News

Winter weather conditions have trapped air pollution near the ground.

Much of the pollution contains fine particles from burning wood. Those fine particles can cause lung and heart damage. The conditions have led to temporary bans on wood burning stoves and outdoor fires.

An Oregonian is among the three Americans who died after militants took over a natural gas plant in Algeria, according to federal officials.

Gordon Rowan from the small eastern Oregon town of Sumpter died toward the end of the Algerian hostage standoff. That’s according to congressman Greg Walden and officials at the US State Department.

There were no immediate details of how Rowan died.

Year after year, Idaho gets slapped with an unwelcome designation: It's one of the states where women earn the least compared to men.

A recent study of the “gender wage gap” came from the National Women's Law Center, and found the typical woman worker in Idaho earns 75.2 cents for every dollar earned by her male counterpart.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — House and Senate education committees will hold a "listening hearing" on Feb. 1, an opportunity for the public to weigh at the Legislature just months after public schools chief Tom Luna's overhaul went down to defeat.

Leaders of the panels in both chambers announced the session on Monday.

It's due to run between 8 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. in the Capitol's basement auditorium.

House Education Committee Chairman Reed DeMordaunt said he wants to invite everyone to share their thoughts on improving Idaho's public schools.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho could be the next western state to engage in a public lands fight with the federal government.

Last year, Utah and Arizona passed legislation demanding the federal government turn over control of millions of acres of public acreage in those states. Utah's governor signed the bill, while Arizona's was vetoed by Gov. Jan Brewer.

On Monday, the Utah legislator who led passage of that state's bill urged Idaho lawmakers take the same step toward managing public land in its borders.

Over the past decade, the student makeup at Boise State University has changed.  That’s the word from President Bob Kustra, who made his pitch for more money from the Idaho Legislature today.

Kustra showed budget lawmakers a series of statistics about Boise State that have changed from 2001 to now.  He says back then, the school had a different make up of students. 

At the Idaho Legislature they call this Education week. The state’s education leaders go before budget writers to make the case for why they should get the money they’ve asked for. For the first few days it’s higher education. Monday morning presidents from Boise State and Idaho State are in the hot seat. So forget cross state sports rivalries, this is true high stakes competition.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Phone companies aim to lift Idaho's 13-year-old restriction forbidding them from cold-calling existing customers, arguing it's crippling their ability to market high-speed Internet.

But Attorney General Lawrence Wasden is already criticizing the push, arguing residents who joined Idaho's million-number "Do Not Call" list shouldn't have to fear erosions of their privacy.

Land-line companies Frontier Communications and Century Link are lobbying for the changes during the 2013 session.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — The J.A. and Kathryn Albertson Foundation is threatening to withhold $4.5 million it's promised to Idaho next year for a computer program to track student progress.

The foundation in Boise says the money now won't be paid unless Idaho restores taxpayer funding for teacher professional development — money put in jeopardy when voters rejected public schools chief Tom Luna's Students Come First overhaul Nov. 6.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — Idaho lawmakers are gearing up for the debate over gun legislation and school security.

This week, House Speaker Scott Bedke informally assigned Republican Rep. Judy Boyle of Midvale to be the point person on all legislation related to firearms and school security emerging from the chamber.

The Idaho Statesman reports Republican Sen. Marv Hagedorn of Eagle is leading a similar effort in the Senate.

The man accused of killing a monkey during a break in at Boise’s zoo appeared in court Thursday. Michael Watkins of Wieser asked the judge for two more weeks to consider his options before entering a plea.

His public defender says Watkins entered the zoo early one morning in November and let the monkey out of its enclosure, but the monkey then attacked him.  The animal later died from injuries caused by blunt trauma.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin has joined several other Oregon sheriffs in sending a letter to Vice President Joe Biden. He and sheriffs from Grant, Linn and Crook Counties oppose potential federal laws that could affect law-abiding gun owners.

The sheriffs say they will not enforce laws that they believe violate the 2nd amendment to the constitution. Sheriff Hanlin says he has heard from Douglas County residents who are concerned about how they would be affected if gun control measures were enacted.  "People were getting fairly anxious about that."

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — A lawmaker from northern Idaho drew audible gasps when he asked representatives from the American Civil Liberties Union-Idaho if their pro-abortion rights stance also means that they support prostitution.

Rep. Ron Mendive, R-Coeur d'Alene, made the comparison Wednesday morning during a legislative breakfast presentation held by the ACLU on criminal justice reform and other issues.

BOISE, Idaho (AP) — U.S. Reps. Mike Simpson and Raul Labrador say they are withholding judgment on a series of gun proposals issued by President Obama — at least for now.

The Idaho Republicans say they want to take some time to review the proposals, including 23 separate executive orders issued Wednesday.

Simpson says he doesn't see any momentum building in Congress for more gun control measures. And Labrador says he will continue to defend the 2nd Amendment and make sure Obama's proposals don't infringe on the right to bear arms.

The Nampa School District will ask voters for an extra $4.3 million in March. The district’s board voted Tuesday night to ask for a one year supplemental levy to help fill its budget hole. The deficit was discovered last summer and blamed on accounting errors.

Idaho voters sent a clear message to policymakers when they struck down a trio of education laws last November. Those laws known as “Students Come First” would have increased technology in classrooms, limited collective bargaining rights for teachers and more.

A recent merger of two Wood River Valley arts groups has created the largest organization of its kind in Idaho. The merger includes Company of Fools theater company in Hailey and Sun Valley Center for the Arts in Ketchum.

John Glenn is with Company of Fools.  He's thrilled about the merger.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports the flu is now widespread in 47 states, including Idaho.  Doctor Leslie Tengelsen is Idaho’s deputy state epidemiologist.  She says the flu season has arrived early this year.  

Idaho will get a $26.6 million infusion from the federal government this month. That comes from the one year reauthorization of the Secure Rural Schools Act. That law gives money to states for roads and schools in counties that have lost money due to declines in the timber industry.

The 2000 law expired early last year and congress didn't renew it until July. That delayed payments to many areas that rely on the money for school budgets.