EOBoise: HJR 5 concerns Otter

Idaho Gov. Butch Otter is urging a “no” vote on HJR 5, the constitutional amendment on the November ballot. And he’s added a new twist to the debate: Otter says a clause in the amendment that says “in whole or in part” actually would vastly expand the Legislature’s current power to review administrative rules, rather than simply writing that current power into the state constitution. “I’d call it unnecessary, but its potential consequences are more serious than that implies,” Otter wrote last week in a guest opinion distributed to Idaho newspapers. Under current law, lawmakers review administrative rules at the start of their legislative session each year, and either approve or reject them/ Betsy Russell , Eye on Boise. More here.