Idaho Opinions

Bedke finds silver lining in repeal of 'Luna laws'
House Speaker Scott Bedke says he's determined not to "repeat any of the mistakes of the past" in dealing with public education stakeholders. Teachers would be wise to heed his promise of a consensus approach to reform.
Idaho Statesman 4/10/2013

Say hello to smoke-filled rooms, sans smoke
Idaho Republicans are cooking on a scheme to have a state convention of party activists, rather than voters in primary elections, choose their candidates for elected office.
Lewiston Tribune 4/10/2013

Otter's on the rebound
Governor Otter came away from the 2013 legislative session with a genuinely robust list of accomplishments, but he hasn't forgotten the sting of his embarrassing defeats in 2008 and 2009, when he failed to convince fellow Republicans to invest in roads and bridges.
Idaho Statesman 4/9/2013

Another verse, same as the first
Despite outward signs of change - an unusually large number of freshman and a new House speaker who took office after ousting an incumbent - this year's lawmakers were very much the same kind of legislators, with very much the same outlook on the world, as have been there for two decades.
Idaho Statesman 4/8/2013

Legislature labored at length, but not for you
Idaho's lawmakers concluded 88 days of labor and closed down for the year. Unfortunately, they didn't accomplish much for the majority of Idaho's ordinary citizens and taxpayers, e.g., those whose children attend public schools, those who own homes and pay property taxes, those who own small businesses and pay sales taxes.
Lewiston Tribune 4/8/2013

Annual Report Card for Idaho Legislature
Yes, there were some silly, headline-grabbing proposals put forth by Gem State lawmakers this year, but when it came to things that will actually matter in Idahoans' daily lives, the state's legislative body did a fairly commendable job this year.
Idaho Press-Tribune 4/7/2013

Divisiveness takes toll during legislative session
Ideological differences among GOP lawmakers made for one of the most divisive sessions in memory, and with primary elections on the horizon, the 2014 session may be worse.
Idaho Statesman 4/7/2013

Idaho Legislature's resolution on federal lands won’t have impact
The legislature has passed a resolution urging the federal government to cede title of federally controlled lands in Idaho to state control. While the state does have a legitimate beef, the more effective route to local control would be Congressional action.
Idaho Press-Tribune 4/5/2013

A mostly successful session
The 2013 legislative session came within one important action - failure to deal with Medicaid expansion - of being perhaps the most productive session of the past decade.
Idaho Statesman 4/5/2013

Idaho's federal delegation has some explaining to do
If Idaho U.S. Sens. Mike Crapo and Jim Risch and U.S. Rep. Mike Simpson are the business supporters they purport themselves to be, just how is it they voted in favor of the Budget Control Act of 2011, aka sequestration, and are now sitting on their hands as the airport control towers in Idaho Falls, Pocatello, Lewiston and Hailey are closed, dealing a blow to those Idaho communities and the businesses located there.
Idaho Mountain Express 4/3/2013

Goedde's extended Legislature
Bruised egos and a political arm-wrestling match between two powerful chairmen - Sen. Dean Cameron of Rupert, the budget committee's co-chair, and Sen. John Goedde, the education committee chairman - kept the Legislature in session for an extra week as they battled over the education budget.
Idaho Statesman 4/3/2013

To John Goedde, saying 'no' means 'not yet'
Since November's referendum campaign on Supt. Tom Luna's education reforms, Sen. John Goedde, R-Coeur d'Alene, chairman of the Senate Education Committee, has taken every opportunity to get even with the voters for repudiating his handiwork.
Lewiston Tribune 4/1/2013

What 'Radiator Capping' SB 1133 Really Did
A House maneuver that replaced the content of a Senate-passed school safety bill with the combined text of two gun rights laws is cynical, underhanded, possibly illegal and most certainly unethical.
Twin Falls Times-News 4/1/2013

Idaho schools budget delay was unnecessary
While Idaho lawmakers were able to work up the energy for knee-jerk legislation and many more things they weren't legally obligated to do, they somehow couldn't find the time to do the one thing they had to do — pass a budget, specifically the state's largest budget, for education.
Idaho Press-Tribune 3/31/2013

This idea Gov. Otter can like and still veto
There are too many unknowns in the bill that would open northern Idaho's highway and bridge network to 129,000-pound trucks. Lawmakers didn't ask enough questions. They didn't ask the right people. They focused on the wrong agenda. The governor should veto this bill and start the process anew.
Lewiston Tribune 3/31/2013

