The Idaho Capital Sun will publish a legislative notebook at the end of each week to compile information about significant events in the Legislature and other state government news in one location, with the goal of assisting Idahoans in following significant bills, resolutions, and memorials through the legislative process.
Here is a brief summary of the main events that took place during the second week of the 2025 Idaho Legislature session.
The top justice of the Idaho Supreme Court delivers the annual State of the Judiciary address.
Chief Justice G. Richard Bevan presented his argument for higher compensation for the state’s judicial branch to the Idaho Senate and House of Representatives on Wednesday.
Information made public by the courtA July 2024 poll released by the National Center for State Courts this month revealed that Idaho Supreme Court justice salaries came in 50th place within the US and its territories. In his statement, Bevan stated that, out of 53 states and territories, Idaho district judges receive the 48th-highest salary.
Bevan stated that he is worried about more than just compensating judges fairly for their labor. He claimed that the judicial system is severely strained by low pay, growing caseloads, and the complexity of cases.
According to Bevan, seasoned judges are quitting their jobs early. Lawyers with more experience are less inclined to replace them.
Prior to the start of the 2025 legislative session, the Idaho Supreme Court made public their formal recommendation to raise judges’ salaries.
The following are the suggested increases in judge pay:
-
$215,000 per year, for Idaho Supreme Court justices, up from the current level of $169,508.
-
$207,000 for a Court of Appeals judge, up from $161,508 currently.
-
$201,000 for a district court judge, up from $155,508 currently.
-
$193,000 for a magistrate judge, up from $147,508 currently.
The Joint Finance-Appropriations Committee, the influential budget committee of the Idaho Legislature, will make the final decision on those plans and forward its recommendations to the entire Idaho House and Senate for review.
Idaho state employee wage hike proposals encounter a roadblock in the budget committee.
This year, the budget committee will take into account more than just judicial branch pay hikes for state personnel.
Additionally, JFAC is discussing wage raises for Idaho’s 25,000 state employees; however, the negotiations stalled on Thursday, and the committee did not move on any of the suggestions that were discussed.
While some of the plans under consideration involved raising teacher compensation, others did not address teacher pay at all, putting it on hold for a later decision.Some plans only included targeted pay increases for certain IT and engineering staff members, while others included increases for all of them.
The Idaho Division of Human Resources suggested 4% pay increases for state employees on December 20. The agency claimed that turnover was a problem for the state and that state workers were paid so little that they could all work the same job almost anywhere else and get paid more.
Governor Brad Little suggested 5% raises, or $1.55 per hour, for all public employees as part of his public of the State address.
The Change in Employee Compensation Committee of the Idaho Legislature suggested last week that all state employees receive raises of $1.55 per hour. Additional targeted raises of 8% for Idaho State Police troopers, 4.5% for IT and engineering personnel, and $1.55 per hour or 3%, whichever is higher, for nursing and health care professionals were also suggested by the Change in Employee Compensation Committee.
JFAC stated that it will address the pay hikes when additional state budget predictions have been examined, but it did not establish a new timetable for considering state employee pay.
Interest-related legislation in the second week of the 2025 session
-
House Bill 11
: Sponsored by Rep. Jaron Crane, R-Nampa, the bill introduced Tuesday would replicate a 2023 Texas law creating a new immigration-related crime called illegal entry. The bill would allow local law enforcement officers to check the documentation status of individuals. The first instance of a person being discovered as unauthorized by law enforcement would result in a misdemeanor charge, and a second occurrence would lead to a felony charge and deportation. The bill may be taken up by the House State Affairs Committee in the coming days of the session.
-
House Bill 10:
Sponsored by Rep. Ted Hill, R-Eagle, the bill introduced Tuesday would ban flags or banners in Idaho public school classrooms that represent a political viewpoint, including but not limited to flags or banners regarding a political party, race, sexual orientation, gender, or a political ideology. The bill will be on the
House s third reading calendar
on Monday. It will be heard by the full House in the coming days of the session.
-
House Bill 7
: The Idaho House State Affairs committee held a public hearing, which included two hours of testimony, on Wednesday on the bill that would implement a $300 minimum fine for adults possessing three ounces or less of marijuana. The committee voted 10-4 in favor of the bill and sent it to the full House floor for consideration with a recommendation that it pass. The bill will be on the
House s third reading calendar
on Monday. It will be heard by the full House in the coming days of the session.
