Otter to discuss possible special session with top lawmakers

BOISE – Gov. Butch Otter says he plans on meeting with top legislative leaders to discuss calling a special legislative session.

Otter said in a statement on Thursday that he will meet with House Speaker Scott Bedke, a Republican from Oakley, and Senate President Pro Tem Brent Hill, a Republican from Rexburg, in the next few days.

Special sessions are rare in Idaho, with only 28 being held since the state’s inception.

However, members of the Natural Resources Interim Committee unanimously agreed earlier this week that the ongoing legal challenges surrounding a Treasure Valley water dispute are serious enough to call lawmakers back to Boise to help settle the tensions in the Boise River system reservoirs – which spans from Boise to Parma.

Otter did not say which way he was leaning on whether he supported calling a special session.