Capitol Letters: Senate moves to reform ‘broken’ EMS funding
By Ryan Suppe, State Politics Reporter
In rural Idaho, most emergency medical service providers are volunteers, and some services are funded by bake sales or other community fundraisers.
That’s because the state doesn’t deem emergency medical services (EMS) essential, the way it does police and fire services, so local EMS providers rely on a patchwork of resources, with no statewide coordination of coverage.
Meanwhile, population growth coupled with recruitment and retention barriers and a drop-off in able and willing volunteers is putting pressure on existing staff.
A new resolution, sponsored by Senate Majority Caucus Chair Mark Harris, R-Soda Springs, asks the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare to draft legislation recognizing EMS as essential and establishing a statewide EMS coordination and funding system.
The proposal follows a 2021 study by the Idaho Office of Performance Evaluations, which found that EMS, particularly in rural areas, are understaffed and underfunded.
“Funding is an issue, personnel is an issue, burnout is an issue,” Harris said during a Tuesday debate in the full Senate. “Our EMS need some help, and this (resolution) is the first step toward getting them the help they need.”
Read my full story here.
New anti-ESG bills introduced
House Republicans yesterday introduced a handful of bills targeting banks and contractors that adhere to ESG, an investment practice that incorporates environmental sustainability, social responsibility and corporate governance in assessing financial portfolios.
The bills, co-sponsored by Idaho State Treasurer Julie Ellsworth, a Republican, would allow Idaho’s treasurer to refuse to do business with banks that “boycott” the fossil fuel or firearms industries and would prohibit public contracts with companies that similarly shun those industries.
“We’re just basically not going to do business if you choose to do business that harms the state of Idaho,” Rep. Barbara Ehardt, R-Idaho Falls, who is co-sponsoring the bills, told the House State Affairs Committee yesterday.
Similar bills targeting ESG — which stands for environmental, social and governance — have appeared in other GOP-led states. A bill in North Dakota that would have created a restricted list of banks that “boycott” energy companies overwhelmingly failed earlier this month.
Recent anti-ESG bills in Montana and Mississippi failed to overcome opposition from banking interests groups, Politico reported. Idaho banking and business lobbyists last year expressed apprehension with Idaho lawmakers wading into ESG policy.
After the House State Affairs Committee voted to introduce three anti-ESG bills, chairman Rep. Brent Crane, R-Nampa, said the proposals likely will receive a hearing early next week.
Opinion: Ready, aim, fire!
By Scott McIntosh, opinion editor
Taking the life of another human being is the most serious act imaginable, whether it’s a murderer taking the life of a victim or the state taking a life.
A bill was introduced Wednesday morning to bring back the firing squad as a back-up method of execution in Idaho.
That’s because Idaho is having a difficult time procuring the drugs necessary for execution by lethal injection.
Rep. Bruce Skaug, R-Nampa, introduced the bill to the House Ways & Means Committee, which agreed to print the bill.
After a history of executions by hanging, firing squad, gas chamber and electric chair, the method of lethal injection might seem a more humane approach, perhaps more palatable to folks on the fence or squeamish about the death penalty.
But bringing back the firing squad might turn some people off to the concept of the death penalty.
That might not be a bad thing. Read my full column here.
What to expect today
9 a.m. House Health and Welfare. Two proposals related to Medicaid are scheduled for introduction. One deals with Medicaid eligibility and the other covers managed care.
1:30 p.m. Senate Transportation. The committee is scheduled to consider a bill that would allow parents to be private educators for driving instruction permits.
1:30 p.m. House Judiciary, Rules and Administration. A public hearing is scheduled for legislation, from Rep. Chris Mathias, D-Boise, that would make it a misdemeanor to harass or intimidate public school employees. Currently, state law prohibits “abuse” of teachers but does not specify other staff.
3 p.m. Senate Education. A bill, from Sen. Ben Adams, R-Nampa, and the Idaho Family Policy Center, that would prohibit public schools from allowing transgender students to use restrooms and locker rooms that align with their gender identity is on the docket.
Find the full list of committee meetings and agendas for the House here, and for the Senate here.
What else happened?
Keep track of high-profile bills as they go through the legislative process. You can find yesterday’s updates here.
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