Blog / Recent News
2/20/2019 – Partisan redistricting / gerrymandering bill (HJR2) sent back to committee after public outcry
HJR2, the bill that would have created a partisan redistricting process in Idaho in lieu of our current bipartisan system, was sent back to committee after substantial citizen outcry. Well done, citizens!
2/20/2019 – Reforming mandatory minimum sentencing for drug offenders (House Bill 99)
As many of you know, I have been trying for years to reform mandatory minimum sentencing for drug offenders. The goal is to give judges the power to craft appropriate sentences while freeing up dollars for roads, education and drug treatment - huge dollars are...
2/20/2019 – Update on Medicaid expansion
Idaho's application for Medicaid expansion was sent off to the feds last week, as required by Prop 2, but we still expect legislative efforts to curtail the full scope of coverage. One such effort is making its way through the Senate, another is expected in the House.
2/11/2019 – Republican gerrymandering bill (HJR2) speeding through legislature
The Gerrymandering bill (HJR2) is moving like greased lightning through the Legislature, and it's critical that our citizens understand what is happening. In a nutshell, since Idahoans voted in 1994 to amend the Constitution to get rid of partisan gerrymandering,...
2/8/2019 – Article: “Tempers fray in Idaho House in battle over redistricting”
Article Link: "Tempers fray in Idaho House in battle over redistricting" Excerpt: There are days when the Idaho Legislature resembles a much-higher-stakes three-ring circus, and Friday was one of them, as a bitter dispute over a GOP attempt to engineer a Republican...
2/8/2019 – Video: Rep. Rubel discusses reforming mandatory minimum sentencing with “Idaho Reports”
Video: Ilana discusses reforming mandatory minimum sentencing with "Idaho Reports"
2/5/2019 – Article: “Bill introduced to relax mandatory minimums for drugs”
Article Link: "Bill introduced to relax mandatory minimums for drugs" Excerpt: A bill to relax mandatory minimum sentences for drug trafficking was introduced into the Idaho Legislature on Tuesday. The House Judiciary committee voted unanimously to introduce the bill,...
2/1/2019 – Article: “Bill introduced to keep HOAs from banning rooftop solar panels”
Article Link: "Bill introduced to keep HOAs from banning rooftop solar panels" Excerpt: An Idaho House committee agreed Thursday that homeowners’ property rights would be better protected if homeowners associations couldn’t ban rooftop solar panels. The House Business...
1/22/2019 – OP-ED by Rep. Rubel – “Idaho must reform its draconian drug sentencing minimums”
Article Link: "Idaho must reform its draconian drug sentencing minimums" Excerpt: The bill for Idaho’s failure to seriously address our prison problem is about to come due, and it’s a big one: $500 million. That’s the cost of a proposed state prison expansion. What’s...
1/22/2019 – Article/Audio: Rep. Rubel discusses youth hearing aid coverage legislature
Article Link: "Youth Hearing Aid Coverage Re-Visited In Legislature" About: Private insurance does not cover the costs for most hearing aids for youths. Efforts to change that are afoot in the state legislature. Idaho Matters follows up with the representative...
1/21/2019 – Boise schools would lose $6.6 million under proposed school funding formula
A new proposed school funding formula has been put forth that is based on student enrollment and takes various other factors into account. According to this analysis, Boise schools would stand to lose $6.6 million under the proposed new formula, so I will have to give...
1/21/2019 – Rep. Rubel re-introducing bipartisan legislation to reform mandatory minimum sentencing
Last week, Idaho Supreme Court Chief Justice Roger Burdick told the Legislature, "the courts realize there are better ways to handle criminality than building bigger jails and prisons." We also recently learned that Idaho is 3rd in the nation for portion of the...
1/21/2019 – Final approval given for rule change that will assure coverage for kids’ hearing aids
You may remember that I've been working with a group of parents and doctors for over a year to secure insurance coverage for hearing aids for children who are deaf or hard of hearing. The lack of such coverage meant that affected families were heavily burdened and...
1/21/2019 – State of the State / Idaho’s revenue situation
Governor Little delivered his 2019 State of the State address and released his proposed budget. I was encouraged by his stated commitment to education and public lands (including meaningful proposed increases to teacher salaries and boosted funding for literacy...
1/17/2019 – Article: “Insurers now required to cover hearing aid costs for Idaho children”
Article Link: "Insurers now required to cover hearing aid costs for Idaho children" Excerpt: A rule change passed by the Idaho Legislature on Thursday means that 1,000 Idaho families who have deaf or hard of hearing children, will soon no longer need to pay for...