Idaho turns up the tempo as coronavirus hits home

As Idaho maneuvers through the uncharted waters of the coronavirus, its elected representatives are making the budget their top priority, with time of the essence.

“The House members have been quite upbeat the last few days, despite some long hours,” Representative Tony Wisniewski of Post Falls said Monday evening. “We had three floor sessions today to try and clear our bill calendar. We can usually sense unexpressed emotion in our colleagues, and I only see concern over uncertainty, but absolutely no panic.”

Concern over the budget is nothing new, despite a pandemic that now threatens it. Gem State leaders have often voiced fiscal responsibility, so much so as to codify into law a balanced budget before each legislative session can adjourn. But the coronavirus has applied pressure to that calculus: Lawmakers are people, too, and as such are discouraged from congregating in gatherings of 50 or more, per Centers for Disease Control guidelines. It’s a conundrum that weighs heavier on legislators with each passing day.

“I think it is a spectrum of concern,” Coeur d’Alene Representative Paul Amador said. “There are many that are very concerned, and there are also those that are quite calm. Overall, I think we are committed to finishing the business of the legislature [as efficiently] as possible.”

The business of — and, for that matter, the business around — the legislature is facing unparalleled challenges. All Capitol tours have been cancelled. Hotels around the Capitol grounds that staffers often call home are closing. Restaurants that feed lawmakers and serve as off-site meeting spots are reportedly struggling to stay open. If one Capitol regular tests positive, session will likely be cancelled.

“We are taking great care to keep everyone safe,” Coeur d’Alene Representative Jim Addis said. “...House leadership has repeated, time and time again, that each and every member is free to attend session, or go home: that their decisions on personal safety take priority and will be respected.”

With only a few insurrection-esque exceptions spelled out in the Idaho Constitution, no bill that requires funding becomes law unless Idaho has a mechanism to pay for it. That means no session ends until a budget is passed. The state Constitution exempted bills that helped out in times of war, but it made no mention of a pandemic. A budget has to pass. It’s the immovable object to the coronavirus’s irresistable force.

“We cannot adjourn until all budgets are set,” Addis said. “I don’t see the Legislature going home ‘early’ until our work is done, but you never know. So far, we don’t have any known coronavirus cases downtown, here in Boise. Having said this, a member or staffer testing positive would certainly change the dynamic.”

Addis added that all legislators are working as hard as possible to wrap up the session as quickly as possible. He has worked on four bills still alive in either the House or Senate. HB 548 calls for transparency in the initiative process, including a reporting mechanism for those who are paid to gather signatures. HB 561 would clarify the actual value of a home during an assessment appeal. HB 553 aims to simplify the appraisal process for large tracts of timber. HB 547 would give mineral and mining leaseholders an easier path to renew leases.

Each of those bills, as well as Amador’s 529 Education Savings Accounts-related bills, could disappear without a vote if the coronavirus hits the House or Senate floors. Right now, everything has taken a back seat to the budget.

Even the budget itself has been infected with the coronavirus. The House has appropriated $2 million for direct coronavirus response funding, which provides for testing kits, medical supplies and other necessities. The House passed appropriations to help state employees work remotely, as well as provide certain state employees with advanced sick leave and paid administrative leave.

The budget is usually a piecemeal project, and this year’s is no exception. The House narrowly passed Idaho’s Medicaid expansion Tuesday, this after passing appropriations bills for two education departments: the state board of education and the superintendent’s office of public instruction. One education budget measure — the higher education bill — was killed in the House Monday, bringing educators and legislators back to the drawing board. All of this comes after both the House and Senate moved to suspend rules to more easily move budget items up the hierarchy to the front of the debate floor line.

The Governor’s proposed budget from early January came in at $4.05 billion, though that number will likely be adjusted once all the appropriations make their way through the Idaho legislature. Little’s January proposal was presented before the coronavirus came to Idaho.

“The Governor’s conservative approach to budgeting has been well-received, especially the one-percent and two-percent [across the board] reductions,” Addis said. “As the coronavirus pandemic has grown, we in the legislature have responded appropriately, as we just appropriated $2 million dedicated to coronavirus issues.”

“There are still some budget battles going on,” Representative Tony Wisniewski said Monday, “and the House has rejected a few bills that exceeded the Governor’s recommended limits. Governor Little is serious about holding back spending this year.”

That seriousness to hold back spending is running into the urgency to wrap up the legislative session before the coronavirus does.

“The possibility of a closure has been looming since last week, but no specific incident has been discussed as the trigger to cause a shutdown,” Wisniewski said. “We are working day-to-day, hoping that it doesn’t happen. When ‘the event’ happens, I think it will be obvious to all.”

As it turns out, not to all. Senator David Nelson of Moscow left the session Tuesday, heading back to Moscow to self-isolate. He told the Senate Tuesday he was concerned about a large body congregating — potentially risking exposure to both elderly lawmakers and their constituents — and that he was heading home.