Legislative news

[RingoShirl@aol.com]

Let me begin with news that is not related to legislative activities.  I am 
the proud grandmother of one Sadie Rae Ringo, born on Feb. 24, weighing in at 
8 pounds six ounces.  Her parents are my son and daughter-in-law, Shawn Ringo 
and Margaret Schell.  His eight year old sister, Christine, is quite pleased. 
 From all reports she is a keeper.

The direction that seems to be taken as far as the budget is concerned 
continues to be troublesome to me.  Aside from the end result we may see, the 
process is difficult.  First, dealing with education---there was considerable 
discussion and testimony surrounding exiting standards for high school 
graduates.  My constant theme during discussion hammered on the fact that the 
program must be funded, or it will be a disaster.  This week, joint finance 
committee first entertained a motion to appropriate no money ($0) for the 
testing required to implement the standards.  That motion died on a 10-10 
tie.  Then a motion was passed to give less than half of the funding 
requested for the testing.  The house education committee had recommended 
full funding.  I think this is a clear signal that my worst fears may be 
realized---the teachers and students will be expected to carry out a very 
challenging program with minimal support.  There are some procedural moves we 
can try, but I'm not certain we can change this result.

There are two target proposals I have seen from the finance committee, both 
of which include substantial tax cuts.  I think there may be areas where we 
would look at tax cuts instances where people need relief, and in instances 
of unfairness, but in my opinion these proposals are completely 
irresponsible.  There are too many areas needing support.  We'll see how this 
develops.  If you have opinions you'd like to express, messages to members of 
the joint finance committee might be helpful at this time.

We passed a bill relating to adoptions this week that you may find of 
interest.  It is modeled after legislation from New York and Utah.  It 
involves conceptions out of wedlock, and essentially makes it very difficult 
for the father of the child to have a part in adoption decisions.  If you are 
interested in reading it, it is HB506.  (The Senate has yet to consider this 
bill.)  The sponsors of the bill indicate it has passed constitutional muster 
in New York and Utah, but my attorney connections tell me it hasn't been 
fully challenged.  The argument on the floor seemed to revolve around the 
idea that a male who fathers a child out of wedlock is for the most part an 
irresponsible person who would not care about his child.

I would encourage you to go to the Idaho Legislature home page, if you have 
an interest, and see what is there that may be of concern to you.  I try to 
anticipate contact folks in anticipation of issues that may involve them, but 
I'm sure I don't get them all.  My number in Boise is 332-1248.

The house passed legislation to redistribute sales tax.  I didn't like it 
completely, because the communities that are probably getting a larger share 
than they should now, according to "fairness", are those communities that are 
struggling.  However, the proposal was the result of an interim study, and 
Latah County stands to gain some dollars from it.

Best wishes to all of you.

Shirley Ringo
Rep. Distr. 5

PS  Tom Trail intends to return to the floor next Monday.  Hope not too 
soon---I'll keep an eye on him.