Idaho Reports

GOP candidates for Superintendent of Public Instruction debate ahead of the May 17th primary election. Incumbent Superintendent Shrerri Ybarra, former state senator Branden Durst, and former Board of Education president Debbie Critchfield respond to questions from Betsy Russell of the Idaho Press, Jakob Thorington of the Post Register, and Kevin Richert of Idaho Ed News, moderated by Aaron Kunz of...

Ruth Brown speaks with Twin Falls Housing Authority executive director Sunny Shaw about the growing issue of Idaho’s affordable housing shortage and what role the state could take in addressing it. Madelyn Beck of Boise State Public Radio details some of her recent reporting about people living on public lands. Then, Logan Finney is joined by Stephanie Witt and Jaclyn Kettler of Boise State Univer...

Republican candidates for Idaho Attorney General debate ahead of the May 17th primary election. Incumbent Attorney General Lawrence Wasden, former Congressman Raul Labrador, and attorney Arthur “Art” Macomber respond to questions from James Dawson of Boise State Public Radio, Morgan Romero of KTVB, and Keith Ridler of the Associated Press, moderated by Melissa Davlin of Idaho Reports.

Months after news broke of foster children needing to stay in hotels because of a lack of foster families, lawmakers made new investments in the system for recruitment and retention. But is it enough to fix the problems? This week, Betsy Russell of the Idaho Press discusses election debates and the latest in the lawsuit over Idaho’s new abortion law. Then, Family and Community Services Administrat...

North Idaho College in Coeur d'Alene faced a regional accreditation review this past year after complaints about conduct by its board of trustees. The school held on to its accreditation, but not without a warning to get its governance in order. Now, enough trustees have resigned that NIC is left without a functional board. Kevin Richert of Idaho Education News joins Logan Finney to break down the...

Public defense has long been a fraught issue in Idaho. How far have we come, and how much more work is left? This week, Idaho State Appellate Public Defender Eric Fredericksen and Idaho Association of Counties executive director Seth Grigg discuss recent changes to public defense funding. Then, Boise State University hydrologist Alejandro Flores discusses this year's drought and what it means for...

New funding for Idaho schools to move their employees on to the state health insurance plan was touted as a "game changer" for education this legislative session. Blake Jones from Idaho Education News joins Logan Finney to discuss why some districts are hesitant to switch over for fear that the funding won’t cover the full costs. Read the Idaho Ed News article: https://www.idahoednews.org/news/sch...

The 2022 legislative session is officially finished. We bring you the latest on criminal justice and what the legislature managed to accomplish on property taxes. Ruth Brown discusses criminal justice issues with Reps. Greg Chaney and Colin Nash, then Logan Finney reviews legislation to revamp the public defense system with executive director Kelley Packer from the Association of Idaho Cities.

This week, Logan Finney is joined by Rep. Dustin Manwaring, R-Pocatello, to discuss House Bill 583 or the Digital Assets Act. The new law — which Manwaring sponsored and Gov. Brad Little signed into law this week — provides definitions for digital assets, lays the framework for their use in the financial sector, and outlines how these assets fit into existing Idaho property law.

The statewide test positivity rate dropped to an all-time low of 1.5%. The longtime goal of the Department of Health and Welfare is to keep the rate below 5%. Only one county, Benewah, currently has a moderate transmission risk, while the other forty three counties are currently at low risk. More than half of Idaho’s counties have seven day moving average case rates of 3 or less per 100,000 people...

Lawmakers saw more starts and stops this week as they tried to wrap up the session by Friday. But a resurrected library debate stalled adjournment plans, at least temporarily. We’ll have the latest with Kevin Richert of Idaho Education News and Betsy Russell of the Idaho Press. Plus, Senate Minority Leader Michelle Stennett gives us her take on the session.

This week, Kelsey Mosley-Morris from the Idaho Capital Sun talks to Ruth Brown about a controversial bill speeding through the capitol that could change the way judges are appointed.

The state saw more good news this week, as the statewide test positivity rate dropped to 2.5%. That’s the lowest the positivity rate has been since the pandemic began in 2020. The longtime goal of the Department of Health and Welfare was to keep the rate below 5%. The state’s all-time high test positivity rate was nearly 38% back in January. With the decrease in positive cases, the state is also r...

The clock is ticking on this year’s legislative session, and lawmakers are rapidly passing a number of bills. What’s left for them to address? Major property tax relief and full day kindergarten – some of the biggest talkers of the last few months. Betsy Russell of the Idaho Press helps break down the week, and Rep. Fred Wood gives his take on the state of rural health care.

Friday evening was the candidate filing deadline for statewide and legislative offices. Melissa Davlin and Ruth Brown break down the early results, from familiar names on the ballot to future impacts at the statehouse.

A number of controversial legislative proposals are dying quiet deaths without hearings in the Idaho Senate. Plus, Garth Taylor of the University of Idaho explains how the war in Ukraine is affecting Idaho agriculture, and Sen. Peter Riggs discusses his proposed changes to civil commitment.

The state saw encouraging news this week as the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported Thursday that the statewide test positivity rate had dropped to 3.7%, down from last week’s 6.2%. That meets the state’s longtime goal of keeping the rate below 5% and is the lowest the rate has been at since June of 2021. The state’s all-time high test positivity rate was nearly 38% back in January. Go...

Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder, Senate Minority Leader Michelle Stennett, and House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel answered questions from reporters about sales and property taxes, higher education funding They also covered controversial bills regarding libraries and gender-affirming healthcare for minors.

In a sign of good news, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported Thursday that the statewide test positivity rate had dropped to 6.2%, down from last week’s 10%, nearly meeting the goal of keeping the rate below 5%. The state’s all-time high was nearly 38% in January. The number of available ICU beds statewide has also increased. On Thursday, there were 48 available ICU beds in Idaho. B...

It’s been a big legislative session for education issues, but some major proposals, like full-day kindergarten, still don’t have consensus. Rep. Judy Boyle, Rep. John McCrostie, and Sen. Jim Woodward join us to give us their take.

On Wednesday morning, Gov. Brad Little met virtually with members of the Idaho Press Club. He answered questions from the press ranging from coronavirus issues to election laws and pending legislation.

The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported Thursday that the statewide test positivity rate had dropped to 10%, down from last week’s updated 16.4%. This is progress, despite still being above the state’s goal of keeping the rate at 5% or less. While the state is not operating under crisis standards of care, the number of open ICU beds at Idaho hospitals remains low. On Thursday, the stat...

“I can’t believe we’re here,” more than one legislator noted this week while discussing COVID vaccines and business interests. Idaho reporters will fill you in on what we might expect out of this legislative session: Betsy Russell of the Idaho Press, James Dawson of Boise State Public Radio, and Bill Spence of the Lewiston Tribune join Logan Finney to discuss wide ranging legislative proposals.

Last week, Facebook’s parent company Meta announced it has plans to build a new data center in the Treasure Valley. BoiseDev senior reporter Margaret Carmel joins Logan Finney to answer questions about the project, covering everything from Idaho's urban renewal and tax incentives to the possible economic and environmental impacts.

On Tuesday, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare deactivated crisis standards of care for hospitals in three of Idaho’s seven public health districts. The department had activated crisis standards of care on Jan. 15 due to a shortage of healthcare workers and blood supply. The department did warn that the test positivity rate is still much higher than what is safe and hospitals are still str...