Input wanted on state rules
BLANCHARD — The Idaho Department of Administration has 612 pages of new rules and regulations up for citizen review this month, and Idaho Rep. Heather Scott, R-Blanchard is calling on citizens across Bonner and Boundary counties to contact the department about whether the rules will help or hinder Idahoans.
State law requires proposed rules, fees, and regulations to be negotiated with citizens, she said, and without input from local citizens these proposals will take effect next spring as they currently stand.
“As an Idaho state representative of the people, I am contacted daily by concerned citizens wanting answers to questions ranging from potholes; school curriculum; healthcare; closed access to our public lands, and the list goes on and on. All of these issues have one thing in common; they have become part of our daily lives because we have allowed (through choice or complacency) our government to take the lead on managing problems for us. Many times, we don’t like the results of government intrusions but are not willing to get involved. The republic we live in was designed to be governed by bottom up control where citizens are to meant to lead and the government is meant to abide by our directions; not the other way around.”
Each proposed new rule is listed in an administrative bulletin published the first Wednesday of each month by the Idaho Department of Administration, and lists a point of contact, phone number, and email address to which to send public comments. No public hearings on the proposed rules will occur unless at least 25 individuals, a political subdivision, or an agency requests a hearing in writing by the middle of each month. In October, the deadline is today, Oct. 18. All written comments must be delivered by late in the month, such as Oct. 25 in October.
The proposed rules run the whole gamut of life from rules governing high school diplomas, big game hunt tags, soil phosphorus standards for dairy farms, and confidential visitors allowed at juvenile detention centers. With the help of volunteers, Scott compiles a summary of each month’s administrative bulletin for her legislative update subscribers. To sign up, go to repheatherscott.com.
“I encourage each of you to get involved and help me to return Idaho to a true bottom up driven republic where you the citizen, not lobbyists, bureaucrats and elected officials, control your government,” Scott said. “Involvement and education are the surest ways to protect, preserve and promote liberty and freedom in Idaho and America while stopping government overreach.”
Information: adminrules.idaho.gov/bulletin/2017/10.pdf.