-
Senate Bill 1004
: Idaho Senate Minority Leader Melissa Wintrow, D-Boise, introduced the bill to add housing and workforce anti-discrimination protections for LGBTQ+ Idahoans. She introduced it as a personal bill, a legislative maneuver that doesn t follow the traditional path of a bill being introduced by a legislative committee. Wintrow said she introduced the legislation, which would add the words sexual orientation and gender identity to the
Idaho Human Rights Act
, as a personal bill because GOP leadership in the Legislature has refused for a decade to hold a hearing on the legislation. The bill has essentially no way forward in the GOP supermajority-dominated Legislature and has little chance of passing.
-
Senate Bill 1001
: Sponsored by Sen. Brian Lenney, R-Nampa, the anti-SLAPP (which stands for strategic lawsuits against public participation) bill introduced Monday aims to protect free speech and curtail frivolous lawsuits. The bill may be taken up by the Senate Judiciary and Rules Committee for a full public hearing in the coming days of the session.
-
Senate Bill 1002
:
Sponsored by Sen. Brandon Shippy, R-New Plymouth, the bill introduced Thursday would
decrease the fee for seniors
to obtain a driver s license from $35 to $30. He sponsored the bill after a constituent told him that seniors pay a higher cost for a four-year driver s license than the general adult population. The bill may be taken up by the Senate Transportation Committee for a full public hearing in the coming days of the session.
What to anticipate at the Idaho Statehouse the following week
Celebration of MLK Jr. Day
The Idaho Capitol Building in Boise is hosting a public celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day on Monday. The event will take place on the second floor of the Statehouse’s rotunda from noon to 1 p.m. and will include guest speakers, dancers, singers, and other artists. Donations for service initiatives that support Idaho organizations are encouraged from attendees.
Senate confirmations in Idaho
Hearings for gubernatorial appointments and reappointments to state boards and commissions will be held Monday by a number of Idaho Senate committees. These hearings will include the reappointment of former lawmakers Marc Gibbs to the Idaho Water Resources Board, Luke Malek to the State Board of Corrections, and Shawn Keough to the State Board of Education. See the full agendas for those committees online for a complete list of the appointments that will be taken into consideration.
House Committee on Defense and Transportation
House Bill 13 would exclude individuals under the age of eighteen from wearing helmets when riding in UTVs with seat belts and a roll cage. The committee is scheduled to have a public hearing on the bill on Monday.
This week’s quote
My oncology teams have repeatedly assured me that they would permit me to use medicinal cannabis if it were legal and that it would be advantageous for my situation. In his public testimony against House Bill 7, disabled U.S. Air Force veteran Jeremy Kitzhaber noted that marijuana would have been utilized to relieve pain and increase his appetite after he lost over 40 pounds during his 150 rounds of chemotherapy and treatments for stage four cancer.
The week’s top social media post
The goal of Biden’s Green New Deal is to install 241 windmills on 100,000 acres in Idaho. Fortunately, we have @realDonaldTrump and @DougBurgumon on our side in Idaho! Lava Ridge relies on borrowed time to survive.BywhgqLm pic.twitter.com/19
January 17, 2025 Jim Risch (@SenatorRisch)
The week’s featured image
How to track the activity of Idaho Governor Brad Little and the Idaho Legislature during the session
Here are some resources we use to keep tabs on the Legislature’s activities and learn how to make your opinion known on the topics that are most important to you.
How to locate your lawmakers:Enter your home address and ZIP code on the parliamentary Services Office’s website to find out which parliamentary district you reside in and the contact details for your representatives there. The three lawmakers—two members of the House and one senator—who represent your district will show up when you enter that information. You can click on their photos to get their phone number and email address.
To locate committee agendas, visit the Idaho Legislature’s website at legislature.idaho.gov and select the links for all Senate and House committee agendas on the right side of the page.
How to see legislative activity on the House and Senate floors as well as in committees:Through a program called Idaho in Session, Idaho Public Television collaborates with the Legislative Services Office and the Idaho Department of Administration to stream live content from the House and Senate floors as well as all legislative committees. Go to https://www.idahoptv.org/shows/idahoinsession/Legislature/ and choose the stream you want to view to see the activity.
How to provide a remote statement at a committee’s public hearing:Go to the website of the committee in question and select the “Testimony Registration (Remote and In Person)” tab at the top to register to testify remotely for that committee.
Where to look for state budget records:Visit the website of the Legislative Services Office’s Budget and Policy Analysis Division at https://legislature.idaho.gov/lso/bpa/budgetinformation/.
How to keep track of which bills have reached Governor Little’s desk and what he has done with them, including vetoes: Go to https://gov.idaho.gov/legislative-sessions/2025-session/, the governor’s website. When the page is updated, you can enter your email address at the bottom of the page to receive updates directly in your inbox.
This legislative diary was written by journalists Clark Corbin, Mia Maldonado, and Kyle Pfannenstiel of the Idaho Capital Sun.
