Senate Health and Welfare Committee advances two reappointments, moves two draft statutes to print

The Idaho Senate Health and Welfare Committee on an unspecified January day advanced two gubernatorial reappointments to the Senate floor with recommendations for confirmation, approved two legislative services requests for print, and heard testimony from a reappointment candidate for the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired.

The committee voted to send the reappointment of Alan Schneider to the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired to the full Senate with a recommendation that he be confirmed. It also ultimately sent the reappointment of Dr. Timothy Rerick to the State Board of Health and Welfare to the floor with a recommendation that the Senate confirm him; the initial motion to send Dr. Rerick lacked a second and was later seconded and carried. The committee heard but did not vote on the reappointment of Mark Watkins to the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired; Watkins gave remarks and answered questions and the committee said it will vote on that nomination at its next meeting.

The panel voted to print RS 32-137, a legislative services request from Sen. Brandon Shippy that would move a long-standing provision of IDAPA 16.03.03 (child support services), specifically section 302, from administrative rule into statute. Sen. Shippy told the committee the proposal “moves section 302 from IDAPA 16-03-03, child support services, from administrative rule into statute.” He said the draft is meant to “return law making to the lawmakers” and told the committee there is one substantive change from the current administrative rule: the draft removes Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) as an allowed good-cause exemption for avoiding a driver’s or occupational license suspension for people not paying child support. Sen. Shippy said he would reserve a fuller explanation for the bill hearing.

The committee also voted to print RS 32-014, presented by Sen. Brian Lenny, which would change how bureau chiefs at the Department of Health and Welfare are aligned with division standards. Lenny said the Department of Health and Welfare is the state’s largest agency with “somewhere hovering around 3,000 employees and a $6,000,000,000 budget,” and said many bureau chiefs oversee hundreds of employees and millions of dollars in budget authority. He said the draft seeks “to ensure accountability in the Department of Health and Welfare for Idaho taxpayers” by aligning bureau staffing with division standards. As examples he cited that the department’s Benefit Field Operations has about 418 FTEs while the Department of Agriculture has 249 FTEs.

During the meeting the committee also reviewed two sets of minutes (Jan. 22 and Jan. 23, 2025) and approved both.

Testimony: Mark Watkins

The committee heard from Mark Watkins, a reappointment candidate for the Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired, who joined the hearing remotely and identified himself as a professor at Brigham Young University–Idaho and as someone who has been legally blind for most of his life. Watkins described receiving services from Idaho’s vocational rehabilitation and the state assessment and training center in Boise and said the experience led to his initial board service. "I've been legally blind my whole life, and went completely blind some 7 years ago or so," Watkins told the committee, describing how rehabilitation services helped him retain full-time work as a university professor. He said his personal experience with low-vision aids, orientation and mobility, and vocational services shaped why he wanted to continue on the commission. Committee members asked questions about the programs he praised; the committee did not vote on Watkins’ reappointment during this meeting and said it will take up the vote at its next meeting.

Votes at a glance

- Minutes (01/22/2025): Motion to approve moved by Sen. Brandon Shippy; seconded; carried by voice vote. - Minutes (01/23/2025): Motion to approve moved by Sen. Keiser; seconded by Sen. Blaylock; carried by voice vote. - Gubernatorial reappointment — Alan Schneider, Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired: Motion to send to the Senate floor with recommendation for confirmation moved by Sen. Wintrow, seconded by Sen. Blaylock; carried by voice vote. - Gubernatorial reappointment — Dr. Timothy Rerick, State Board of Health and Welfare: Motion to send to the Senate floor with recommendation for confirmation moved by Sen. Blaylock; the initial motion lacked a second and briefly died, was later seconded and the committee carried the motion by voice vote. (Recorded as "sent to floor with recommendation"; no roll-call tally recorded.) - Gubernatorial reappointment — Mark Watkins, Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired: Heard; no vote. Committee to vote at next meeting. - RS 32-137 (Sen. Brandon Shippy) — move IDAPA 16.03.03, section 302, into statute (removes TANF as a good-cause exemption for avoiding license suspension related to child support): Motion to send to print moved and seconded; carried by voice vote. - RS 32-014 (Sen. Brian Lenny) — align bureau chiefs with division standards at the Department of Health and Welfare to increase accountability: Motion to send to print moved by Sen. Keiser and seconded; carried by voice vote.

What’s next

The committee scheduled votes on the reappointment of Mark Watkins for its next meeting. RS 32-137 and RS 32-014 were approved for print and will proceed through the regular bill-drafting and committee hearing process before the Legislature. No formal roll-call tallies were recorded in the committee’s public audio transcript; approvals were taken by voice vote.

(Reporting based on Idaho Senate Health and Welfare Committee hearing transcript.)