Illegal Immigration, Taxes and Federal Power Addressed by State Legislators at Town Hall
Legislators from District 9 met with voters Saturday morning at the Coffee Cabin in Midvale for an hour. They were freshman Senator Brandon Shippy, freshman Representative John Shirts, and veteran Representative Judy Boyle.
All three were sworn into office on December 5 after attending a week of organizational and orientation meetings. Mock sessions were held for the newcomers, as well as training on how to handle lobbyists and workplace expectations.
Shippy listed his committee assignments as Senate State Affairs, Senate Health & Welfare and vice chair of Senate Judiciary & Rules. Shippy has some seniority in committee assignments as he has been serving in office since he was appointed by Governor Brad Lyttle in July after Abbey Lee resigned. One of his interim committee assignments deals with artificial intelligence and its potential for harm on both ethics and finance. He said senators get to choose which seat they will use in the chamber so he picked the empty one in the middle of several democrats.
Shirts listed his committees as House Ag, House Revenue & Taxation and House Judiciary and Rules. He was pleased that both he and Shippy are on Judiciary and Rules committees so they can compare bills from each the two chambers. That committee primarily deals with law enforcement.
Boyle is now on House State Affairs, House Transportation and House Natural Resources. She is also co-chair of the Federalist Committee which works with the Forest Service. She was asked what the state is doing to deal with the lack of forest management by the federal government which results in annual fires. She referred to the Good Neighbor Authority which permits 25 percent of forest lands to be harvested for management and timber sales. Part of her efforts in dealing with the federal government is to show them that Idaho is capable of managing the forest.
Shippy explained the process by which state legislators receive pay raises. The governor appoints a citizens’ committee to examine the issue and their recommendation is sent to the House and Senate which can accept the recommendation, reject it or ask for a smaller raise. They cannot request a higher one.
Property taxes were addressed. Boyle explained that the state has been sending funds to taxing districts to reduce the burden on the property owners, but the level of taxation is set by the voters of each taxing district. It is referred to as local control. To effect change the voters must deal with their local elected officials.
When the grocery tax issue was brought up it was referred to as the most immoral tax by one of those in attendance. District 9 has long been an opponent of the tax since it is next to Oregon which has none. Shippy did bring up that even after the state issues refunds of the tax, there are millions of dollars of revenue to the state from all those travelers who pass through the state who do not get refunds. He also mentioned that he thinks property tax is the most immoral tax there is since the owners have paid for their property.
The question of how to deal with illegal immigrants was brought up. Shirts, a lawyer, was adamant about prosecuting them, which he was able to do under the former Trump administration, but not as many under the current one. He also addressed the issue of illegal drugs being brought into the country which are ultimately traced back to China as the supplier to the cartels. As for legalizing certain drugs, he said an emphatic “No!” using the example of what that has been done to Ontario, Oregon.
On the question of a constitutional convention, another emphatic “No!” was heard from Boyle. She mentioned that Congress would have too much control, which she does not trust. Shippy shared that he almost daily receives e-mails from supporters of a con-con from all over Dist. 9.
The Coffee Cabin meeting was organized by the Washington County Republican Central Committee chair Chris Christofferson of Weiser. The group were on their way to two other Saturday meetings further south in the district, which extends as far as Greenleaf.
