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ID House Approves Bills That Chip Away At Governor's Authority

Idaho Public TV screenshot

The Idaho House has passed a trio of bills that chip away at the governor’s powers during an emergency.

Since Governor Brad Little declared the current Covid emergency back in March, 2020, legislative leaders have chafed at how widely he has used his executive powers.They filed a variety of legislation to limit his ability to declare emergencies, or at least shorten the length of those emergencies. They’ve sought to stop him from requiring businesses to close and declaring some industry sectors as essential or non-essential. But most of that legislation has been watered down.

On Tuesday, the House approved three new, tightly focused bills. One would forbid the governor and state agencies from changing existing laws or creating new laws during a declared emergency. Its sponsor is Rep. Jason Monks [R-Meridian].

“During the Covid there were a few of those examples where it was done. Changing election law is probably the most egregious one, in my opinion, which I don’t think was appropriate. I think that power should be reserved to the legislative branch. This ensures that," he said.

Another bill makes clear that people’s constitutional rights, such as the right to bear arms, don’t disappear during an emergency.

The bills approved Tuesday have been routed to the Senate as the legislature works through the final days of its 2021 session.