On The Record

Highlights from the past week in the Idaho Legislature

They said it

“One chunk at a time they are taking away our communities. They are taking away our ability to live there,” Sen. Shawn Keough, R-Sandpoint, on the federal deci sion to place a moratorium on road building in roadless federal forests.

Votes

Here are some of the votes cast by North Idaho lawmakers in the past week:

Prisons: A move to cut $1.5 million from the amount the governor recommended in emergency spending to house prisoners this year and to cut funds to start a contract for new private community work-center beds in June passed a joint budget committee. Voting no was Rep. Don Pischner, R-Coeur d’Alene.

Pay hike: A measure that would allow supervisors to give state employees pay raises based on their performance instead of ensuring salary increases for all employees passed the Committee on Employee Compensation 8-1 on a party-line vote. Voting no was Sen. Marguerite McLaughlin, D-Orofino. Voting yes were Republican Sens. Gordon Crow, Hayden; Keough; and Jack Riggs, Coeur d’ Alene.

More time: A bill to give county commissioners more time to enter liens on real property for unpaid personal property taxes unanimously passed the House. Voting yes were Reps. Jeff Alltus, R-Hayden; John Campbell, R-Sandpoint; Jim Clark, R-Hayden; Charles Cuddy, D-Orofino; June Judd, D-St. Maries; Hilde Kellogg, R-Post Falls; Wayne Meyer, R-Rathdrum; Pischner; Jim Stoicheff, D-Sandpoint; Larry Watson, D-Wallace.