This week, Idaho Capital Sun reporter Kyle Pfannenstiel talks with producer Ruth Brown about a new residential facility that the Idaho Youth Ranch plans to open. It's the first in-state care residential facility for children with psychiatric needs. You’ll also hear from an interview with Idaho Youth Ranch CEO Scott Curtis from 2022, talking about plans for the residential facility.

This week, we're bringing you a snapshot of the water supply in Idaho from the Governor's Water Summit, where water users and policy makers gathered at the state capitol to discuss water issues. Idaho Department of Water Resources technical hydrologist David Hoekema gave an overview of surface water and drought conditions, and hydrologist Dennis Owsley gave a snapshot of the groundwater in the different aquifers across the state.

The growing needs of Idaho’s criminal justice system have concerned policymakers and legislators in recent years. But criminal justice is about more than just bed space. Lauren Bailey and Mackenzie Moss, analysists with the Idaho Legislature’s Office of Performance Evaluations, join Logan Finney to discuss the process of returning to the community when one exits the state’s criminal justice system.

The West Bonner School District has been rocked by controversy and contentious board meetings after trustees named a new superintendent last month. Since the hiring of Branden Durst, a former Democratic state lawmaker and Republican candidate for Superintendent of Public Instruction, some patrons have even gotten a recall election on the ballot for two trustees. Kevin Richert of Idaho Education News joins Logan Finney this week to break down the story, as well as what it reveals about finding qualified staff to work in rural school districts.

State and provincial leaders from the northwestern U.S. and Canada gathered in Boise this week for the annual summit of PNWER, the Pacific Northwest Economic Region. Bruce Agnew, director of the Regional Infrastructure Accelerator at the organization, sat down with Logan Finney this week at the conference to talk about the future of transportation infrastructure in the northwest region.

Earlier this week, ACLU of Idaho released a report detailing findings after an investigation into allegations of racism against Latino students in some of Idaho’s school districts. On this week’s Idaho Reports podcast, ACLU of Idaho’s Legal Fellow Erica Rodarte Costa joins to discuss the report’s findings and recommendations.

View the report: https://www.acluidaho.org/en/campaigns/education-equity-latinx-students-idaho

Idaho Reports reached out to the Nampa and Caldwell school districts for a response, which is included here on our website: https://blog.idahoreports.idahoptv.org/2023/07/13/idaho-reports-podcast-erica-rodarte-costa-aclu-discusses-allegations-of-racism-in-school-dress-codes/

Break: Happy July 4th! by Idaho Public Television

Our state is a destination for summer recreation and holiday celebrations. Ahead of July 4th weekend, Kootenai County Sheriff Bob Norris issued an advisory reminding out-of-state visitors that they can (and will) face consequences for possession of controlled substances.

"This isn't Spokane," Norris told Idaho Reports. "You're not going to get a pamphlet on where to get help. You're likely to go to jail."

However, the sheriff's public service announcement also included a note for Idaho lawmakers: a call to give counties local option taxing authority to fund public safety operations rather than relying solely on property taxes.

Daniel Strawn, professor of environmental soil chemistry from the University of Idaho, joins Logan Finney to discuss his research in using biochar to capture nutrients from wastewater and distribute them back into the soil. They also discuss a paper he recently published in collaboration with the Canadian Light Source and the University of Saskatchewan that showed how the biochar and particular minerals interacted, allowing them to refine the process.

An Idaho man was arrested last Friday after early morning reports of gunshots fired at power substations at the the Hells Canyon and Brownlee dams. We examine Idaho's energy grid resilience with Will Hart from the Idaho Consumer Owned Utilities Association and Richard Stover from the Governor's Office of Energy and Mineral Resources.

Read more about the incident from the Idaho Statesman: https://www.idahostatesman.com/news/local/crime/article276338786.html