Cheers and Jeers: Making the toughest call of all
Cheers to a Jefferson County couple who turned their son into local police after discovering on his tablet a list of students and adults he had apparently planned to kill. Jeers to Gov. C.L. "Butch" Otter for dithering on Medicaid expansion.
Idaho Falls Post Register 3/29/2013

Idaho shows its two faces
As our legislators continue to deny basic legal protections to gays and lesbians, the rest of the country is watching, writes Andrus Center Director David Adler.
Idaho Falls Post Register 3/29/2013

Change comes from 16 directions
This year's crop of freshman House lawmakers have interesting, diverse backgrounds and many have local government leadership experience. Eventually dubbed by the media as the "Gang of 16," this group turned out to be crucial to the final passage of the health insurance exchange legislation.
Lewiston Tribune 3/29/2013

Earmuffs on
Jeers to the north Idaho lawmakers who voted for making it harder to qualify citizen initiatives for the ballot and for agreeing to let larger trucks drive the region's narrow roads. Cheers to Senate President Pro Tem Brent Hill for killing a bill that would surreptitiously route state dollars to private religious schools.
Lewiston Tribune 3/29/2013

School bullies aren't all juveniles
The Legislature will be in session for several more days at a cost to Idaho taxpayers of tens of thousands of dollars, because Senate Education Committee chair John Goedde felt disrespected by Sen. Dean Cameron, JFAC co-chair, and its proposed education budget.
Moscow-Pullman Daily News 3/29/2013

Education Budget Debacle Unveils Legislature Power Struggle
Sally Seventh-grader doesn't care whose making decisions. She just wants a good education. But lawmakers seem content to spend at least another week settling a feud between Senate Education Committee Chairman John Goedde and Dean Cameron, Senate co-chair of the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee.
Twin Falls Times-News 3/29/2013

Idaho legislators let power struggle take precedent over children's education
The fight between Senate Education Committee Chairman John Goedde and Sen. Dean Cameron, co-chair of the Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, over who should make policy decisions torpedoed the state's education budget, a decision that will cost the state $33,000 a day in legislative time and expense--about what a new teacher earns a year in Idaho.
Twin Falls Times-News 3/29/2013

Show us what reformed Medicaid looks like, governor
Gov. Otter is concerned that Medicaid expansion could create a larger dependency on a federal government beating a furious path to bankruptcy. So he raises a legitimate point in wanting to get more Idahoans to take more personal responsibility for their health.
Idaho Press-Tribune 3/28/2013

Delegation members feel rural Idaho's pain, but . . .
For nearly three months, challenging the federal government to relinquish its land holdings in Idaho has been among the Legislature's premier debates. But Idaho's congressional delegation, all Republicans, has not joined the quest.
Lewiston Tribune 3/28/2013

Idaho already has ample educational choice options
House Bill 286, which would have offered a tax credit for people who donated to private school scholarships, was both unnecessary and unconstitutional.
Idaho Press-Tribune 3/27/2013

A year later, GOP wounds still healing in Idaho
Sen. Bob Nonini's 'apology' to a colleague for spending thousands in last spring's primary to defeat a fellow Republican revives bad memories among his other targets.
Idaho Statesman 3/27/2013

Idaho's lawmakers are busy; take a number
Idaho's 105 lawmakers are so fixated on closing down their session they'll leave unfinished the most important piece of business on their plate. By refusing to consider extending Medicaid coverage to impoverished adults, millions of tax dollars will go wasted and hundreds of Idahoans could die in the process.
Lewiston Tribune 3/27/2013

If Legislature won't lead, others will
Even after holding an historic listening forum, Idaho's Republican leadership is standing by its refusal to even consider providing gays, lesbians and transgender people with the same human rights protections Idaho's anti-discrimination law already extends to others on the basis of age, disability, race, color, national origin, religion or sex.
Lewiston Tribune 3/25/2013

Taxation on the Honor System
If you're an Idaho taxpayer, you may be an Idaho tax scofflaw and not even know it. Probably few Idahoans know about the use tax, and probably fewer pay all of it that is owed.
Twin Falls Times-News 3/25/2013

Sen. Curt McKenzie wisely shoots down off-target bill
The Nampa Republican, who chairs the Senate State Affairs Committee, put a stop to House-passed legislation that called for a maximum fine of $1,000 and a year in prison if local law-enforcement officials enforced any new federal gun restrictions.
Idaho Statesman 3/24/2013

The editorials posted here are provided by permission of their original publishers and do not necessarily reflect the views of Idaho Public Television.

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