Lt. Gov. Risch and Idaho conservationists were in DC yesterday to testify on a proposed roadless plan. A series of meetings will be held around the state for those who couldn’t make it. Wolf kill and grizzly legislation is introduced along with bills making embezzlement and shooting your neighbor’s dog a felony. And Ed Board chairman meets the budgeters.
Bill would hit embezzlers with a felony. Attorney General, Sen. Kelley pushing measure to punish state officials, employees caught with hand in the till. Davidson in the Post-Register. It’s just good government. Hopkins in the Times-News.
Arts Commission golf trip payola. Audit finds golf trip for commissioner paid for with state funds. Harry Lawless played the CDA Resort course. Not Scotland. Miller, AP in the Press Tribune.
IDFG wolf rules anticipate litigation. Ranchers decry 48 hour wolf kill reporting requirement, but Fish and Game official says it increases chance of success in coming law suits. Ferguson in the LMT.
Ed Board back in black. The State Board of Education “opened its books” to auditors and the governor’s finance people. Roberts in the Statesman. Passed on tests, four top staff jobs to save money. Russell in the Spokesman Review.
Naturopaths on the chopping block. Bill could limit number of certified naturopathic practitioners in state. Twin Falls Rep. Sharon Block: “It’s complex. It’s controversial. Both.” Allen in the Statesman.
Hollywood wants in. Second try for film incentives bill to woo movie makers to Idaho. Peg Owens, marketing specialist with the Idaho Film Bureau: “It used to be we would get calls for locations. Now they want to know what incentives we have.” Dey in the Statesman.
Risch mostly backs FS roadless rule. Back in DC, former gov testifies along with dozes of Idaho residents. Risch: “I think that the language that we come up should be language that makes it very clear that temporary roads can be built only for stewardship purposes and not commercial harvesting purposes. I was very clear that commercial harvesting was not an objective for the backcountry restoration. I want to be sure that the final language that we come up with says exactly that.” Bolstad in the Statesman. Wilderness Society’s Brad Brooks: The proposal “does not necessarily cut any trees or build any roads, but it opens up the possibility of logging in Idaho’s backcountry… We are not asking for more protection (than under the 2001 rule). We just want to keep things the way they are.” Matthew Daly, AP in the Press Tribune.
Former Caldwell councilman joins Senate race. Kent Marmon, former Democrat, will take on Risch, others in GOP primary for Larry Craig’s Senate seat. Marmon: “I was incensed that the Republican Party leadership and several of the state elected officials believed they could dictate to the people of Idaho who they should be supporting.” Druzin in the Statesman.
Open primaries look dead. Keith Allred, a Harvard professor and head of The Common Interest: “I think this is fairly iron-clad that (if) nothing passes, we have a lawsuit. The open primary is not going to survive – I think that much we can say with confidence.” Russell in Eye on Boise.
Bipartisan animal cruelty bill introduced. Jorgensen, Kelley want to close dog shooting loophole. Russell in the Spokesman Review.
Moscow’s Grand Ronde aquifer part of proposed study. Governor wants $20 million to study ground water around the state. Ferguson in the LMT.
Boundary Co. School Board should speak up at meetings. Says prosecutor. Ruralnorthwest.com.
Canyon Democrats expect to double caucus attendence from ’04. Butts in the Press Tribune.
Canyon County appointee stirs the pot. New Rep. Curtis Bowers column about attending a commie meeting draws protest, guffaws. Butts in the Press-Tribune.
State requests more time for REAL ID. Costly federal mandate on state IDs will take more time to implement. Goins in the CDA Press.
Jerome county commissioner joins anti-nuke effort. Obenauer is joining ballot initiative to put siting to a statewide vote: “More people besides commissioners need to be involved in the siting process. I wouldn’t want a nuclear facility built in Wendell in Gooding County without a say, because I’m downwind.” Christensen in the Times-News.
Ali Mazrui, one of my old professors, talks about the situation in Kenya and attempts to explain the terribly misconstrued role of “tribes” in Africa. Talk of the Nation on NPR.
