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House widely passes child care facility de-regulation bill
by Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun The Idaho House of Representatives widely passed a bill to let child care centers set their own child-to-staff ratios. Aimed at addressing Idaho’s child care crisis by easing the process to operate child care centers, House Bill 243, is co-sponsored by Idaho Republican House lawmakers Reps. Barbara Ehardt, from Idaho Falls,…
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Gov. Little signs private school tax credit into law
by Ryan Suppe, Idaho Education News Gov. Brad Little signed House Bill 93 Thursday, codifying Idaho’s first private school choice program that directs state funds to private school tuition. The new $50 million program offers private schoolers and home-schoolers up to $5,000 — or $7,500 for special needs students — for tuition and other education…
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Coroner death investigation reform bill passes Senate
by Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun A bill to clarify Idaho coroners’ roles in death investigations is headed to the Idaho House of Representatives. Senate Bill 1101 — developed with Idaho county coroners — is in response to a critical state government watchdog report that found inconsistencies in death investigations across Idaho, driven by sparse guidance in state law. The…
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With budget shortfall, Idaho disability job aid agency faces scrutiny from federal, state government
by Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun An Idaho government agency that helps people with disabilities with employment is continuing to face scrutiny — from auditors and state lawmakers — over its budget shortfall. At the end of the 2024 Idaho legislative session, state lawmakers didn’t give the Idaho Division of Vocational Rehabilitation extra funds it…
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New excise tax bill goes ‘gangster’ on wind farm projects
by Clark Corbin, Idaho Capital Sun The Idaho Legislature’s House Revenue and Taxation Committee introduced a new bill Monday that goes “gangster” on wind energy projects in Idaho. The House Revenue and Taxation Committee on Monday voted unanimously to introduce House Bill 317, which lays out a path to create and collect a new excise tax…
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Private education tax credit heads to governor
by Ryan Suppe, Idaho Education News The Senate Wednesday narrowly approved a plan to spend $50 million on refundable tax credits for private education expenses, sending House Bill 93 to the governor. Senators debated the divisive proposal for more than two hours before approving it by a 20-15 vote. Twenty Republicans supported it while nine…
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Idaho bill that could repeal Medicaid expansion advances to House, despite negative public testimony
by Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun By one vote, the Idaho House Health and Welfare Committee on Wednesday advanced a bill critics said would repeal Medicaid expansion. House Bill 138, by Rep. Jordan Redman, R-Coeur d’Alene, requires Idaho to enact 11 Medicaid policy changes or repeal Medicaid expansion — a policy that lets more low-income…
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Senate’s private school choice bill narrowly clears committee
by Ryan Suppe, Idaho Education News A Democrat cast a surprising swing vote Monday to advance a bill to unlock state funds for private schooling and home schooling. The Senate Education Committee sent Senate Bill 1025 to the floor on a 5-4 vote. Sponsored by Sen. Dave Lent, R-Idaho Falls, the bill would expand Idaho’s Empowering Parents…
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Bill to make firing squad main death penalty method heads to full House
by Kyle Pfannenstiel, Idaho Capital Sun Bill sponsor calls firing squad ‘more humane’ and likely to avoid legal appeal issues Idaho House Republicans on Monday advanced a bill that would make death by firing squad the main death penalty method in Idaho. Presenting House Bill 37 to the Idaho House Judiciary, Rules and Administration Committee on Monday,…
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Group organizing Idaho abortion-rights initiative files lawsuit over ballot language
by Kelcie Moseley-Morris, Idaho Capital Sun The group organizing a 2026 ballot initiative to restore abortion rights in Idaho is asking the state Supreme Court to order the attorney general and other state agencies to fix language it says is biased and misleading about what the initiative will do and how much it will cost…
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Public Funds for Private Education
The big education news from this year’s State of the State address was Gov. Brad Little setting aside $50 million of public money for private education. On Wednesday, Rep. Wendy Horman and Sen. Lori Den Hartog introduced a bill that would provide tax refunds for qualifying private education expenses. Not everyone is a fan of…
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2025 BSU Public Policy Survey Findings
Dr. Matthew May and Dr. Lantz McGinnis-Brown discuss this year’s Idaho Public Policy Survey. The Tenth Annual Idaho Public Policy Survey was conducted November 9-14, 2024, and surveyed 1,000 adults who currently live in Idaho. The sample is representative of the state’s population, both geographically and demographically, with a margin of error of +/- 3.1%.…
