week 7 review

After nearly 6 hours of fierce debate on the state exchange, Senate Bill 1042 passed the Senate 23-12. Twelve Senators, including myself, fought strategically to bring down S1042; even the staunch supporters admitted to a flawed bill. Now the bill goes to the House, where hopefully the House will succeed in stopping it.
The Food Stamps bill that would change the pay out of food stamps from the 1st of the month to stagger payouts was passed by the Health and Welfare committee, even though there are major concerns with the costs. The bill was also sent back to the committee on Friday to correct a fiscal note discrepancy.
The Healthcare Ministries bill passed through the Commerce committee unanimously, even after 1.5 hours of debate. The interest and support of this faith based sharing ministry for medical expense was overwhelming, as an option instead of insurance. For those who have difficulty paying for insurance, this would be a good avenue to check out.
Additionally, the EMS bill will be up for a hearing in the Senate Transportation Committee next Tuesday at 1:30. Please be sure, if you can, to testify for the bill.
Also, the Department of Health and Welfare's budget will be coming up for review and approval by JFAC this next week. Besides education, this is our largest budget item as a state. Please let me know if you have suggestions.
The Budget for the Department of Fish and Game was passed this week. It was difficult to reduce the size of the budget due to current laws, but we found some areas to reduce the budget impact with asset replacements. I am open to ideas on how we can save money as a state in the Department of Fish and Game for next year.
This Saturday, I will be delivering a few remarks at a gun rally in Grangeville. I will send out my notes so that those who were not able to attend can hear what is going on. This next week, there will be several measures coming through both houses of the legislature to ensure and expand our 2nd Amendment rights in Idaho. In my notes will be details for some of the bills.
https://chumly.com/n/1a67ca0