"Rank does not confer privilege or give power. It imposes responsibility." --Peter Drucker
Initiatives
Idaho’s Initiative/Referendum process is being restricted again in SB1110 requiring 6% of registered voter signatures from all 35 legislative districts in order to go to the ballot. Idaho already has the most restrictive initiative process in the nation for participating states and this doubles the number of counties which doubles the signature gathering. If 34 districts gather enough signatures, but one doesn’t, this bill gives veto power to the one district and no voice to the rest. Medicaid Expansion gathered only qualified 21 districts, not 35, yet notably, 8 of the districts that did not qualify the petition voted in favor of it in the election for a total of 61%.
The argument that rural districts are under-represented is simply false. The Governor is from Emmett, the Secretary of State is from Midvale, the Superintendent of Public Instruction is from Mountain Home. Most of the leadership in the House and Senate, committee Chairs, and legislative bodies are all rural. Remember, roughly 65% of the state is public lands. Land mass does not equal number of registered voters. Our Constitution says that all political power is inherent in the people and they have the power to initiate laws. SB 1110 would restrict that right significantly. If the Legislature wants to change our Constitution, they should be willing to propose a constitutional amendment and submit it to the voters. The bill will be debated on the Senate floor next week.
Session Bills
Much of the focus of this legislative session has been on who holds power. The legislature is currently considering three bills related to expanding and limiting the legislature's power over its own sessions.
S1068, which passed the Senate, provides an end date for the regular legislative session with some exceptions. This bill would provide some constraint on the legislature's ability to stay in session indefinitely and is intended to prevent us from becoming a full-time legislature.
HJR1 passed the House. It is a proposed Amendment to the Constitution that would allow the Legislature to call itself back into session. Currently, in Idaho, only the Governor can call the Legislature into a special session. Because it is an Amendment to the Constitution, HJR1 must pass both houses of the legislature by a 2/3 vote and then would be put to the citizens of Idaho for their vote on the next general election ballot.
S1112 will come to the Senate floor for consideration soon. It sets out a process for the legislature to call itself into session, which would be necessary if HJR1 becomes part of Idaho's Constitution. The process outlined in this bill would involve a petition to the Speaker of the House and the Pro Tem of the Senate with a specific subject and 60 percent of the members of both the House and the Senate signing before the legislature would call itself into a special session.
Public Health Districts
Public Health District Boards are composed of County Commissioners and Commissioner appointees who are healthcare providers, other elected officials, and those who have no medical expertise and who are not elected. To follow up on SB 1060, which requires county wide or district wide orders of a Public Health District to be approved or denied by the County Commissioners, some caution that Commissioners could be in charge of important medical decisions that impact large populations, like a pandemic, making it more politics than healthcare. It passed the Senate and is in the House.
