Richard Cheatum — The chair thanks Senator Rectady, likely a transcription error for a member name; uncertain.
Dave Lent — Excused from the meeting because he had another meeting.
Melissa Wintrow — Expected to be late but should be joining the committee.
Melissa Wintrow — The chair notes that Senator Wintrow is present.
Melissa Wintrow — Addressed in closing thanks before Senator Foreman responds.
Melissa Wintrow — Senator Melissa Wintrow is introduced and invited to present her RS in 60 seconds. After a brief procedural seconding, she introduces herself as the senator from District 19 and presents RS 3993, which would exempt photographs or images of a deceased individual from public disclosure. The chair then thanks her after the presentation.
Daniel Foreman — Offered the motion regarding Amy Anderson's appointment.
Daniel Foreman — Made the motion to send Amy Anderson's appointment to the floor with a recommendation of confirmation.
Daniel Foreman — Moved to send RS 32894 to print.
Daniel Foreman — Seconded the motion to send RS 32896 to print.
Daniel Foreman — Dan Foreman continued presenting Senate Bill 1233, explaining its purpose and quoting supporting material. He then responded to committee questions about whether the bill was intended to address separation of church and state, rejecting that constitutional concept as stated and citing historical support for his view. In follow-up questioning, he clarified that he would support prohibiting courts from favoring one religion over another because that would violate the First Amendment. The exchange concluded with the chair thanking him and moving toward public testimony.
Daniel Foreman — The witness thanks Senator Foreman for trying to prevent the application of foreign law.
Daniel Foreman — William Thomas Howey thanks Senator Foreman for his presentation and says his own remarks would repeat it.
Daniel Foreman — The chair invites Senator Foreman to conclude the presentation.
Daniel Foreman — Senator Foreman begins his closing remarks and says words matter in legislation.
Daniel Foreman — He corrects a characterization of the bill and explains that it targets religious or cultural law that conflicts with constitutional rights.
Daniel Foreman — He argues that judges already determine constitutionality and that the legal system has worked well for 250 years.
Daniel Foreman — He says opponents should be more concerned about judicial activism than about the bill itself.
Daniel Foreman — He argues the bill's purpose is clear and warns against fear of hypothetical consequences.
Daniel Foreman — He restates the bill's purpose as preventing use of incompatible religious or cultural law in state courts.
Daniel Foreman — He expresses confidence in judges and says the bill reaffirms support for existing law.
Daniel Foreman — He concludes by defending the bill and saying the system works.
Daniel Foreman — The chair thanks Senator Foreman and invites him to return.
Daniel Foreman — Begins responding to colleagues' comments and says they are in error.
Daniel Foreman — Argues that the Oklahoma bill failed because it targeted a specific religion.
Daniel Foreman — Says the bill is constitutional as written and that both the Idaho Attorney General's Office and Idaho State Supreme Court saw no problem with it.
Daniel Foreman — Continues defending the bill and argues that general language avoids constitutional problems.
Daniel Foreman — Argues against replacing 'religious and cultural' with 'foreign' and says the existing court system has long handled these issues.
Daniel Foreman — Continues defending the bill and says the courts have long handled these issues.
Daniel Foreman — Is told by Senator Lenny to avoid disparaging colleagues' intentions.
Daniel Foreman — Says he is defending his legislation and correcting what he calls factually incorrect statements.
Daniel Foreman — Defends his remarks and says he merely stated that others' assertions were incorrect.
Daniel Foreman — Argues the committee should focus on the bill's text and says he is not afraid of judicial challenge.
Daniel Foreman — Says he is not afraid to take the first step in supporting the bill.
Daniel Foreman — The chair thanks 'Senator Farmer,' likely a transcription error for Senator Foreman.
Daniel Foreman — Seconds the motion on Senate Bill 1233.
Daniel Foreman — Referenced for emphasizing that the committee should stick to the language of the bill.
Daniel Foreman — He objects to the substitute motion as a hostile attempt to rewrite the bill.
Daniel Foreman — He moves to send the RS to print.
Shawn Dygert — A member with an unclear name is first noted as seconding a motion, and shortly afterward the chair turns the gavel over to the vice chair, Senator Shippey, marking a procedural transition in the meeting.
Shawn Dygert — The speaker thanked Senator Shippy/Shippey for helping cover the committee while the gavel was handed back and later thanked him again during technical troubleshooting to connect Mr. Kennedy.
Shawn Dygert — Begins a follow-up question or comment to Mr. Kennedy, but the transcript cuts off.
Todd Lakey — Senator Todd Lakey was invited to the podium and introduced himself as the State Senator from District 23. He then presented a series of related RS items to the committee: first RS 32894, then RS 32896, which would remove an outdated mountain standard time provision and was requested to be sent to print, and then RS 33120, which came from the Attorney General's office and involved enforcement tools. He continued responding to questions and elaborating on the proposal, including offering examples and noting that he had asked the AG's office for examples.
Todd Lakey — Todd Lakey is referenced as Chairman during questioning of Mr. Pierce, with multiple overlapping mentions identifying him as the chair presiding over the exchange. A later reference recalls that the good senator had raised the issue earlier, tying the discussion back to Lakey in the same ongoing topic.
Doug Ricks — Asked for examples of situations affected by the legislation.
Doug Ricks — Identified as making the motion to send RS 33120 to print.
Doug Ricks — Mr. Kennedy said he had previously met with him on telecommunications issues.
Doug Ricks — After being called on by the chair, Senator Ricks moved to send Senate Bill 1233 to the floor with a due pass recommendation.
Jack Nelsen — A senator, referred to with several slightly mis-transcribed name variants, is first mentioned in procedural and logistical exchanges, including seconding the motion and being asked to use his phone to contact Mr. Kennedy. The discussion then notes prior conversations with him on telecommunications issues. The senator then speaks directly to Mr. Kennedy, asking why citizen members are important on the Judicial Council, and Mr. Kennedy responds to that question.
Joe Palmer — Referred to as the chairman receiving the gavel back.