Idaho House State Affairs committee introduces a package of election, flag, evacuation and education measures

The Idaho House State Affairs committee on Jan. 27 introduced a group of draft measures ranging from election-administration changes to a constitutional amendment on parental rights.

Committee members voted, largely by voice, to introduce eight requested statutes (RS) and set them for further work and public hearings. Sponsors described each measure briefly to the committee and answered questions from colleagues. All motions to introduce carried on voice votes; a handful of members asked to be recorded as voting no on two items.

Representative Jaren Crane (R., Dist. 12, Nampa) presented RS 32,073, a bill he said would require the secretary of state to verify voter citizenship status by comparing the statewide voter registration list with data from the Idaho Transportation Department and federal systems. Crane said the bill “parallels what we did” in last year’s constitutional amendment HDR 5 and that the secretary of state’s office supported using ITD data and the Help America Vote verification system maintained by the Social Security Administration; he added the committee would later consider use of the federal SAVE database. Crane said individuals “will be notified in writing of the inability of the secretary of state to confirm the individual citizenship status.” The committee approved introduction of RS 32,073 by motion; the mover was identified in committee as Representative Palmer and the motion carried by voice vote.

Representative Alfieri brought RS 32,083 to address what he described as the lack of a unique ballot identifier on some county ballots. Alfieri said the change would replace the generic word “marking” with an “alphanumeric identifier printed on each ballot to prevent the duplication of ballots,” noting that county logos or stamps are unique to a county but not to each ballot. The committee introduced the RS by voice vote.

Representative Mickelson presented RS 32,118, a technical change to House floor rules to clarify that credentialed news media may be on the floor during official business, subject to the Speaker’s authorization. “The Speaker of the House … would have to have specific authorization,” Mickelson said, and the RS preserves that authority. The motion to introduce RS 32,118 passed by voice vote.

Representative Heather Scott introduced RS 32,065 to limit which flags government entities may display on state, county or municipal property, saying the bill would allow only the U.S. flag, official flags of Indian tribes, POW/MIA flags and flags of military branches on government property and would exclude schools, colleges and universities from the restriction. Committee members asked several clarifying questions about the term “property” (building, flagpoles, utility poles, bridges) and whether unit flags or foreign visitor flags would be allowed; Scott said the sponsor would refine definitions for the hearing. The RS was introduced by voice vote.

Representative Heather Scott then presented RS 32,093, a short measure on evacuation orders that would allow a person to decline to evacuate when ordered and make that person responsible for the risks and liabilities of that choice; subsection language would also require reimbursement to a government entity or nonprofit that performs a rescue for someone who previously chose not to evacuate. Scott said the measure is intended to address forced evacuations and liability for rescues; colleagues pushed the sponsor to confer with law enforcement about edge-case scenarios such as hostage or standoff incidents. The committee approved introduction by voice vote; Representative Achilles and Representative Kasner asked to be recorded as voting no.

Representative Judy Boyle presented RS 32,070, a multi-page draft she described as intended to ensure taxpayer dollars are not used to support teachers unions. Boyle walked the committee through exceptions, definitions in ethics and education code sections, and a penalty schedule that starts at $250 and can increase to $2,500 for repeat violations; she said the bill would bar districts from contracting with parties that violate the prohibition. Members asked whether teachers or school boards had participated in drafting; Boyle said the measure was a cleaned-up version of last year’s bill. The measure was introduced by voice vote.

Representative Hawkins introduced RS 31,933, a proposed constitutional amendment to change language in Article IX, Section 9 to emphasize parental control over children’s education outside public schools. Hawkins described it as “bringing this back into completely into the control of parents.” Representative Barbieri moved introduction and the motion carried by voice vote; Representatives Achilles and Kasner were recorded as voting no.

Representative Bruce presented RS 32,026 to allow Idaho citizens involved in federal litigation over grazing or water rights to request state assistance from the Constitutional Defense Fund. Bruce said the RS sets criteria and procedures the Constitutional Defense Council would use to decide whether to provide assistance, and that assistance could include use of private counsel or the attorney general. The committee approved introduction after a brief amendment to…