The clock is ticking on this year’s legislative session, and lawmakers are rapidly passing a number of bills. What’s left for them to address? Major property tax relief and full day kindergarten – some of the biggest talkers of the last few months. Betsy Russell of the Idaho Press helps break down the week, and Rep. Fred Wood gives his take on the state of rural health care.

Friday evening was the candidate filing deadline for statewide and legislative offices. Melissa Davlin and Ruth Brown break down the early results, from familiar names on the ballot to future impacts at the statehouse.

A number of controversial legislative proposals are dying quiet deaths without hearings in the Idaho Senate. Plus, Garth Taylor of the University of Idaho explains how the war in Ukraine is affecting Idaho agriculture, and Sen. Peter Riggs discusses his proposed changes to civil commitment.

The state saw encouraging news this week as the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported Thursday that the statewide test positivity rate had dropped to 3.7%, down from last week’s 6.2%. That meets the state’s longtime goal of keeping the rate below 5% and is the lowest the rate has been at since June of 2021.

The state’s all-time high test positivity rate was nearly 38% back in January.

Gov. Brad Little announced this week that he plans to lift the state’s emergency disaster declaration on April 15. That comes after having a declaration in place since 2020. The declaration made Idaho eligible for federal emergency assistance in a time of crisis.

While infection numbers are dropping, Idaho nears a grim milestone. The state nears 5,000 COVID-19 deaths, reporting 4,814 deaths as of Thursday. Nationwide, the death toll nears 1 million, as more than 965,000 COVID deaths had been reported across the country on Thursday.

Senate President Pro Tem Chuck Winder, Senate Minority Leader Michelle Stennett, and House Minority Leader Ilana Rubel answered questions from reporters about sales and property taxes, higher education funding They also covered controversial bills regarding libraries and gender-affirming healthcare for minors.

It’s been a big legislative session for education issues, but some major proposals, like full-day kindergarten, still don’t have consensus. Rep. Judy Boyle, Rep. John McCrostie, and Sen. Jim Woodward join us to give us their take.

In a sign of good news, the Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported Thursday that the statewide test positivity rate had dropped to 6.2%, down from last week’s 10%, nearly meeting the goal of keeping the rate below 5%. The state’s all-time high was nearly 38% in January.

The number of available ICU beds statewide has also increased. On Thursday, there were 48 available ICU beds in Idaho. Back on Feb. 24 there were just 10 available ICU beds.

Gov. Brad Little told the Idaho Press Club this week that he hopes to end the state’s emergency disaster declaration soon, but Idaho still needs the federal emergency resources that assist with health care staff and other labor shortages.

As of Friday, the declaration was still active. But, the Idaho Legislature is trying to shut it down through a concurrent resolution, but some lawmakers are concerned it would jeopardize needed federal emergency funding.

For more on that, visit the Idaho Reports blog at idahoptv.org/idahoreports

On Wednesday morning, Gov. Brad Little met virtually with members of the Idaho Press Club. He answered questions from the press ranging from coronavirus issues to election laws and pending legislation.

The Idaho Department of Health and Welfare reported Thursday that the statewide test positivity rate had dropped to 10%, down from last week’s updated 16.4%. This is progress, despite still being above the state’s goal of keeping the rate at 5% or less.

While the state is not operating under crisis standards of care, the number of open ICU beds at Idaho hospitals remains low. On Thursday, the state only had 10 available ICU beds statewide.

The state also announced this week that less than half of Idaho Medicaid participants are vaccinated for COVID, so testing is critical. Up to 12 tests per person per month are covered by Medicaid, according to the state. The COVID-19 vaccine is free to everyone, regardless of health insurance status.

“I can’t believe we’re here,” more than one legislator noted this week while discussing COVID vaccines and business interests. Idaho reporters will fill you in on what we might expect out of this legislative session: Betsy Russell of the Idaho Press, James Dawson of Boise State Public Radio, and Bill Spence of the Lewiston Tribune join Logan Finney to discuss wide ranging legislative proposals.