Idaho inmates being held in a Texas prison because of overcrowding are being forced to sleep in temporary diggs that are… well, overcrowded. The Legislature is gearing up to address the prison overcrowding problem, but it’s not yet clear how. Also, a review of Bill Sali’s first year in office and a Boise man from Pakistan reports on the scene outside his family home in Lahore.
REP. BILL SALI ON WHY HE VOTES AGAINST BIG PORK BILLS: “The problem is when you have to swallow too much gobbledygook to get the good things you’re after, at some point you decide it’s just not worth it.” A review of his first year in Congress and a hint from the Club for Growth that as an incumbent, he may be on his own in the next election. Bolstad. Statesman.
IDAHO INMATES IN TEXAS HELD AT CROWDED TEMPORARY PRISON. IDOC Director Brendt Reinke: “It’s not a lot different than triple bunking.” John Miller. AP in Houston Chronicle.
TRANSPORTATION TOPS LEGISLATIVE WISH LISTS. Followed by teacher pay, election reform and prison crowding. BW.
14 PERCENT OF IDAHO FIRE FATALITIES FROM CIGS SINCE ’82. Fire chiefs want Legislature to require self-extinguishing cigarettes in the state. Forester. Statesman.
THREE COMMUNITY COLLEGES WANT TO JACK UP THE TUITION CAP. CSI, NIC and CWI will ask law makers to double the community college tuition cap to $2,500. They also want to double the appropriation from the state liquor fund. Gates. Times-News.
URBAN RENEWAL BILLS INTENDED TO REIGN IN DISTRICTS. At least four bills will address urban renewal, including one from Rep. Jim Clark to limit changes to urban renewal district boundaries. Palmer. Times-News.
SEN. SCHROEDER TO PROPOSE LOCAL CONTROL OVER PRE-K. Schroeder: “The thinking was, ‘some districts want pre-K and some don’t,'” said Schroeder, who sits on the Senate Education Committee. “Let the people decide.” Thayn calls pre-K a “band-aid.’ Gates. Times-News.
REVIEW OF OTTER’S FIRST YEAR. More on his surprise announcements and secret meetings. Marc Johnson, former Andrus Chief of Staff: “That same criticism was leveled at my old boss: ‘He didn’t consult enough with the Legislature.’ The fact of the matter is that’s how our system works. We have a separation of branches, one that proposes and a Legislature that disposes, if you will.” Hopkins. Times-News.
INITIATIVE DRIVE TO PUT COAL-FIRED AND NUKE POWER TO A STATEWIDE VOTE. Groups have until April to collect 45,893 signatures. John Miller. AP in Spokesman.
SITING BILL FOR POWER PLANTS WILL RESURFACE. Roundup of potential energy proposals in ’08 Leg. Christensen. Times-News.
UI GRAD PROGRAMS ‘STUCK IN PAST’ according to a new report that provost says is a year behind the times. Faculty is criticized for resisting change and diversification, promoting from within and failure to thrive. Mills. LMT.
IDAHO DEMS ARE WEATHERING THE LAG BETWEEN GROWTH IN STATE POPULATION AND VOTING TRENDS. While there have been gains, Idaho remains solidly red. Perry Swisher on Dems: “They’re like sub-prime mortgages. Someone’s got to take them over. It can’t be done just memorializing Andrus and the late Sen. Church.” Hopkins. Times-News.
BOISE’S FURQAN MEHMOOD CHECKS IN WITH HIS FAMILY IN PAKISTAN FOLLOWING THE BHUTTO ASSASSINATION: “She was also a symbol of progression in a society that has been closed for a long time she was also the first woman prime minister in the Islamic world. She represented the main stream Pakistan as far as I’m concerned in her thought.” Cotterell. Boise State Radio. AUDIO.
