Wednesday - September 23, 2026

Public Policy Tipoffs Involving Idaho

16 items
A Message from the Chair: An endorsement is no substitute for answering to voters
BOISE, Idaho, Sept. 18 -- The Idaho Democratic Party issued the following news: * * * A Message from the Chair: An endorsement is no substitute for answering to voters * Any worthy candidate takes the time to understand the challenges facing Idaho families, businesses and communities and the solutions needed. They should have a plan and tell voters what they will do about it. But that is not what we are seeing from some Republican campaigns in Idaho. I recently came across an ad from a lon  more
Armstrong appoints Jennifer Turnbow to lead ND Department of Environmental Quality
BISMARCK, North Dakota, Sept. 18 -- Gov. Kelly Armstrong, R-North Dakota, issued the following news: * * * Armstrong appoints Jennifer Turnbow to lead ND Department of Environmental Quality * BISMARCK, N.D. - Gov. Kelly Armstrong today appointed Jennifer Turnbow, senior director of business operations and field services at Ulteig Engineers, to lead the North Dakota Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ), citing her extensive experience with environmental services and state government duri  more
Crapo and Wyden Report Legislative Text of Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act
WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: * * * September 17,2026 Crapo and Wyden Report Legislative Text of Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act Finance-passed policies would modernize IRS operations, strengthen taxpayer rights Washington, D.C.-- U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) today announced the Committee has reported the legislative text  more
Crapo and Wyden Report Legislative Text of Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act
WASHINGTON, Sept. 17 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: * * * Crapo and Wyden Report Legislative Text of Taxpayer Assistance and Service Act * Washington, D.C.-U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) and Ranking Member Ron Wyden (D-Oregon) today announced the Committee has reported the legislative text of the Taxpayer Assistance and Service (TAS) Act, which it overwhelmingly approved in July. The TAS Act would modernize Internal Revenue Servic  more
Crapo Announces Finance Committee Staff Updates
WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: * * * Crapo Announces Finance Committee Staff Updates * Washington, D.C.-U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) today announced the following staff updates: Kennedy Cummins, Professional Staff Member Kennedy joins the Committee from Chairman Crapo's personal office, where she worked on international trade issues as a legislative correspondent. She previously interned at JRC Land and Le  more
Crapo Announces Finance Committee Staff Updates
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 -- Sen. Mike Crapo, R-Idaho, chairman of the Senate Finance Committee, issued the following news release: * * * September 18,2026 Crapo Announces Finance Committee Staff Updates Washington, D.C.--U.S. Senate Finance Committee Chairman Mike Crapo (R-Idaho) today announced the following staff updates: Kennedy Cummins, Professional Staff Member Kennedy joins the Committee from Chairman Crapo's personal office, where she worked on international trade issues as a legislativ  more
Department of Justice Charges 16 Individuals for Illegal Voting and Related Election Crimes
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 -- The U.S. Department of Justice issued the following news release: * * * Department of Justice Charges 16 Individuals for Illegal Voting and Related Election Crimes September 18, 2026 Today, the Justice Department announced charges against 16 individuals in connection with illegal voting, illegal voter registration, and related election-fraud schemes across the country. The charges include unlawful voting by non-citizens in federal elections, false claims of citizenshi  more
Huntsman Cancer Institute: BICEPS Grants Advance Engineering Innovations in Cancer Care and Early Detection
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah, Sept. 19 -- Huntsman Cancer Institute at the University of Utah, the designated National Cancer Institute Comprehensive Cancer Center for Utah, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Wyoming, issued the following news release: * * * BICEPS Grants Advance Engineering Innovations in Cancer Care and Early Detection Sep 18, 2026 Takeaways: * Seven interdisciplinary teams received funding through the Bioscientific Innovations from Cancer Engineering Partnerships (BICEPS) program. * BI  more
Idaho Labor Dept.: Idaho's August Unemployment Rate Remains at 3.6%
