Committee advances Alan Schneider reappointment; hears Mark Watkins for Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired

The Idaho Senate Health and Welfare Committee voted to send the gubernatorial reappointment of Alan Schneider to the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired to the full Senate with a recommendation that he be confirmed.

Senator Wintrow moved to send the reappointment to the floor, and Senator Blaylock seconded the motion; the committee carried it by voice vote. The committee did not record roll-call tallies during the voice vote.

The committee also met with Mark Watkins, who identified himself as a professor at Brigham Young University–Idaho and said he has served on the commission for three years. Watkins described his experience with low vision and blindness and the state programs that assisted him, saying, “I was able to work it out with the university to get the time off, and I went there for 12 weeks. And those people are amazing. They what they taught me was invaluable.” He told the committee the training and services the state provides were the “first year of COVID” experience that helped him continue working as a university professor after losing his sight.

Committee members asked Watkins about the roles of the commission and what he would bring to the board; Watkins said his lived experience with low vision and blindness, plus prior committee work at universities, give him perspective he can contribute. The committee told Watkins it will vote on his reappointment at its next meeting.

No statutes or administrative-code citations were discussed in depth during the reappointment vote. The committee adjourned after completing the business on these appointments.