Lawmakers still racing toward finish

BOISE — Continuing their drive toward adjournment this week, Idaho lawmakers ran through dozens of bills during a full day of floor debates Tuesday.

Some of the measures addressed include:

Teacher certification

The House approved legislation prohibiting individuals convicted of violent felonies from being certified as teachers in Idaho’s public school system.

Sponsored by Sen. Carl Crabtree, R-Grangeville, the bill directs the Department of Education’s professional standards commission to revoke or deny certification for any teacher who pled guilty or was found guilty of aggravated assault, aggravated battery, murder, kidnapping, rape or interstate trafficking in prostitution.

Individuals guilty of such crimes are already prohibited from teaching if the victim was a child. Crabtree’s bill extends the prohibition to those who victimized adults.

Rep. Judy Boyle, R-Midvale, said 30 certified teachers in Idaho would be affected by this legislation. Their certification would be revoked when they come up for recertification; however, teachers hired prior to July 1, 2020, could appeal the decision to the professional standards commission.

The bill passed the House on a 58-10 vote. Rep. Priscilla Giddings, R-White Bird, opposed the measure; Rep. Paul Shepherd, R-Riggins, was absent. All other north central Idaho representatives supported the measure.

The legislation previously passed the Senate on a 24-10 vote and now goes to the governor for his signature.

Public record exemption

The House approved legislation sponsored by Sen. Dan Johnson, R-Lewiston, that exempts a variety of personal information from public disclosure.

Currently, Idaho’s public records laws don’t specifically exclude from disclosure information that private individuals provide on certain government forms or applications.

Johnson’s bill would plug that loophole. It exempts Social Security numbers from disclosure, while other “personal data identifiers” would have to be partially redacted or obscured.

Information that could still be released includes the initials of any minor child, someone’s birth year and the last four digits of a driver’s license, employer identification number, financial account or business taxpayer identification number.

“This isn’t the blanket exemption most of us hoped for, but it’s the best we could negotiate,” said Rep. Julianne Young, R-Blackfoot, who carried the legislation on the House floor. “We shouldn’t have to give up our privacy just because we interface with government.”

Demonstrating a level of unity that was rare on the House floor Tuesday, the bill passed 67-0. It previously passed the Senate and now goes to the governor for his signature.

Lewiston boy does good

The House approved a resolution honoring Lewiston native John Rosholt, who passed away last year at the age of 81.

Rosholt graduated from Lewiston High School in 1955 and subsequently earned a law degree from the University of Idaho. He spent his career in Twin Falls, working as a water law attorney.

“He left behind a legacy that will benefit Idahoans for years to come,” said Rep. Laurie Lickley, R-Jerome, who carried the resolution on the House floor.

The measure noted that Rosholt “was instrumental in the rebuilding of American Falls, Jackson Lake and Milner dams, and played a key role in the Snake River Basin Adjudication.”

In his honor, the water law collection at the Idaho State Law Library in Boise will henceforth be known as the John Rosholt Memorial Water Law Collection.

“And in John’s memory, Go Vandals!” Lickley said.

The resolution passed on a unanimous voice vote. It previously passed the Senate.

Criminal justice data integration

A plan to improve data analysis and policy decisions in the criminal justice field passed the Senate on a 26-2 vote.

“This bill comes after more than four years of work by the Idaho Criminal Justice Commission,” said Sen. Kelly Anthon, R-Burley. “It creates the legal framework that allows data — the stuff from which good policy decisions are made — to be shared, so we can learn what best practices are.”

The legislation is sponsored by Rep. Caroline Troy, R-Genesee. The intent is to better track people as they move through the criminal justice system over time, to analyze what intervention measures are most effective in helping them move onto a better path.

Much of the information needed to make better decisions is already being collected, Anthon said, but it’s currently “siloed” in different agencies.

Because it isn’t shared, “we can’t implement best practices across the board,” Anthon said. “As a state, we’ve been making criminal justice decisions with blinders on, because the data we need is siloed all over the state. ... As we collect this data and use it to analyze our policy-making, I think we’ll save money for the state. More importantly, I think we’ll improve Idaho lives.”

The system has an estimated fiscal impact of $298,800.

“If this helps us keep 13 people out of prison, it pays for the system,” Anthon said.

The bill passed 26-2, with Sens. Carl Crabtree, R-Grangeville, and Steve Bair, R-Blackfoot, voting in opposition. It previously passed the House on a 35-23 vote and now goes to the governor for his signature.

Prescription monitoring

Legislation expanding use of the state’s prescription drug monitoring program passed the House on a 50-16 vote, with no debate.

The measure reflects a recommendation from the governor’s Opioid and Substance Use Disorder Advisory Group. The intent is to address the opioid epidemic by curbing a patient’s ability to “doctor shop” and have multiple prescriptions filled by multiple providers.

The bill requires medical providers to check the monitoring program prior to issuing a prescription.

“The monitoring program works, but not everyone uses it,” noted Rep. Mike Kingsley, R-Lewiston, who co-sponsored the measure with Sen. Abby Lee, R-Fruitland. “This (bill) is really important for Idaho’s fight against opioid abuse.”

Reps. Thyra Stevenson, R-Nezperce, and Giddings, R-White Bird, opposed the measure. It previously passed the Senate 34-1 and now goes to the governor.

Sine die

When the House adjourned for the evening, House Majority Leader Mike Moyle, R-Star, said the goal is to finish voting on legislation today.

Given the number of bills approved the last few days, it will likely take until Friday for all the paperwork to reach the governor’s desk.

The Legislature can’t adjourn for the year until that happens. If they think the governor will veto any bills, they could also choose to remain in session so they can attempt a veto override vote.

Spence may be contacted at bspence@lmtribune.com or (208) 791-9168.