Jim Guthrie — Chair Jim Guthrie manages committee procedure by asking for flexibility to reorganize the agenda, requesting a motion to hold RS 3355, presiding over the motion and vote, welcoming Representative McCann and later Representative Raibold, noting he has not seen another bill on the subject, stating that HB 598 is properly before the committee, and then calling for discussion on the motion.
Jim Guthrie — The chair is addressed during the question to Representative Scott.
Mark Harris — Representative Crane is discussed in a continuing exchange about residency requirements, including a follow-up question on how actual residence can be proven.
Mark Harris — Representative Mickelson follows up on whether a prior Attorney General's office database subscription would be exempt under the RS and asks which category the AG's office court-case database would fall under, probing whether it is truly for law-enforcement purposes.
Mark Harris — Representative Scott explained that the proposal is aimed at agency membership fees, dues, and related spending, not necessary job-related expenses such as required testing or certifications. He said reimbursement could still be allowed when an expense is part of the job, but argued the bill is meant to prompt agencies to take a closer look at how taxpayer dollars are spent, including travel and other discretionary items. He noted that legislative approval depends on the Speaker of the House, that agencies have few controls over these expenditures, and that the bill is intended to encourage scrutiny of spending that may be unnecessary, citing examples such as International Hunter Association USA and referencing roughly $7 million in annual spending that has increased over time.
Mark Harris — Addressed as the chair while discussing the need for penalties if the law is violated.
Mark Harris — Used as the chair being addressed while the speaker explains the need for gradual change rather than immediate compliance.
Mark Harris — The chair is addressed as the presiding officer during Representative Haas's question.
Mark Harris — Addressed as the sponsor while Representative Haas questions the need for the bill.
Mark Harris — Questions why the bill is needed if agency budgets are already controlled through the appropriations process.
Mark Harris — Responds to Representative Haas and begins explaining the bill's policy purpose.
Mark Harris — Addressed directly in the response.
Mark Harris — The chair is addressed in the response.
Mark Harris — Explains that the bill is a policy decision to prohibit taxpayer funds for certain memberships, fees, and dues.
Mark Harris — Addressed directly in the explanation.
Mark Harris — The committee concludes questioning of Representative Scott.
Mark Harris — The chair says Representative Skog will be taken next.
Mark Harris — Named in the request to pull up RS 3332.
Mark Harris — The speaker thanks Representative Skog for allowing him to go ahead in the agenda.
Mark Harris — The chair is addressed when the speaker finishes presenting the resolution.
Mark Harris — Moves to introduce and recommend the resolution for second reading.
James Ruchti — Representative Raibold discusses a bill requiring a minimum physical presence in a district before running for office, explaining that the 120-day standard is intended to avoid confusion about residency requirements. The discussion continues with support for the proposal and clarification that a candidate’s residency can be challenged under existing Idaho law if questions arise about where they actually live. The exchange concludes with the introduction and adoption of RS 33374.
James Ruchti — Representative Church questions the breadth of the bill’s definition and the scope of entities it would cover, including whether AG court cases count as law-enforcement purposes, what 'any subdivision' means, and whether the proposal could unintentionally affect public officers, employees, or state subdivisions. She then raises a practical example involving legislative travel and conference attendance, asking whether public money, travel reimbursement, or related expenses such as airfare would be barred, while Scott responds that the focus is on membership fees and dues rather than travel costs.
Brandon Shippy — The committee moves through Representative Scott’s related RS items, including his introduction and explanation of proposals aimed at limiting state spending and keeping state documents professional. Scott first introduces RS 33270, which would restrict logos, slogans, and similar campaign-style messaging in the executive budget and other state documents. The discussion then shifts to RS 33295, where Scott argues that taxpayer dollars should not be used for memberships, fees, and dues across state government, citing roughly $7 million in such spending and giving examples like NCLS and other organizations. He explains that the bill would prohibit these expenditures except for specified exemptions such as required professional licensing, certifications, testing, law enforcement information sharing, and other authorized functions, and he cites examples of organizations and advocacy-related spending he believes should not be funded by the state.
Brandon Shippy — Representative Skog was identified as the sponsor of House Bill 501 and then presented the bill, explaining its transparency requirements for paid signature gatherers. He also noted that the committee had previously amended the bill to change the wording to 'persons and entities' in the plural.
Representative John Banderrata — Introduces RS 3305 and explains it concerns discontinuance of telephone service.
Lori Hartog — Representative Skog discusses typos in the statement of purpose and then moves to introduce RS 33105, correcting the statement of purpose as part of the same bill introduction process.
Lori Hartog — Representative Haas questioned the breadth of the proposal and sought clarification on how travel, memberships, dues, and conference-related expenses are currently approved, including whether a legislator’s travel reimbursement would require Speaker approval. He also asked whether the cited $7 million figure was annual and requested context, expressing concern that the proposal extended beyond just membership fees and dues to include conferences and travel.
Heather Scott, District 2 — Introduces RS 33270 and says it is related to the state budget.
Kelly Anthon — Explains the purpose of RS 33295, says the exemptions are broad, and estimates potential savings from reduced memberships and travel spending.
Kelly Anthon — Repeats that she has been working with the State Controller's Office to get a better number.
Kelly Anthon — Says the AG's office database subscription would fall under the law-enforcement information-sharing exemption.
Kelly Anthon — Says she can follow up and may amend the RS if court data sharing is not covered; says she worked with law enforcement and Mr. Spillman.
Kelly Anthon — Responds that the language is broad and may be amended if needed.
Kelly Anthon — Responds that the proposal does not affect local people.
Kelly Anthon — Clarifies that the RS is aimed only at state executive, legislative, and judicial branches and their employees, not local entities.
Kelly Anthon — Says she can send the material digitally and hopes agencies will reconsider spending.
Kelly Anthon — Says agencies are paying for out-of-country conferences and that travel spending is in the millions.
Kelly Anthon — Says she will bring back more information and reiterates that the proposal targets only state branches.
Kelly Anthon — Says LSO determined the wording would cover commissions, boards, and layered executive-branch structures.
Kelly Anthon — Explains that LSO said the wording would capture employees through commissions and boards in the executive branch.
Kelly Anthon — Says the conference would likely fall under the employment/training exemption.
Kelly Anthon — Says the concern is legislative travel and that the experience would likely be prohibited if state funds were used.
Kelly Anthon — Continues saying the proposal would cover travel for legislators and other stakeholder groups.
Kelly Anthon — Raised a question about how dues and fees were handled in prior budget discussions.
Kelly Anthon — Said prior floor budget debates included explanations of dues, fees, and subscriptions.
Kelly Anthon — Followed up on whether prior budget processes were intended to catch problematic dues and fees.
Kelly Anthon — Said necessary organizations and conferences may still be needed for judicial and executive branches.