In an effort to help Idahoans follow major bills, resolutions and memorials through the legislative process, the Idaho Capital Sun will produce a “legislative notebook” at the end of each week to gather information in one place that concerns major happenings in the Legislature and other news relating to state government. To receive the full extent of our reporting in your inbox each day, sign up for our free email newsletter, The Sunrise, on our website at idahocapitalsun.com/subscribe/.
Here is our quick rundown of the major happenings during the second week of the Idaho Legislature’s 2026 session.
First bill to conform Idaho’s tax code with ‘Big, Beautiful’ bill emerges
One of the biggest puzzles Idaho legislators must solve in the 2026 legislative session – and every session – is the state budget. And one of the biggest pieces to that puzzle this year is how the state will choose to conform with the “One Big Beautiful Bill” Act championed by President Donald Trump and Republicans in Congress.
In most legislative sessions, a tax conformity bill is usually one of the first pieces of legislation to be introduced, often with little fan fare or debate. But 2026 is different due to those massive changes to the federal tax code.
On Friday, Rep. Jeff Ehlers, R-Meridian, unveiled a proposal that would adopt nearly all the tax deductions that were included in Trump’s megabill, which Ehlers estimates could cost the state about $155 million in lost tax revenue each year that the deductions are in effect.
Idaho Legislature’s budget committee adopts more optimistic revenue forecast
“This is a much bigger bill this year,” he said before the House Revenue and Taxation Committee.
There are about 39 tax code changes from the massive federal tax and spending bill — such as no taxes on a worker’s tips, no taxes on some workers’ overtime, and various business deductions — most of which have financial implications for the state.
The timing of these tax changes matter, and there are different ideas from elected officials on when Idaho should conform with the federal law.
Ehlers estimated the changes will cost $155 million annually, which is the same as what the governor projected in his budget proposal. However, Gov. Brad Little’s proposed budget assumed the tax changes would take place starting in the next fiscal year. Ehlers’ proposal would have the budget reductions hit in the current fiscal year.
If the state adopts the changes for the current 2026 fiscal year, that could put additional strain on the Idaho State Tax Commission as it rolls into the busiest part of tax season. It may also lead to more Idahoans having to file amended tax returns.
The issue becomes even more complicated because some of the definitions states must use to apply to their own taxes from the “Big, Beautiful” bill have not yet been released by the federal government. That means Idaho lawmakers don’t have a clear estimate on how much conforming to the GOP megabill will actually cost as they set the state budgets for all agencies and departments.
Idaho officials have cited estimates on the cost of adopting all the tax changes that ranged from $115 million to around $400 million, the Idaho Capital Sun previously reported.
Asked why he chose to use the retroactive date, Ehlers noted that some of the changes expire in 2028, such as the no taxes on tips or overtime.
“If we don’t allow them to take it in 2025, then they’re missing one of the four years,” Ehlers said in an interview. “So that’s like 25% of the benefit; they’re only going to take it for the three years. So, we wanted to make sure that they got the full four years of the One Big Beautiful Bill.”
House committee narrowly rejects introducing bill that would have eliminated Idaho’s Hispanic commission
After a tie vote in the House State Affairs Committee on Thursday, a draft bill that would have eliminated the Idaho Commission on Hispanic Affairs was not introduced for further consideration.
House committee rejects bill to eliminate Idaho Commission on Hispanic Affairs
Rep. Heather Scott, R-Blanchard, presented a draft bill that would have repealed any mention of the commission from state code, eliminating it completely by July 1. Scott served on the Legislature’s interim DOGE committee, named after the federal (and now defunct) Department of Government Efficiency, which was tasked with finding bloat in state government programs and budgets to cut.
Some members of the state DOGE committee said the commission represents “DEI,” which stands for diversity, equity and inclusion, and voted to recommend its elimination last year.
The governor’s proposed budget for the commission is $288,500 in state general funds, according to the state legislative budget book.
Legislation of interest during the first week of the 2025 session
House Resolution 20: Sponsored by Rep. Monica Church, D-Boise, the resolution condemns political violence, honors the lives of those killed or injured, and calls on all Idahoans to reject all forms of such violence. It is on the House’s third reading calendar and may be taken up in the coming days of the session.
House Bill 489: Sponsored by Rep. Bruce Skaug, R-Nampa, the bill adds to existing law to prohibit the use of a mask or disguise during a criminal offense. It is on the House’s third reading calendar and may be taken up in the coming days of the session.
House Bill 491: Sponsored by Rep. Marco Erickson, the bill amends Idaho’s existing Good Samaritan law to protect people who give aid to an individual that is experiencing a mental health or suicidal crisis. The bill prevents a civil lawsuit from being filed against someone who stops at the scene of an emergency and, “in good faith,” tries to provide assistance, unless they are found to be “grossly negligent.” It is on the House’s third reading calendar and may be taken up in the coming days of the session.
House Bill 493: Sponsored by Rep. Britt Raybould, R-Rexburg, the bill would make it a felony on a first offense for anyone 21 years or older to solicit commercial sexual activity. Idaho’s current law provides for charging a misdemeanor for the first offense, followed by a felony for the second offense. It is on the House’s third reading calendar and may be taken up in the coming days of the session.
