News
Congressional Democrats scrutinize state elections laws for effect on minority voters
WASHINGTON — Members of a U.S. House panel on Monday debated whether some state elections laws disenfranchise certain voters, including people of color, and split along party lines in their conclusions. The chairman of the elections subcommittee of the House Administration Committee, Rep. G. K. Butterfield (D-N.C.), voiced his concerns about recent voting requirement laws […]
Investigators find no wrongdoing in Boise State diversity course
Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on May 24, 2021 An independent investigation of a Boise State University diversity course found no evidence of wrongdoing. What’s more, investigators from the Boise law firm Hawley Troxell found no signs of student indoctrination — the very conduct legislators targeted with a law passed in the waning days of the […]
The cost to deliver a baby in Boise? 10 times more than 100 years ago
Margaret Ertter gave birth to her daughter, Mary, in March 1922. The bill was $92. Ertter delivered twin boys four years later. They were born prematurely, and only one baby survived. The bill for Ertter’s 14-day hospital stay and medical care for her preemie newborns? $154.50. Ertter’s granddaughters in Boise discovered the documents this year: […]
Attempts to ban ‘critical race theory’ multiply at statehouses across the U.S.
WASHINGTON — From statehouses to Congress, Republicans have launched into a fight against the teaching of “critical race theory,” which just a year ago was a niche academic term. Experts in critical race theory say it’s about acknowledging how racial disparities are embedded in U.S history and society, and the concept is being mischaracterized by […]
Republican AGs object to U.S. Department of Education proposal on teaching about racism
WASHINGTON — More than two dozen Republican attorneys general are voicing their disapproval over the Department of Education’s proposed priorities for teaching K-12 students about American history and civics education because they would include references to systemic racism and how the history of slavery has shaped the U.S. The state attorneys general argue in a […]
Ammon Bundy takes first step toward running for Idaho governor
He’s banned from the Idaho Capitol building, but that didn’t stop Ammon Bundy from taking the first step toward running for Idaho governor. Bundy, who lives in Emmett, filed paperwork Friday to appoint a treasurer to a campaign for governor. The anti-government activist appeared to have appointed himself as treasurer, but according to a Secretary […]
Longtime Idaho Public Television leader to retire
Idaho Public Television announced today General Manager Ron Pisaneschi will retire June 30. The Idaho State Board of Education, which oversees the operation of Idaho Public Television, will form a committee to conduct a nationwide search for Pisaneschi’s replacement, according to a press release from IPT. “After more than 35 years at Idaho Public Television […]
Idaho legislator Priscilla Giddings makes bid for lieutenant governor
Idaho State Rep. Priscilla Giddings, R-White Bird, announced Friday she plans to run for lieutenant governor, according to Idaho Reports and the Idaho Press. Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin this week announced a campaign for Idaho governor. Giddings said that without McGeachin in the lieutenant governor’s seat, Idaho would have “a vacancy in Idaho leadership which […]
Electric buses, asphalt and bridges: Politicians jostle for federal transportation cash
WASHINGTON — The nearly $1 billion that U.S. Rep. Garret Graves is seeking through Congress’ revamped earmarks process isn’t a typo. The Louisiana Republican says Baton Rouge desperately needs a new bridge to alleviate a crush of roadway congestion — at a cost of $955.2 million for several projects. That far exceeds the $20 million that […]
Who’s getting the COVID-19 vaccine in Idaho? Who isn’t? Here’s the data.
Some of Idaho’s wealthiest and least vulnerable communities have reached higher levels of protection from the virus that causes COVID-19, while the more vulnerable remain at risk. The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare provided COVID-19 vaccination data by ZIP code, and by week, to the Idaho Capital Sun. The data, obtained through a public […]
McGeachin announces indoctrination task force members
Originally posted on IdahoEdNews.org on May 20, 2021 Janice McGeachin and her husband, Jim, stand on the steps of the Idaho State Capitol as she announced her run for Governor in Boise on May 19, 2021. Sami Edge/Idaho Education News A day after announcing she will run for governor in 2022, Lt. Gov. Janice McGeachin […]
House Republicans urge State Dept. to declassify documents related to coronavirus origins
WASHINGTON — U.S. House Republicans on the Energy and Commerce Committee are pushing for Secretary of State Antony Blinken to declassify documents from a research facility in China relating to the origins of the coronavirus. Rep. Morgan Griffith of Virginia, the top Republican on the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee, along with other GOP lawmakers wrote […]