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Committee weighs House Bill 85 to add governor veto and supermajority steps to initiative process; motion to advance fails on 7-7 tie
Summary
House Bill 85, authored by Representative Bruce Skogg, would change Idaho's initiative process to add governor presentment and a higher threshold in some cases; public witnesses and multiple representatives testified for and against the measure; a motion to send the bill to the floor with a 'do pass' recommendation failed on a 7-7 tie.
Representative Bruce Skogg presented House Bill 85 to the House State Affairs Committee, proposing changes to Idaho's initiative and referendum process that would, among other things, insert the governor into the presentment process and create a mechanism tied to a two-thirds threshold for certain initiative outcomes.
Skogg told the committee the bill would make the initiative process more consistent with the legislative process by giving the governor an opportunity to veto initiatives that pass by a simple majority, arguing the governor should have the same presentment role the Legislature has when it enacts laws. "The initiative process is essentially coextensive with the legislature's power to enact legislation," Skogg said, citing Article 3, Section 1 of the state constitution.
Committee members and staff reviewed a flowchart prepared by Representative Achilles…
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