What to expect next week at the Idaho Legislature
Quick note: Many committees, especially at the beginning of the session, have agenda items known as an RS (which stands for routing slip). That’s legislative talk for “draft legislation.” An RS is not a public record until a committee votes to introduce the bill. Many of those agenda items are only listed by subject matter, so it’s impossible to ascertain what the RS is specifically about, other than the few words used to describe the RS until the introductory hearing takes place.
IDAHO SENATE
Senate Resources and Environment Committee
1:30 p.m. Monday: The committee is scheduled to hold introductory hearings on an RS relating to “Consolidation of the Soil and Water Conservation Commission,” and it will consider the gubernatorial appointments of Kenneth Long of Horseshoe Bend and Carl Rey of Boise to the Outfitters and Guides Licensing Board.
Senate Education Committee
3 p.m. Monday: The committee is scheduled to hold a public hearing on Senate Bill 1225, which would change Idaho law to reduce the public disclosure requirements of finalists for the state’s open public university presidency positions from five finalists down to one sole finalist. The committee is also scheduled to hold an introductory hearing on an RS that would change “Lewis-Clark State College’s name to Lewis-Clark State University throughout Idaho Code.”
IDAHO HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
House Education Committee
9 a.m. Monday: The committee is scheduled to hold an introductory hearing on an RS relating to “Education funding, disabilities.
House Health and Welfare Committee
9 a.m. Monday: The committee is scheduled to hold seven introductory hearings on RSs relating to “cottage food operations,” “yellow dot program,” “directed blood product transfusions,” “health care cash payments,” “health benefit plans – cancer medications,” “midwifery,” and “epinephrine delivery systems.”
House State Affairs Committee
9 a.m. Monday: The committee is scheduled to hold an introductory hearing on an RS relating to “flags, gov entities, penalties.”
Idaho constitutional amendment proposed by state senator to protect public lands
House Local Government Committee
1:30 p.m. Monday: The committee is scheduled to hold an introductory hearing on an RS relating to “agricultural pests” and “open meetings, public comment.”
House Transportation and Defense Committee
1:30 p.m. Monday: The committee is scheduled to hold four introductory hearings on RSs relating to “vehicle registration stickers,” “parent-student driver’s training,” “transportation, identity,” and “transportation, funding, fuels.”
Quote of the week
“I wanted feedback. I wanted a lot of feedback, because it deals with a very personal matter for every Idahoan, and that is our public land here in Idaho.” – Sen. Ben Adams, R-Nampa, who introduced a proposal on Wednesday to amend the state constitution to protect public lands acquired by the state from the federal government
Social media post of the week
Representative Linden Bateman served Idaho with integrity, humility, and a deep love for our state. Today, Idaho lost a true statesman, and I lost a dear friend. I will always cherish his letters and the passion for Idaho’s history that led him to establish Idaho Day. pic.twitter.com/TK6T2KWQTN— Brad Little (@GovernorLittle) January 23, 2026
Photo of the week
Idaho Supreme Court Chief Justice G. Richard Bevan, standing at center, shakes hands with Idaho House Speaker Mike Moyle, left, after delivering the annual State of the Judiciary address Jan. 21 at the Idaho State Capitol in Boise. (Photo by Clark Corbin/Idaho Capital Sun) Idaho Supreme Court Chief Justice G. Richard Bevan gave the annual “State of the Judiciary” speech to the Idaho House and Idaho Senate on Wednesday, asking legislators to thoughtfully consider how best to protect public officials and members of the public who use the court system as threats made against judges in the state continue to rise.
“Threats directed at Idaho judges and courts have increased significantly in recent years, and while most never materialize, those that do require precautions that can disrupt court operations and delay the delivery of justice,” Bevan told legislators.
How to follow the Idaho Legislature and Idaho Gov. Brad Little’s work during the session
Here are a few tools we use to track the Legislature’s business and how to let your voice be heard in the issues that matter most to you.
How to find your legislators: To determine which legislative district you live in, and to find contact information for your legislators within that district, go to the Legislative Services Office’s website and put in your home address and ZIP code. Once you’ve entered that information, the three legislators – two House members and one senator – who represent your district will appear, and you can click on their headshots to find their email address and phone number.
How to find committee agendas: Go to the Idaho Legislature’s website, legislature.idaho.gov, and click on the “all available Senate committee agendas” link and the “all available House committee agendas” link on the right side of the website.
How to watch the legislative action in committees and on the House and Senate floors: Idaho Public Television works in conjunction with the Legislative Services Office and the Idaho Department of Administration through a program called “Idaho in Session” to provide live streaming for all legislative committees and for the House and Senate floors. To watch the action, go to https://www.idahoptv.org/shows/idahoinsession/Legislature/ and select the stream you’d like to watch.
How to testify remotely at public hearings before a committee: To sign up to testify remotely for a specific committee, navigate to that committee’s webpage, and click on the “testimony registration (remote and in person)” tab at the top.
How to find state budget documents: Go to Legislative Services Office Budget and Policy Analysis Division’s website https://legislature.idaho.gov/lso/bpa/budgetinformation/.
How to track which bills have made it to Gov. Little’s desk and any action he took on them (including vetoes): Go to the governor’s website https://gov.idaho.gov/legislative-sessions/2026-session/. You can scroll down to the bottom of the site and enter your email address to get alerts sent straight to your inbox when the page has been updated.
Idaho Capital Sun reporters Clark Corbin, Laura Guido and Kyle Pfannenstiel contributed reporting to this story.
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