Ways & Means meets, passes one corrected bill

The House Ways & Means Committee just met, down on the second floor of the annex in room 240 to avoid conflicting with a scheduled JFAC meeting that actually isn’t happening yet. All that Ways & Means was ready to pass out at this point was one corrected bill: The new version of the measure to shift funding for ISP and the state parks department off the highway distribution fund in a year. The main correction to the bill was changing a date; the original accidentally said the change would occur on July 1, 2011, but the correct date is July 1, 2010. “We’re doing it in the 2011 budget, but July 1 of 2010” is the first day of that budget year, noted Chairman Rich Wills, R-Mountain Home. One other change in the bill adds a new paragraph stressing the intent to find new dedicated funds for ISP:

“The Idaho State Police provide a critical service to the citizens and motorists of the state of Idaho by providing for the public’s health, welfare and safety. In light of the vital service the agency provides, the legislature acknowledges that providing an ongoing and dedicated source of funds for the agency is necessary to safeguard the Idaho state police from the impacts of future economic downturns.” The other bill that had been sent back to Ways & Means, on a task force, still remains to be re-introduced; for now, the committee has recessed.