Idaho Couple Wins WOTUS Case
The US Supreme Court sided with an Idaho couple that had sought to build a home on their property but were prohibited by the Environmental Protection Agency due to their property being labeled as a protected wetland. The ruling by the Court also overturned Biden Administration rules on the ‘Waters of the United States’ (WOTUS) that opponents had complained were giving the federal government too much influence on what falls under the Clean Water Act.
The Biden Administration and environmental groups were disappointed with the ruling while Idaho Reps Crapo, Simpson and Fulcher as well as Governor Little and Attorney General Labrador all praised the decision.
IFF Releases LEAD Tool for Education Data
The Idaho Freedom Foundation, a conservative government watchdog group, has developed a graphical tool to drill down into performance data on many of the state’s school districts. This provides details on academic performance, spending per pupil, and reports of CSJ (critical social justice) incidents.
CBDC?
A Central Bank Digital Currency (CBDC) has garnered considerable attention of late. The cryptocurrency revolution that began years ago as a means of eliminating the middleman in a transaction (and thus the associated fees) has since evolved and piqued the interest of government getting into the mix. In essence, the government becomes the middleman and can determine whether or not transaction fees would apply to common government transactions like paying income tax, sales tax, etc…
Critics warn that this would give government more control of your finances and open the door to levying fees or penalties for a variety of issues for political reasons.
Many states are pursuing or wrestling with legislation to limit or prohibit CBDCs. Idaho has yet to make any concrete moves but there will probably be some bills addressing it in the next legislative session.
Governor Visits Border
Governor Little is visiting the border in Texas. This follows a visit by an Idaho State Police contingent sent to learn about the latest methods employed by drug and human traffickers at the border. The lessons learned will be taught to other law enforcement in Idaho. Combatting fentanyl and other opiods has been a recurring issue voiced by the Governor.
DeSantis Presidential Campaign is Official
The Florida Governor officially entered the 2024 Presidential race on Wednesday with a Twitter Spaces event. Polling shows a 30 point gap between Trump and DeSantis, though DeSantis is solidly in 2nd place.