The Idaho Association of Counties (IAC) applauds Legislative Leaders and Governor Little for taking bold action on public defense reform by passing House Bill 735.

“House Bill 735 provides historic reform regarding how public defense is funded,” says Seth Grigg, IAC Executive Director. “Instead of counties footing the bill using property tax dollars, state sales tax will be utilized to pay for public defense. This not only ensures consistent public defense funding across the state, it also provides around $33 million in ongoing property tax relief.”

“We are grateful to Governor Little for signing House Bill 735 into law. We also appreciate House Majority Leader Mike Moyle and Representative Jon Weber for shepherding this historic legislation through the House,” says Grigg. “We express gratitude to Senator Todd Lakey for carrying this bill in the Senate as well as Senate Majority Leader Kelly Anthon and Senator Jeff Agenbroad for helping steer needed amendments that lead to the passage of H735. Property tax relief and properly funded public defense were clearly priorities to Governor Little and these legislators.”

Education remains a top priority for legislators and this week’s committee meetings
reflect that commitment to providing a good education for Idaho students.

On Monday, the Senate Education Committee sent Senate Bill 1280 to the full Senate
with a do-pass recommendation. The bill, co-sponsored by Senators Blair (R-Lewiston)
and Crabtree (R-Grangeville), would define dyslexia in Idaho code, and recognize the
unique influence and challenges students with characteristics of dyslexia face in
developing their reading and literacy skills. The bill would require that school districts
and charter schools assess students in kindergarten through fifth grade for
characteristics of dyslexia so plans for specific interventions can be identified and
offered. On Wednesday, the Senate passed the bill unanimously and sent it to the House for its consideration.

In that same committee hearing, Senator Carl Crabtree (R-Grangeville) introduced several bills designed to facilitate all-day kindergarten programs in Idaho schools. Senate Bill 1315 would provide funding for full-day kindergarten and revise provisions regarding certain support units and funding distributions. Currently, Idaho

Senate Advances Bill To Ensure Election Integrity

On Wednesday, Senate Bill 1274 was introduced in the Senate State Affairs
Committee. This legislation would require post-election audits of a random selection of
counties after a general or primary election. Deputy Secretary of State Jason Hancock,
who introduced the bill, stated, “we take election integrity very seriously at the
Secretary of State’s office." This new legislation works to increase public confidence in
election results by randomly selecting counties to be audited according to population.
The bill was reported out of committee unanimously with a do pass recommendation.

Senate Passes Bill Protecting Idahoans’ Second Amendment
Rights
On Thursday, Senate Bill 1262 passed the Senate on a 30-5 vote. This legislation
protects Idahoans’ gun rights in the case of a declared emergency. It ensures that
firearms be exempt from the section of Idaho code that allows the government ….

Education Remains a Top Priority for Idaho Senate

Education remains a top priority for legislators and this week’s committee meetings reflect that commitment to providing a good education for Idaho students.
On Monday, the Senate Education Committee sent Senate Bill 1280 to the full Senate with a do-pass recommendation. The bill, co-sponsored by Senators Blair (R-Lewiston) and Crabtree (R-Grangeville), would define dyslexia in Idaho code, and recognize the
unique influence and challenges students with characteristics of dyslexia face in developing their reading and literacy skills. The bill would require that school districts and charter schools assess students in kindergarten through fifth grade for characteristics of dyslexia so plans for specific interventions can be identified and offered. On Wednesday, the Senate passed the bill unanimously and sent it to the House for its consideration.
In that same committee hearing, Senator Carl Crabtree (R-Grangeville) introduced several bills designed to facilitate all-day kindergarten programs in Idaho….

Senators Crapo and Risch Address the Idaho Legislature
On Wednesday, Idaho’s Republican Senators Mike Crapo and Jim Risch addressed each chamber of the Idaho legislature. Their message to all of Idaho's 105 legislators was clear: Congress could learn something about good governance from the Idaho Legislature. Senator Crapo was highly complimentary of Idaho’s low unemployment and status as the least regulated state in the country but painted a dismal portrait of the American economy, pointing to rising inflation and Democratic party priorities related to increasing both taxes and spending. Senator Risch noted that he and Senator Crapo work closely together on critical votes to ensure that Idaho’s voice and interests are well-represented in Washington D.C. Both Senators thanked legislators for their hard work to ensure prosperity for Idaho families and to uphold Idaho values.

Current and Former Senators Pay Tribute to Colleagues at the Annual Senate Memorial Service
On Monday, the Idaho Senate paid tribute to former colleagues. A long-standing tradition, Senators memorialize past members who died in the past two years. This

House Passes Bipartisan Memorial Condemning Russian Aggression in Ukraine

On Wednesday, in response to the ongoing crisis in Ukraine and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s unchecked aggression, Representative Matthew Bundy (R-Mountain Home) introduced House Joint Memorial 006, a bipartisan memorial condemning Russia. The memorial, co-sponsored by Representative Colin Nash (D-Boise), “commends the courage and resolve shown by the Ukrainian people in defending their country against Russian aggressors.” Bundy, who represents Mountain Home, said “It was an honor for me to stand in front of the Idaho State House of Representatives to declare our support for Ukraine and her citizens as stated in House Joint Memorial 006. We support Ukraine’s desire to determine their own future and for their desire to seek freedom from oppression. As a State, we admire the courage of the Ukrainian people, and we will support them in any way we can in the defense of their freedoms, homes and nation.” The bill heads to the Senate where it is expected to be approved on a bipartisan basis. Senator Mark Harris voiced support for the measure, “Idaho’s Senate Republican Caucus condemns Russian aggression and stands with the Ukrainian ….

Legislature Working on Property Tax Relief Bill
On Monday, the House voted 48-13 to send House Bill 690 to the Senate for its consideration. The bill, sponsored by Representative Jason Monks (R-Meridian), would establish the County and City Property Tax Relief Fund and provide property tax relief to property owners in Idaho through a surplus eliminator. When Idaho has a surplus and more tax revenue collected than is allocated to state budgets, up to $80M can be transferred into the County and City Property Tax Relief fund. The money would be distributed with 50% going to each of Idaho’s 44 counties and 50% to each of Idaho’s cities, using the Idaho State Tax Commission's allocation proportions. The bill has been transmitted to the Senate to be heard in the Local Government and Taxation Committee.

Last week, another bill to provide property tax relief, House Bill 709, was printed and referred to the House Revenue and Taxation Committee. The bill amends an existing bill and changes the revenue-sharing arrangement of sales tax collections between Cities, Counties, and local taxing districts to include online sales tax collections. The legislation would distribute 12% of online sales tax collections equally between Idaho cities and counties and require that no less than half of the money is used to provide property tax relief.