A Statehouse battle over pandemic response is escalating. But most of Idaho’s coronavirus metrics appear to be leveling off.

New case numbers are down significantly from last week — defying forecasts that warned of a post-holiday surge.

Deaths are down significantly as well.

And the same goes for new hospitalization numbers.

As of Friday afternoon, the state and its seven health districts reported 158,956 confirmed or probable coronavirus cases, a 3 percent increase over the past week.

The raw number of new cases — a seven-day total of 4.293 — receded to a three-month low. From Oct. 3 to 9, the state reported 4,017 new cases.

Earlier Friday, however, Gov. Brad Little accused lawmakers of spreading misinformation about Idaho’s pandemic policy — and threatening to undermine the state’s efforts to curb the deadly virus.

Fellow Republicans in the House and Senate are pushing legislation to rescind Little’s coronavirus emergency declarations. Echoing other state officials, Little says the legislation could jeopardize millions of dollars of federal aid, and delay the state vaccine rollout.

At least 1,400 K-12 teachers have received the vaccine, and earlier this week, Little deployed an additional 150 Idaho National Guard troops to help ramp up the state’s efforts.

Lawmakers have challenged the state’s coronavirus response on multiple fronts, proposing legislation to carve out a larger role in future emergencies. One proposal would rescind Little’s restrictions on public gatherings. In response, Little and the State Board of Education have again relaxed spectator limits for school sporting events.

Here are this week’s numbers, and comparisons with the previous week:

Weekly positive test rate, as reported by the state: 11.4 percent for week ending Jan. 16, unchanged from the week ending Jan. 9.