BOISE, Idaho, Sept. 19 -- The Idaho Department of Labor issued the following news release: * * * Idaho's August unemployment rate remains at 3.6% Sept. 18, 2026 Idaho's seasonally adjusted unemployment rate was unchanged between July and August, staying at 3.6%. August's labor force decreased by 486 people to 998,378 while the labor force participation rate - the percentage of people 16 years or older who are either employed or looking for work - decreased by 0.1 percentage point between Ju  more
IdahoSTARS receives $14.6 million to strengthen Idaho child care
MOSCOW, Idaho, Sept. 18 -- The University of Idaho issued the following news release: * * * IdahoSTARS receives $14.6 million to strengthen Idaho child care * MOSCOW, Idaho -University of Idaho's Idaho Center on Disabilities and Human Development (CDHD) has received a $14.6 million contract for IdahoSTARS to continue and expand its long-standing work to improve the quality of child care in Idaho. "This award reflects more than two decades of partnership with Idaho's child care community," s  more
Justice Department Expands Tribal Access Program to Improve the Exchange of Critical Data With Federally Recognized Tribes
WASHINGTON, Sept. 19 -- The U.S. Department of Justice issued the following news release: * * * Justice Department Expands Tribal Access Program to Improve the Exchange of Critical Data with Federally Recognized Tribes September 18, 2026 With this expansion, TAP now supports 159 Tribes and more than 500 Tribal government agencies. - The Justice Department has selected seven additional federally recognized Tribes to participate in the continued expansion of the Tribal Access Program for Nat  more
National Association of State Energy Officials: First Mover States Idaho, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia Selected by DOE as Potential Host States for Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses
ARLINGTON, Virginia, Sept. 18 -- The National Association of State Energy Officials posted the following news: * * * First Mover States Idaho, Louisiana, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Utah, West Virginia Selected by DOE as Potential Host States for Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses September 17, 2026 By Kirsten Verclas, NASEO The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced the selection of potential host states for Nuclear Lifecycle Innovation Campuses, integrated, full-cycle nuclear ecosystems. I  more
Pennant Group Urges Clarification and Caution on CMS Proposed Rule Changes to Protect Access and Ensure Fair Oversight
WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 -- In response to a federal agency request for information, the following public comment letter was submitted electronically to the regulations.gov site. Pennant 1675 E Riverside Dr., 200, Eagle, Idaho 83616 T 208.401.1400 Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services Department of Health and Human Services Attention: CMS-1844-P P.O. Box 8010 Baltimore, MD 21244-1850 Re: Comment to CMS regarding Calendar Year 2027 Home Health Prospective Payment System (HH PPS) Rate U  more
Rep. Simpson Supports Imposing Additional Sanctions on Russia
WASHINGTON, Sept. 18 -- Rep. Mike Simpson, R-Idaho, issued the following news release: * * * Rep. Simpson Supports Imposing Additional Sanctions on Russia * WASHINGTON-Idaho Congressman Mike Simpson supported the Lindsey O. Graham Sanctioning Russia and Iran Act. This bill establishes new mandatory sanctions and economic restrictions targeting the Russian Federation and supports President Trump's efforts to achieve peace in the Russia-Ukraine war. The legislation also extends the Iran Sancti  more
Texas A&M Engineering: Retired Nuclear Engineering Graduate Gives Back to Department
COLLEGE STATION, Texas, Sept. 18 -- The Texas A&M University College of Engineering issued the following news: * * * Retired nuclear engineering graduate gives back to department Dennis Meier '76 and his wife Donna have established the Donna and Dennis Meier '76 Endowed Nuclear Engineering Scholarship to support future Texas A&M engineers. Sep. 18, 2026 By Alicia Venegas, Contributor Dennis Meier '76, a Bryan-College Station native, is investing in Texas A&M University's Department of Nucl  more
U of I grad student studies new approach to dairy calf feeding
MOSCOW, Idaho, Sept. 18 -- The University of Idaho issued the following news release: * * * U of I grad student studies new approach to dairy calf feeding * A University of Idaho graduate student's research could help a large Mountain Home dairy reduce the time calves require to mature into productive herd members by changing the way they are fed. Katie Corder-Steiner, of Mountain Home, is pursuing a master's degree in animal science, and her thesis project is aimed at eliminating a one- to  more