A quick message from Rep. Brooke Green:
I'd like to start off my weekly newsletter by saying thank you for electing me to represent you in the legislature!
Please reach out if you have any questions or would like to discuss an issue that is important to you:
Phone: 208-332-1080
Email: bgreen@house.idaho.gov
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Updates from the Legislature
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Medicaid Expansion Still In the Air
The legislative session is coming to a close but legislators have yet to fund and implement a Medicaid expansion. After fighting against work requirements for Medicaid recipients, the House decided to pass House Bill 277 which would implement work requirements similar to those ruled against in other states. Although this bill has been held in committee on the Senate side, a Senate bill has emerged and been amended. After eight amendments in the Senate, this new bill, SB 1204, would add restrictions such as mandatory work requirements, a deadline for the legislature to review Medicaid expansion, and requiring referrals for family planning. Unfortunately, this bill passed the Senate and House last week with dangerous amendments. It is headed to the governor's desk right now.
During the session, there have been countless hours of testimonies before committees from citizens that want a clean Medicaid expansion. Despite the statewide effort, legislators have kept pushing to add restrictions and work requirements that would effectively create a second gap of uninsured Idahoans. This is not how we should be treating Idahoans. Clearly, with almost 61% of votes in favor, this is a bipartisan issue that demands our action and the minority party is doing what we can to implement a clean Medicaid expansion before the end of the session.
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Are Voter Initiative Requirements Stricter Than Passing a Bill in the Legislature?
Last week, the revenge on voters act (Senate Bill 1159) passed the House 40 to 30. The bill increases the districts form which signatures are needed while almost doubling the amount of signatures required to get an initiative on the ballot. Despite the bill's promise to increase rural participation, the bill would also drastically cut the time to collect these signatures. The bill was followed by House Bill 296, a trailer bill that would amend the previous bill. Although it would make the ugly SB 1159 slightly better, it is still unconstitutional and would hugely restrain the voice of voters. After a long floor debate, the House passed the trailer bill 47 to 22. Senate bill 1159 passed both chambers and will be sent to the Governor. Thankfully, Gov. Little vetoed Senate Bill 1159 and said he plans to veto House Bill 296. We're thankful for the step he took in preventing these bills from becoming law.
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In Case You Missed It - New Ballot Initiative Bills
Although Senate Bill 1159 was vetoed, the majority pulled a fast one by proposing FOUR new bill was to be introduced yesterday. It became clear these bills were mirroring the language of Senate Bill 1159 and House Bill 296 but broken into four different pieces of legislation. We'll have more updates the rest of this week on social media and in next week's newsletter.
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Thank You Former Representative King!
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