Much-amended urban renewal bill heads to Senate’s 14th Order for more amendments

The much-amended urban renewal bill, HB 606a, is headed to the Senate’s 14 ^th Order for more amendments, after a motion to pass it as-is failed, following testimony from an array of local officials and others who said the complicated bill needs various changes. “Make no mistake – HB 606, even as amended, is not the interim committee bill,” local government attorney Ryan  Armbruster told the Senate Local Government &  Taxation Committee. “It is significantly different from the interim committee bill.”

Sen. Jim Guthrie, R-McCammon, said, “To me, this has went from kumbaya to confusion, heavy on the confusion.”

Sen. Michelle Stennett, D-Ketchum, asked why the measure before the panel isn’t the original bill proposed by the interim committee, which the panel, which conducted months of research and study, agreed on unanimously. Rep. Rick Youngblood, R-Nampa, co-chair of the interim committee, said, “My leadership was not in favor of that RS, so there were changes that were made.”