By Ruth Brown, Idaho Reports
The Idaho House of Representatives in a 57-13 vote Thursday passed a bill that would change the legislative oversight of the Office of Performance Evaluations.
The only Republicans to side with Democrats in the vote against HB 68 were Rep. Clay Handy, R-Burley, and Rep. Tony Wisniewski, R-Post Falls.
During debate over the bill, sponsor Rep. Megan Blanksma, R-Hammett, said the bill was a “very simple structural change” by shifting the oversight of OPE to the Legislative Council.
The Office of Performance Evaluations, known as OPE, is currently overseen by the Joint Legislative Oversight Committee. The bill would change that oversight to the Legislative Council.
JLOC is a bipartisan committee with an equal number of members from the two chambers and parties, including one chairman that is Republican and one who is a Democrat. The Legislative Council is made up of legislative leadership and is chaired by Republican leadership. The Legislative Council is responsible for administrative or management duties within the Legislature, while JLOC is responsible for overseeing and authorizing OPE to conduct independent performance evaluations of state agencies and programs.
Members of the Legislative Council are elected by their respective party caucuses.
Minority Leader Ilana Rubel, D-Boise, adamantly opposed the bill on the House floor, saying the change would remove any independence OPE had.
“These are very, very different committees, folks,” Rubel said. “I serve on both of them. They are in no way interchangeable. I don’t think it besmirches or impugns the honor of my wonderful friends across the aisle to say there is a big difference between a neutral, nonpartisan committee versus a majority party dominated committee. It’s just different in terms of how it plays out, and it’s different in terms of public perception.”
Rubel said she felt the shift of oversight would result in a loss of credibility. She also had concerns that it would change OPE’s mission and the type of evaluations it issues. She cited some recent reports, including Emergency Medical Services in Idaho and care at the Southwest Idaho Treatment Center that led to major investments or changes in Idaho.
“This is not a leftist plot at all,” Rubel said. “It’s been operating very effectively.”
Blanksma repeatedly said the bill was not about OPE, it was about JLOC, and that Legislative Council was more representative of the body.
“Leg Council, who you all elect members of, would be in charge of directing the studies,” Blanksma said.
The bill now heads to the Senate.
Speaker Mike Moyle still has not appointed the House members to JLOC this session and previously told Idaho Reports he wanted to wait and see what happened with the bill in the Senate.
Ruth Brown | Producer
Ruth Brown grew up in South Dakota and her first job out of college was covering the South Dakota Legislature. She’s since moved on to Idaho lawmakers. Brown spent 10 years working in print journalism, including newspapers such as the Idaho Statesman and Idaho Press, where she’s covered everything from the correctional system to health care issues. She joined Idaho Reports in 2021 and looks forward to telling stories about how state policy can impact the lives of regular Idahoans.
