Idaho Bills

Amends existing law to revise Legislative Account distributions.

Funding for the Idaho Senate and House of Representatives is paid from the Legislative Account, which is authorized in Section 67-451, Idaho Code. The State Controller is directed to make four transfers from the General Fund into the account totaling $6,755,000 annually. A statutory change is required to increase the amount that is transferred each year and this legislation would increase the transfers by $1,756,000 annually. This would increase the annual total amount to $8,511,000, which is a 26% increase. This increase is necessary becauseyear-endfundbalanceshavebeendecliningsignificantlyoverthepastseveralyearsduetoanincreased numberofinterimcommittees, workinggroups, andaspecialsession. Previousincreaseswere29%inFY2002 and 21% in FY 2009. Based upon agreements between the Senate and House of Representatives, the Senate receives 37% of the transfers and the House receives 63%. The funds are perpetually appropriated and do not revert back to the General Fund at the end of each fiscal year. This bill includes an emergency clause which would make the increased transfers effective retroactively to January 1, 2021.

States findings of the Legislature and approves the recess of the First Regular Session of the Sixty-sixth Idaho Legislature, May 6 through May 11, reconvening on May 12.

Stating the findings of the Legislature and providing that no vouchered or unvouchered expense allowance shall be payable to any member of the legislature for any time period during a temporary adjournment following the passage of three days from the date of adoption of this concurrent resolution without the approval of the president pro tempore of the senate or the Speaker of the House of Representatives respectively.

This concurrent resolution provides that upon any temporary adjournment, no unvouchered or vouchered expense allowance shall be payable to any member of the Legislature.

States findings of the Legislature and proposes an amendment to the Constitution of the state of Idaho to establish provisions regarding convening the Legislature for special or organizational sessions.

The Joint Resolution amends the Idaho Constitution to allow the Legislature to convene itself into an extraordinary session within 15 days of a written request of 60% each of the House and Senate membership. It also describes the convening of the organizational session at the beginning of each legislative term including specific restrictions in the process for calling a special session.