in state general funds, and a decrease of…
Idaho Fish and Game commissioners will consider doubling the amount of money available to compensate landowners for crop damage caused by deer, elk and other wildlife, the Lewiston Tribune reports. Commissioner Dan Blanco of Moscow said the commission directed the Idaho Department of Fish and…
Idaho’s state Department of Administration had its eye on three properties near the Capitol Mall that the state Land Board decided to auction off last year as part of a shift in its endowment investment strategy, as possible office space for state agencies, but despite...