House approves bill letting Office of Administrative Hearings bill state agencies for appeals work

BOISE, Idaho — The Idaho House on March 20 approved Senate Bill 11-16, a fiscal policy change allowing the Office of Administrative Hearings to bill other state agencies for appeals and adjudicative services.

Sponsor remarks described the change as an accounting update tied to the statewide indirect cost allocation plan. Representative, District 19 said the Office of Administrative Hearings will bill agencies for appeals work handled on their behalf so the office can operate as an independent third party rather than have agencies adjudicate their own appeals.

Representative, District 19 told members the mechanism mirrors existing interagency billing practices in which the attorney general’s office, state controller and state treasurer bill other agencies for services provided. “What we're adding to that is the Office of Administrative Hearings,” the representative said, adding the office has handled appeals for a number of agencies for several years and should be able to bill for that work.

The House closed debate without recorded floor amendments and took a roll call vote. The clerk reported 69 ayes and one absent (roll reported as majority in favor). Senate Bill 11-16 was declared passed by the House and will move forward in the enrollment process before transmittal to the Senate President for signature as appropriate.

Why it matters Supporters said the bill formalizes existing administrative practice and ensures the Office of Administrative Hearings can be compensated for workload generated by other agencies’ appeals. The change affects internal agency budgets and cost‑allocation accounting rather than creating a new regulatory regime.

Votes The House approved Senate Bill 11-16 by recorded vote (69 ayes, 0 nays reported on the floor, 1 member absent as reported by the clerk). The bill was then enrolled for final processing and will be transmitted according to legislative procedures.