U.S. Rep. Russ Fulcher (R-Idaho) launched an online survey this week asking constituents how they think federal land in Idaho should be managed, covering topics from recreation and wildlife to roads, permitting, and maintenance. A Large Footprint, a Contested Debate Federal agencies control nearly two-thirds of Idaho’s total land area, making public land policy one […]

The Idaho Attorney General’s Office has formally responded to a letter sent by the U.S. Department of Justice concerning the administration of state elections, according to information from the office. Federal Scrutiny of State Elections The DOJ’s outreach targeted state election officials in Idaho, prompting the Attorney General’s Office to step in and craft a […]

Ada County commissioners gave Dr. Ryan Cole another five years on the Central District Health board on June 16, voting without dissent to extend his service through June 2031. Cole, an Idaho pathologist who has been an outspoken critic of COVID-19 vaccines, had his first term expire earlier this summer. How the Re-Appointment Came Together […]

Idaho’s Secretary of State has approved the Reproductive Freedom and Privacy Act for the November ballot, setting up a direct confrontation between voters and the state’s near-total abortion ban that has been in effect since 2022. The certification follows a signature drive that produced more validated signatures than any other qualifying initiative in Idaho history. […]

The Idaho Department of Environmental Quality has awarded close to $9 million in combined drinking water funding to two small Idaho communities — Worley in Kootenai County and Malad City in Oneida County — to address aging infrastructure and expand water system capacity. The Awards Worley received the larger of the two packages, totaling $4.9 […]

Idaho’s criminal ban on transgender individuals using restrooms and changing rooms that do not correspond to their biological sex is now in effect, but law enforcement officials across the state say they still lack clear guidance on how to actually enforce it. House Bill 752, passed by the Republican-controlled Legislature earlier this year, creates criminal […]

Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane, a Republican seeking a second term, says no changes to the state’s voting rules are expected before the November election — even as the Trump administration intensifies pressure on states to restrict mail-in voting and tighten noncitizen voting enforcement. Federal Push to Reshape State Election Laws The U.S. Department […]

Federal housing law got a significant overhaul this week when the 21st Century ROAD to Housing Act was signed into law, with Idaho Senator Mike Crapo playing a central role in shaping and advancing several of its key provisions. Crapo, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee and serves as a senior member of the Senate […]

The Idaho Transportation Department is moving forward with all active construction projects despite absorbing a $275 million reduction from its Strategic Initiatives Fund under Governor Brad Little’s “Enduring Idaho” budget plan — a cut that has pushed the department’s statewide unfunded project list past $2.7 billion. Projects Stalled, But Not Cancelled ITD has compiled what […]

A campaign to restore abortion access in Idaho has gathered more than 110,000 petition signatures — well above the roughly 71,000 needed to qualify — and organizers say roughly 28 percent of those signatures came from registered Republicans in a state President Trump carried by nearly 37 percentage points last year. The Reproductive Freedom and […]

The Trump administration this week warned Idaho Secretary of State Phil McGrane that election officials could face criminal charges if noncitizens cast ballots in the 2026 federal midterm elections — part of a nationwide campaign by the Justice Department to pressure states on voter roll compliance. The Warning Letter A seven-page letter from the Justice […]

A sweeping overhaul of the federal food stamp program is set to shift billions of dollars in costs onto state governments beginning in fall 2027, putting the fiscal future of SNAP in question for tens of millions of Americans who depend on it. The changes, enacted through the One Big Beautiful Bill Act, represent the […]