(AP) President Barack Obama won the support of 98 percent of participants at caucuses held by Idaho Democrats around the state on Saturday. Idaho Democrat Party Chairman Larry Grant in a statement says Idaho Democrats are enthusiastic about having a Democratic president who stands up for middle class families and working Americans.
(AP) - Idaho climate experts say some record-setting weather in March has put the state's rivers and aquifers in great shape heading into summer. National Weather Service meteorologist Jay Breidenbach said Thursday March storms saturated central and northern Idaho. But they largely avoided much of the state's southern half.
Taxes are due next Tuesday which means procrastinators still have some time left to figure out if they can get a bigger refund. Every year thousands of Idahoans rush to file their taxes to meet the deadline. This year it's on April 17. The Idaho State Tax Commission reports that nearly half of individual tax returns have yet to be filed. Tax preparer Tom Brown says you might want to watch out for a couple things that often get overlooked when doing your taxes.
The Idaho Legislature is moving closer to ending the session. However, there is one issue that lawmakers say will keep them there until Friday, and possibly into next week. It's a disagreement on how surplus money should be spent, and the main point of contention is whether to give taxpayers a break, or to save for a rainy day.
With "sine die," the end of the Idaho legislative session possibly coming as quickly as early next week, there is a flurry of activity at the Statehouse as numerous bills are making their way to the governor's desk or the dustbin. Boise Rep. Julie Ellsworth said she worked all session to convince enough of her colleagues to pass a texting while driving ban. After years of similar legislation failing, this year the ban is headed to the Senate for approval of amendments.
(AP) - A Republican-dominated Senate committee aims to forbid Idaho state and local government from requiring union labor on public works projects. Friday's party-line Senate State Affairs Committee vote came despite warnings from union attorney James Piotrowski, who contends this bill would have the same effect as one passed in 2011: Legal costs for taxpayers - and defeat in federal court.
(AP) - Nearly 250 people descended on the Idaho Capitol to protest a bill requiring women to get an ultrasound of their fetus before they can get an abortion. Gathered on the Capitol steps Thursday, the crowd waved signs and hammered Sen. Chuck Winder's proposed legislation, calling it a political tactic to shame and bully women already burdened with a difficult health decision.
