Kevin’s blog

Expert analysis and the latest news from award-winning journalist Kevin Richert.

The dark art of ‘radiator capping’

A school safety bill appears dead. A once-defeated school labor bill may rise from the dead. Confusing? Yes. So here is a quick civics lesson, Statehouse style.

Old news? Four-day schools’ savings modest

The State Department of Education studied four-day school calendars and cost savings for school districts — in 2008. A recent newspaper story is bringing this five-year-old study some new attention.

How iPads fit into a budget battle

The Senate is fixing for a fight Wednesday over the 2013-14 public schools budget. And one small-town elementary school’s technology program appears to be in the midst of the battle.

A little more off-season activity?

If you’re keeping score, there may be four education-related committees to watch this summer. Legislators could spend the summer studying the transfer of federal lands to state ownership.

State cabin leaseholders get a reprieve

Rising payments to the state’s land endowment could drive some leaseholders to walk away from their lakeside cabins. So the Idaho Department of Lands is trying to cushion the blow.

Senate amends charter bill — significantly

Never underestimate what can happen when lawmakers can amend a high-profile bill. On Wednesday, the Senate struck down language that was near and dear to charter school advocates.

The school budget hide-and-seek

The 2013-14 public school budget bill surfaced Wednesday. The 2012-13 public school budget fix went back into hiding. What does it all mean?

Mat Erpelding’s old-school debate

A lawmaker argues against a bill that would provide income tax credits for private school scholarship — with a shout out to the nuns from his Catholic school.

In the Nampa district, the other shoe drops

Less than a week after voters approved a $4.3 million school levy, Nampa school administrators are planning to close an elementary school to balance the district’s books.

Referendum rewrite heads to House floor

The Idaho Farm Bureau says it has been working on a bill to tighten the initiative and referendum process since 2012 — before Idaho voters passed Propositions 1, 2 and 3. The House could vote on the idea this week.